What is it about money that brings out the worst in people?

Dov · #1 01-15-2007, 04:55 AM

It seems like poker is emotionally difficult only because it uses money to keep score.

I have noticed that when people play poker for play money or totally insignificant stakes, that they don't get too upset no matter what happens.

As the limits rise, however, this is no longer the case. Even people who are in no way threatened by a loss at a given limit become much more emotionally attached to results of particular hands in a session.

As an example, I was playing in a live 20/40 where one of the players had just hit a big slot machine jackpot (over half a million dollars). He even mentioned that the current game was not going to give him as much of a headache anymore.

It turned out, though, that he still got upset when his big hands got cracked. I asked him why later and he said it was because the pot was so big and he felt he deserved to win it. (I know this is not how winning players see the game. The point is why the money still bothered him so much.)

I know the money didn't matter to him that much anymore, but for that hand, it did.

Why does money retain its hold on our emotions even after we have enough of it?

ludacris · #2 01-15-2007, 05:34 AM

because everyone wants to win. as you move up players get better (usually) and they're usually better because they're competitive and want to be the best.

micros and play money most people are just dumping and gambling, and they're just messing around.

ItzMrFish2U · #3 01-15-2007, 02:12 PM

Currency is the greatest faith based scam known to man. You'll never definitively answer this question. But for the fiercely competitive it's not about the money, it about a burning desire to win and concur (and so the capitalist cycle continues).

Ben K · #4 01-15-2007, 06:39 PM

[ QUOTE ]
Religion is the greatest faith based scam known to man. You'll never definitively answer this question. But for the fiercely competitive it's not about the money, it about a burning desire to win and concur (and so the capitalist cycle continues).

[/ QUOTE ]

Poker's a hard game. It's emotionally difficult for a number of reasons. One of them is because we use money to score, money that if won could change your lifestyle. Another is the fact that you can lose on any given day even when you are a far superior player to everyone around the table. Yet another is the fact that money is an outward symbol of your success as an individual, so when you lose a bunch of chips to the other guy you feel terrible. If that guy in your story had his half mil on the table he wouldn't have been so bothered. I'm sure there are plenty of other reasons why poker so emotionally difficult.

I'm don't think money brings out the worst in people. I may have already hinted toward what does that.

Acein8ter · #5 01-16-2007, 01:04 AM

A lot of people tend to link $$$ with Power. They tend to go hand in hand and there are quite a bit of people that like power. With $$$ and Power, they can also be viewed as celebrities, icons, moguels and may go down in history which some people want.

farmslicer7 · #6 01-16-2007, 01:36 AM

People are competitive. Period.

Reef · #7 01-16-2007, 07:42 AM

[ QUOTE ]
People are competitive. Period.

[/ QUOTE ]

yep.. being up $ at the end of a session = you are a winner and the opposite.

MusashiStyle · #8 01-16-2007, 11:49 AM

from my experience, i know that even after grinding out my 5k roll, I still get upset losing a $100 dollar pot at NL50. Maybe i just need to get used to it, it all depends what your state of mind before any given hand is i've found if ur pissed off before u even sit down to play it will carry over alot.

Dov · #9 01-18-2007, 02:19 AM

[ QUOTE ]
yep.. being up $ at the end of a session = you are a winner and the opposite.

[/ QUOTE ]

This must be why the games are still good, then. I'm starting to think that it is precisely because we play poker with money that people don't understand the game.

This results oriented thinking, is IMHO, the biggest trap in poker. It is the one that everyone falls into from time to time, and some people seem like they'll never get it.

I think that this ability to move beyond results oriented thinking is the primary distinguishing factor between good players who read books and good players who claim not to need books.

But to get back to the point, it looks like if we didn't play for money, more people would be good at poker. It's backward, but it seems right.

Dov

Howard Beale · #10 01-18-2007, 02:54 PM

I don't think money has anything to do with why some people act badly in a poker game. I think it's the frustration, humiliation and embarrassment of not being able to win in front of witnesses (esp. after a hand that the player felt 'entitled' to win gets beat). This affects the losing player's status in the group. He is a loser and is relegated to the bottom of the social scale, at least for now. It takes an experienced player w/ a strong mind and character to shrug the losses off. I think it's the boost that people get from winning money from other individuals (which allows them to feel superior) that keeps them coming back to poker. I'm talking about the amatuers here. If it were just gambling they were interested in they'd be in the pit games or the slots.

My remarks above address the losing player, which is who I assume you were referring to but winning can (and often does) bring out the worst in people too. How often do we see the winners gloat, brag and laugh at the losers? They are fulfilling some need that they can't get elsewhere.

Finally, remember that the players are not amongst their normal social groups and don't need to control themselves to the degree that they otherwise would feel compelled to.