Why do I suck at poker?

[JackAll]

[ QUOTE ]
Thanks. I understand the concept of broll mgmt. I guess my point is that I feel that I cannot play correctly at low limits because the amount of money in play is not meaningful to me. Or rather, that I cannot play correctly over long periods of time at low limits. I can certainly play good over certain periods of time, but whenever i start to lose over an extended period of time, or even in a session, whether through bad play on my part, bad beats, cooles, whatever, my discipline breaks down and sometimes I become a tilt monkey.

[/ QUOTE ]

There are 2 points in that response:

1. Low limits are too boring for you;
2. You tilt after a string of bad beats.


Regarding the first point - this is rediculous. Poker is about odds, semi-bluffing, putting your opponents on hand ranges and representing a stronger hand when your hand is weaker, and repping a weaker hand than them when your hand is stronger. This doesn't change at higher limits. And to be honest, you sound a lot like a gambling addict by saying that the amount of money is not meaningful at lower limits. Moreover, any *SUCCESSFUL* player started at lower limits and made sure they could beat it by being able to build up their bankroll so they could play the next limit without going busto from a string of bad beats. Then they made sure they were good enough to beat that level by winning enough to increase their bankroll to support a try at the next level before moving up with that big enough bankroll such that a string of bad beats wouldn't make them busto there; etc. It sounds like you just jump right in because 50nl *sounds like an interesting amount of money*. Do you see how you disregard skill level by thinking something like that?

Regarding your second point - I have issues with this. After a few bad beats, I may very well make one or two big mistakes which each cost half to a full buy-in. The only solution I found here (since I have no control to leave the table which is obviously the best thing) was to tighten up. Just dump any non-premium hands pre-fllop so that I am much less likely to get into trouble in the first place. Also not bluffing beyond a c-bet in this tilty situation.

[ QUOTE ]
My real question is whether I am making a mistake by putting relatively small amounts of money (to me) online and trying to grind small stakes? Maybe I'm not cut out to grind small stakes because the money is not meaningful to me? I understand that the winrates in poker are low. I don't have expectations of winning lots of money playing $25NL. I guess I am just trying to see if there is anyone out there like me who could not muster the discipline to play properly and grind at low stakes, but who fared better playing at higher stakes where winning or losing a buy-in would be meaningful? Or would I just be setting myself up for disaster?

[/ QUOTE ]

Playing over a limit that you never conquered for at least 20 buy-ins is a mistake. And I don't think your mistakes are because they are small amounts of money. You really need to focus on pot odds, putting opponents on hand ranges, etc., as I said above. $50 buy-in online is as tough as $200 buy-in live in regards to skill. Focus on the game itself and 1bb is still 1bb no matter whether the ig blind is 25c or $10. And for what it's worth, yesterday I went down from my normal limit to play at the same table as a friend of mine who is testing out 50nl after doing well at 25nl and building his roll up (i.e. he has *proof* that he is good enough to beat 25nl). I found that 50nl is filled with quite a few really good players. I can see how a small mistake against a good player can end up costing a lot of bb's. So you don't need many bad beats combined with only a few small mistakes to lose a few buy-ins. Assuming that 50nl is the right place for you because $50 sounds like a *good amount of money* and disregarding skill level of each limit is absurd. Do you see why yet?

[Downbylaw11]

its because you havent eaten enough wheaties, and really studied poker and figured out why certain plays work when the work, and why certain plays backfire.

[Jamougha]

[ QUOTE ]
The two stack off hands that I mentioned went like this: New guy to table raises from EP, I call on button with AK, flop is A23 with 2 suited. He bets, I raise, he minraises, I push, hoping i'm up against AQ, AJ, etc. He shows 22. Pretty standard. Literally 5 or 10 hands later, same guy raises from EP, I call in late position with AQ. FLop is AQ9 with 2 hearts. He bets, I raise, he reraises all in, I call and he shows 99.

[/ QUOTE ]

In both of these you should have reraised preflop if it's 6-max.

Really this is so simple. You are playing poorly, you have no bankroll management and you are tilting. Post more in uNL, read SSNL, deposit a decent bankroll for a given stake and practise some emotional discipline - this itself is a question of practice.

[trouble]

I think evey thing has more or less been covered but personaly i think bank roll management is one if not the most important concepts of becoming a better/winning player
also i found for me when i have a proper bankroll in relation to the stakes i play (personaly 40 buy ins for nl)that i dont tilt when i suffer bad beats im am more concerned that i played the hand correctly i know my bankroll can stand the swings and in the long term of which poker is all about i will profit. I would also suggest if you do deposit a decent bankroll on investing in poker tracker software if you havent already as you can track your results replay hands ect i found i a real help in finding leaks in my game and fixing them sooner than later.
Last of all good luck

[kagame]

get a poker coach

a cheap and easy way to almost do this is to read books by a real poker coach

http://www.pokercoach.us/pokerbooks.html

[e_phemeral]

[ QUOTE ]
Playing over a limit that you never conquered for at least 20 buy-ins is a mistake.

[/ QUOTE ]

I don't think that because I am smart and make a 6 figure salary outside of poker that I should automatically be a solid winning player at poker. Remember that I have been playing now for 2 and 1/2 years. I didn't just start a couple months ago. I read books, I read 2+2, I have pokertracker, I try to improve my game, etc. I just never seem to improve. Instead, I keep putting money online in $200, $250, $300 increments and lose it over the course of a week or two playing $10NL, $25NL, $50NL, etc. When i started 2 plus years ago, I would put the same amounts on but would play much longer on those rolls. Now that I have discovered my inner tilt monkey, I seem to p*ss through it fairly quickly.

Perhaps I am just tiring of the game and am burned out. I've been playing for a few years and just not getting better. It seems a waste of time for me to screw around playing $25NL, trying to post little wins, etc., build a banrkoll up so that I can play $50NL, etc. The thought of putting $400 on and trying to grind up from $10NL to have $625 to play $25NL is mind-numbing. It seems like such a waste of time, given the amount of money that I make outside of poker.

I used to remember playing $25NL at night before going to bed and thinking "I just want to win my cab fare to work the next morning ($10-$15)." That is how I rationalized spending the time - small amounts of money, but also getting better and playing the game, etc. It was a goal to work to. It worked ok for a while. I would feel a sense of accomplishment if I won $10 or $15. Now, I can't get excited about winning $10 or $15 playing low stakes. I don't know why that is.

Plus, it seems so much harder to win now, even at these baby stakes. Much harder to win now than it was 2 years ago. You see all of these multitabling TAGs grinding at $25NL. You see good players at all of the low levels. It's not the total donkfest that it used to be, which makes it all the more depressing. YOu mean I actually have to play top notch poker to win at $25NL?!?!?

Here's something: sometimes, I just want to put sick bad beats on people at these limits. I want to punish them for actually playing good at these limits and making it that much less fun (and profitable) for me to play at the low limits. That's not right. I think my motivations for playing this game are completely out of whack. I think I need to quit for a period of time.

[hoyasnaxa]

You might be a decent poker player, but it is erased by your tilt. Tilting is the biggest reason people are losing poker players, and managing tilt is one of the biggest aspects that separates good players from bad.

[Sykes]

I just skimmed most of the replies, but most of it is dead-on.

You have awful bankroll management skills and also have tilt issues. It just seems like you want to gamble instead of playing poker.

[ryang]

ur br management skills are poor, try playing live. do you post hands?

[SmokeyRidesAgain]

Stop playing??