How can I play without hesitation?

I have a nasty habit of pretty much playing in the scared-to-be-beat-with-this-superstar-hand mode during MTT tournaments, and as a result shoving my chipstack in right away. I.e. with AK, KK, AA, etc.

When I bet 4xBB, most people will fold, but when I do get callers, I always feel pressured if there are face cards on the flop, or possible straights or flushes, and I guess what I'm trying to say is I don't have much mental toughness.

So yes, playing all in pre-flop with AA's hasn't been effective for me EXCEPT in the first 15 minutes of a freeroll that's completely public.

What kind of player am I? I hate how when it comes to on the bubble I play "scared" and fold so easily and I bet I get bluffed a lot... My heart starts beating a lot when the flop comes, and the turn comes, etc. when I have gone all in, or have put another person all-in. And, I clasp my hands together and say please let this flop be harmless. I find myself losing a ton of chips whenever I'm near the cusp of ITM in a freeroll, since whenever I seldom do get a really good hand I just make everyone else fold and just maybe earn a few blinds. Then, with almost all other hands, I fold so easily.

If I played in a live tournament, I can imagine myself trembling when making a big bet.

But anyways, I need help in that regard. It's like in basketball where you are "choking" and miss free throws in crunch time :/

Get the book "Poker Tournament Formula" by Arnold Snyder. It's maybe $10 or less on Amazon. It's not the "silver bullet" (no book is, as any strategy is exploitable by observant opponents), but it will definitely teach you aggression.

I think what your looking for is 'balls', pardon my french. But i have the same problem. You have to gain more confidence on what you think the other guy has. Its still hard for me to go with my gut, but when i do, i find myself to be true most the time....n I believe sometimes you gotta have balls!

Yep, not aggression, but confidence.

I did and still have the same basic issue, not with the same specific situations as you, but more generally with certain types of situations that do it for me.

Confidence in your playing, including player reads and situational analysis, plus some attention to really managing the emotional aspect, the part that gets your heart racing, ect. For that part, take a look at Zen and Art of Poker, or Tommy Angelo's book or blog, or some of the things Irexes has talked about in his MTT play.

It's an ongoing project.

If you are nervous due to seeing face cards after the flop (which I assume are not helping your hand) try backing off your first bet from 4xbb to 2xbb. You will find that the same people will fold as before and the same ones stay in (typically). Then, after the flop, you can quickly bet 2xbb again. A caller probably hit on the flop, but will think you did too.

Not the normal strategy, but you may have peace of mind since your total bet after the flop is still 4x bb vs having that much at stake preflop. As you gain more confidence and get more familiar with betting based on position, you will find it easier to bet big pre flop

make all of your bets the same so people don't know if you have that monster hand or you are playing 8 9 suited. After the flop, it is ok to check and see who is betting and throw in a reraise. The more you do it the more confident you will get. But you have to vary your checks and bets on the flop.

Forget your fear and bet strongly !!!
It 's a bit hard for medicine, but you will see the great number of times you will win, there is nothing better for self-confidence!!
Ok sometimes you 'll loose to a draw or a bad beat... and so what??

AK, KK, AA
I would suggest you try to see more Flops before being committed with these hands.
Please remember these are good starting hands and if the Flop is wrong the value of your hand melts in front of your eyes.

You may be thinking pocket A's is a better hand then it realy is.
Everyone gets there AA cracked.
It can be a hard hand to play.

Take a different aproach for a while and slow play it till the river.
if the board favors you then bet it like a bluff at the end.
If you get callers and your read is right you win Big.
If everyone Folds you should still have profit from others betting up to the river.

This will give you a better idea of how often the A's would win the pot and give you a better feel how to play them.

Good Luck

Roller:
Relax and let your Cards do the Talking.

Try 3X BB preflop. If you have a monster hand like AA remember-it's just a pair. The best pair, but nonetheless a pair. THEY WILL GET CRACKED. On the flop remember that in a freeroll guys go all in with anything. I got kings beat by a 3 8 offsuit. Around the bubble guys tighten up tryin to make the final table.Make a bet around 2/3 of the pot. If they call then they've got a chance of beating you with a set or they're on a strong draw. Grow the balls. Try it and you'll find they will fold the weaker hands. Now if a 2/3 bet is more than 40% of your stack then push. It works for me.

s hard to say how you play without hesitation one .... I can not play without hesitation ... because if not I do that I lose much faster! in a day in a tournament I was in hand ... A10 and A7 have the other ... wait that flop comes and it isA 8 2 raise .... I give all the other players raise the call ... ... the next Turnu and then enters K All other players go in and I gave the fold and he shows the books: (!

Always pay attention, even when you fold. Put your opponent on a range, then play accordingly.

its not about winning or losing its about making the right move. dont forget that and in the long run you will be profitable

Don't play scared. Be cautious. I'm a very cautious player online. If I have a King high flush, I'm cautious of the nut flush. But, I use mathematics and realize the chances of him having the nuts is slim. If I'm wrong, I get beat, that's that and that's just how it is in any poker. In live poker, I read my opponents very well. If I notice anything out of place, a twitch of the eye, holding of the breath, anything, I decide whether it's a sign of strength or fear, then I play them accordingly.

I saw a few say lowering the pre-flop raise to 2x or 3x the bb. I agree, but would add:
Sometimes if you throw an odd amount in you will induce more folds. If the bb is 100, make your bbx bet but add some change to it.
333, or 411 for example.
I dont know why, but I see alot of folds to weird bets. Maybe the other players cant put you on a hand with the weird # or something.?!.

Good comments here... one thing I'd add that's not specifically poker related... it relates to lots of situations. REMIND yourself what the stakes are. We all face that bubble fear when we're short or mid-stacked. When I get a playable hand, I just remind myself that, yeah, I might get beat but it's only a freeroll... or it's only $5... or whatever the buy-in. Of course, this means that you have to follow the rules of bankroll management and not play out of your comfort range. If you have only $30 in your account, it's harder to say "it's only $26" when it's time for you to step up.

I'd also recommend remembering to switch up your play. As you said, near ITM when you bet people will fold and you'll most likely pick up a few blinds. Well start doing that every time you are in the cutoff/button/SB with a hand that has the ability to be called if it does.

When people realize this is what you're doing, switch it up again, and get ultra tight, so when you hand that flops a monster, you're going to get paid off, even near the bubble.

As for worrying about every street, that's normal. When you have KK you just wait for the ace. It's pretty common, actually. Just relax and realize you got to where you are in the tournament b/c you have at least some skill and now is not the time to be trampled on. In fact, the further you are and the closer you are to the final table, aggression is key. This point is easily provable when you look at the fact that you are admitting you fold easily to aggression. This is why people do it.

I think you are not much experienced.I suggest you watching pros to see how they handle tough situations.There are many videos in youtube, but high stakes poker seasons are great.You can also watch recorded final tables in pokerstars.

I think everyone has some of that in them. It's a good thing if you balance it with confindence and well timed aggression.

One thing that has really helped me in MTT games is to adopt the "go big or go home" attitude. If I am near the bubble but catch something solid I won't back away from it like I used to. If I am in the mix at this stage of a tourney I will either bust out and save myself sometime or I will take a really nice pot and be sitting in a decent position to run deep.

You can't make just gettin past the bubble your priority in my opnion. I totally agree that its nice to hit the money often but if its just a few bucks then it's nothing life changing. However, if you run really deep just a handfull of times because you didn't shy away from certain situations you can make a tidy profit. Of course you will cash just inside the money a few times this way too.

This is just how I am and I think it works for me. You have to be unphased by the fact that you just bubbled out to go this route though.

playing into fear can hurt,so can letting it overcome you...look at your bankroll..let it tell you how well your playing..then look for solutions..some fear is healthy you know

when you have AA/KK and you see a J or Q on the flop, don't be scared.
just think, would they not have 3bet preflop with JJ/QQ instead of just calling my raise? try to make a decision on their range based on the information available, don't fill your head with the fact that you're scared because you might miss out on some important information.

"I read my opponents very well. If I notice anything out of place, a twitch of the eye, holding of the breath, anything, I decide whether it's a sign of strength or fear, then I play them accordingly."





Perfect.
I Couldn't have said it any better.

Thanks for sharing.

Accepting that no matter how good you are or how good you play, you might catch a run of bad luck and be done for at any time...Or for that matter, you can play terribly and get bailed out by a lucky card. Once you realize all you can do is take your chances, it gets easier. One thing i do is assume I will lose right from the outset, think of whatever I put in as being gone and just go in playing to play...This way if you lose, it shouldn't sting so badly, and if you win it's a pleasant surprise. Lets you focus on the game and not the fine balance of winning/losing.

There is no shame in c-betting the flop regardless of what hits then slowing down to a call or folding to a re-raise.
Just be aware of the board texture