"Member" Post, aka A Downswing Compendium

[Darth Poker]

I dont intend that this post will be the end-all be-all of downswing posts - in fact, I think Baluga Whale wrote a damn fine downswing post that all SSNL'ers should read. It's that good. The point of this post is more that I hope that alot of different posters will see one or two things here that will really help then cope with/pull through a downswing with as much of their bankroll intact as possible. I am currently enduring a -9.9 PTBB/100 swing, and am at roughly hand 3500 of being card dead, being drawn out on, and making stupid plays. Yeah, yeah, I know - "take it to BBV sissy". [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img] Anyways, on with my "Member" post.

Down With Technology
Something I've noticed about myself doing during this - and other smaller - downsing(s) is that I rely far too much on what PAHud tell me. Now, to be fair, PAHud is a fine piece of software and I fully believe that it has a rightful place on any serious poker player's computer. But, as is usually the case with new technology, it has made me lazy - instead of real reads on opponents, I'm multi-tabling my way to bankruptcy relying only on numbers. The rememdy is simple, turn the damn thing off and take notes. Not only will you be getting more detailed information on your opponents, but you will also be closer to that all powerful "feel" for the game that pro players refer to. The numbers allow us to be detached from the game to a degree, making it possible to play 4, 8, or more tables at once while on "auto-pilot" - but I think that this auto-pilot gear also contributes to making us more weak-tight. Yeah, sure you can make money playing 4 tables of weak-tight poker - and if money is all you're after then this may be OK with you - but I feel that you cant really master anything by choosing to cruise through it. If you decide that it's maybe time to put the HUD down and start really learning the game, you'll have to...

Play Fewer Tables
The benefits of playing fewer tables - I actually prefer just playing one, maybe two during a rough patch - are multiple. As I stated before, you can improve your player reads by playing fewer tables, but I also feel that a SSNL'ers hand reading skills should increase greatly, or at the very least you could brush up on them if you're already good. There are times when I'm multi-tabling and involved in a multi-way hand where I cant tell which one of my opponents is on the flush draw - and I know that I can at least partially blame this on the fact that my attention is torn 4 different ways. Also, I'm beginning to believe that while your hourly earn may increase while you're multi-tabling the converse may also be true - you can lose more when you're running badly. The same line of thinking also applies to 6-max players - if you're really running poorly, try playing full ring for awhile. You can escape the rapid blind loss, at least for a little bit longer - and you can also brush up on your full ring skills at the same time, which can prove helpful if you also play live. Also consider dropping down a level or two - your bankroll should be in better shape at the end of the downswing at a lower level than it would be at yoru current level. Remember, poker isnt about pride - to paraphrase Marcellus Wallace from Pulp Fiction, "[censored] pride". Pride doesnt make you money, pride is stubborn and dumb and anti-productive. Be smart, intelligence will get you out of more jams than pride will. In addition, I find that if I'm running badly on many tables, it's worse in my head than it is if I'm only running badly on one table - which leads me to...

Tilt
I dont really think that I have a whole lot to offer on this subject that hasnt been covered better than I could by posters who are better/smarter than I am. Along that line of thinking, I really found Quark's " Control " and beavens' " My Take on Tilt " posts to be excellent. Live it, Love it, Ship it.

Study
While your specific downswing may be most caused by being card dead, face it - you're not perfect. You make stupid plays just like I do, stuff that makes you look in the mirror and just say "WTF?". While it may not bring back your hot run of cards any faster, thorough reading and study sessions will cause you to make less stupid mistakes - thus leading you to curse God less. This is good for you. Hell is hot, so I hear. Read and re-read GSIH, LGB, Harrington, etc. Make sure you really understand the concepts they detail for you. Go into Poker Tracker and study both the hands you won good money in, and the hands you lost good money in. See how you're doing in each position - are you playing too much from early position, are you not raising enough from late position? Are you calling too many raises cold with speculative hands? These are just some of the common mistakes we make that can turn a bad run of cards into you hemmhoraging money like a standard donkey. You dont wanna be a donkey do you? Post hands you have a problem figuring out on your own. Read the hands posted by your peers, and try to think about what you would have done in a given situation and why - then see if what you think corresponds with what the other posters have said. Study more than you play for a week or so - if anything, to bring you farther away from the "tilt ledge", you know, that mental place where if anything goes wrong it'll just start to snowball in your mind. Also, spend some time on introspection - be honest with yourself about why you are where you are. Think about what "tilt" really is to/for you. Think about whether you're even playing the right game - perhaps your natural style is better suited for full ring than it is for 6-max. In short, think about everything.

I really hope that at least one person who read this found something here that will help them become a better SSNL player - and hopfully down the road a better MSNL or HSNL player. Please feel free to add to this, I certainly dont believe this to be the last word on downswings. And, as we are all "at war with luck", I wish you good poker. Thanks for reading this far. [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]

[younghov17]

i disagree with u in regards to poker ace, its there for when u dont have reads.

[Al_Money]

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i disagree with u in regards to poker ace, its there for when u dont have reads.

[/ QUOTE ]

True, but I think OP is saying people rely on PAHUD too much, therefore using it as a substitute for reads and not paying enough attention to the players and only relying on the stats.

[jjigglers]

I disagree in that I think many people here would rather make more $ rather than be a better player.

Interesting post though, well thought out. You have the mental attitude that 90% of the people here would love to have (whether they know it or not).

[Misanthrope]

Ok no more threads about downswings when really you just suck or are playing too high or are playing too many tables. The term downswing is to be reserved for loses caused predominantly by variance. The only people who should be using the word downswing are those who have a long consistent history of winning poker.

Also Baluga's thread isn't about a downswing it is about going busto.

[Darth Poker]

[ QUOTE ]
Also Baluga's thread isn't about a downswing it is about going busto.

[/ QUOTE ]

Is that why it's called "analysis of a downswing"? [img]/images/graemlins/tongue.gif[/img]


[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
i disagree with u in regards to poker ace, its there for when u dont have reads.

[/ QUOTE ]





True, but I think OP is saying people rely on PAHUD too much, therefore using it as a substitute for reads and not paying enough attention to the players and only relying on the stats.

[/ QUOTE ]

This is exactly what I meant. [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]

edited to include the bottom section, and a smiley to misanthrope.

[Misanthrope]

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Is that why it's called "analysis of a downswing"?

[/ QUOTE ]
It should be "analysis of a busto".

[Poker Fool]

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I disagree in that I think many people here would rather make more $ rather than be a better player.

[/ QUOTE ]

I prefer not to think of this as an either or type thing.

I want to be a better player coz it will make me more dollars.

I prefer the win-win sceanrio.

OP had some areas to be thought about.

I know when I am flying "stats free" I seem to be making many more reads on players than I do with "stats on".

I dont think this is an argument for going "stats free" though for these reasons:

I have no choice but to make more reads on players, I got no stats on them.

I also know a lot of the manual reads I am making are very much underlined by the things I have learnt via "stats on" play.

Tilt:
Can really be as subtle as playing marginal hands too aggro, imagining KJ really is a good hand preflop and just consistently reading players wrongly when usually you make good reads.

You dont have to be making those wild muppet tilt moves we all see to actually be in a -EV headspace yourself.

Playing fewer tables:
Maybe, dedpends how many you actually play. I dont think many people need to go lower than 4 though if they know what they are doing, the chances for errors made through sheer tedium is too high. It certainly is for me.

As for study, you dont need to be in a downswing to do that.