How do you grind it out when nothing's hitting?

I find alot of times when I'm sitting at a table, and nothing's happening for me. Best hands i'm getting are like A7, J5, etc.. type of hands. Sometimes like 1hour+ stretches. If I get in the pot, I'm just throwing away money, and if I just fold everything I'm just throwing away blinds.

So, the question is, because I know you all have it happen every once in a while, what do you do? Go play a different game ie. Omaha HL? Get up from the table/computer and watch TV, play a round of golf or something?

Anyway, just want some ideas because I find myself every once in a while just sitting at the table check/folding forever.

If i am playing online i'm either watching the TV while i play or surfing the net. Only in the early stages mind you, quite important to pay full attention even if you are not getting cards in the tale end of a tournament.

If i am in a live game in the casino or at a home game i tend to be really observe what the other players are doing. Watching them during the hands they are in as well as the hands they are not is a really good learning experience.

Hey Spore, interesting post so I checked out my stats. Today I played Online poker for 7 & 1/2 hours. In that time I played in (2) MTT, 6 SNG's ,and a bunch of cash games.

In the MTT (unless they are big stakes) I usually play a cash game on another table at the beginning. Once the MTT gets rolling and I start heating up or it gets close to bubble I will quit the cash game and keep total concentration on the MTT.

Now when I'm not playing a MTT I am usually playing a SNG and a ring game at the same time. I very rarely play 2 SNG's at once.

You must be careful though with the multiple table games. It takes some skill and can be hard at first. I'm still not that good at it.

Most times I'm just looking on Cardschat.com when I am playing 1 table. It's hard to read posts and play more that one!

I do that too. I usually only play in one table at a time because I'm not that experienced yet to handle more than that. But I will log onto CardsChat and read the posts or the articles. Sometimes the articles are a nice refresher to have right there as I play.

I've sat there and folded hand after hand for a good hour before I get a hand worth playing. Once I get a big hand and the flop is good to me and I make a set, straight, flush whatever I can win pretty big. Once I have won my first big pot then its easier to bluff. I'll pick and choose those I want to play up against and can usually bluff them down. This way I can win a small stack that will cover my blinds during those times I don't have anything.

It doesn't work all the time and it is important who I choose to play against and what position I'm in, but its surprising how many times it does work.

Thanks for the advice guys. I played a SNG and a ring game simultaneously, and got 2nd in the SNG, and pretty much broke even at the ring game. Not too difficult being that I am pretty tight in my hand selection.

However; I kept seeing the same hole cards on both tables either at the same time.. or one after the other (meaning, I get A9 on one table, and then a minute later i get A9 on the other one). Anyone notice this? Probably just luck of the draw.

Anyway outside of that I tried the surfing online thing.. worked pretty good, checked up on forums, checked my fav news sites etc. Good idea for me because if nothing's hitting my hand selection slowly gets looser and looser, but I kept it in check by having something else to do.

To end the night I had been playing .05/.10 NL Hold'Em, been at table for about 2hrs+ only took down one pot which was a split. Was getting completely junk hands.. but maintained my normal hand selection. At this point I'm at about $3 (out of my $5 buyin).

And then finally, I get: QQ, 44, ??, AA, AK

I took down the QQs pre-flop (played it a bit too hard since I hadn't had a hand in forever), took a big pot when I hit a 4 on the flop, folded, took down big pot on turn (bet out the flush-draw), lost a medium pot when flush hit on river (i folded it). Left table with about $9.

So, I guess it's just super-patience that pays off

there are times when you think that nothing is hitting and you are probably mostly right.. but often you will not be playing your best poker at this time, sometimes it pays to take a break, collect your thoughts and go back and try later.

Spore,
I think most have said it happens to them and what to do about it. I just wanted to add this, It Happens in Live games also!
I went and played Live a week ago Monday and sat there for nearly an hour and a half before I had a hand really to play pass the flop. I watched other players in their hands and when no cards were in play I just watched tv on the plasma screens they have in the poker room

Patience is definitely a virtue in poker.

Most of what you asked has been answered already, i believe the percentages are, a good player will only play 10% of the hands, but you have to know what hands to play, these guys that try to play every hand will in the long run lose there shirts. but if your cards are that bad sooner or later you have to play a hand, so when you get really short stacked move all in with any face card and pray you hit something, there has been days when ive folded for the first 1 1/2 hours of a tourney and then came back to win it,, you know the old saying> a chip and a chair< lol.
buck

My cards definitely go from hot to cold, cold to hot with really nothing in between. If I play for a whole day and don't get any good hands I will take a few days off. I find that the cards are a bit warmer when I sit down again. I also gives me time to do a bit of re-reading books and reconfirm my strategy so that I don't just start playing crappy hands just for the sake of seeing the flop.

Great advice guys. Thanks a bunch!

If no cards are coming, I will usually start bluffing, just because I get bored most of the time. This method doesn't usually work, but it is definately more fun than folding every hand.

sotheysay, what's your username on pokerstars so that I can cash in on your bluffs??? lol