MOOD?

OK I feel a little foolish asking such a stupid question but does anyone have to be in "Poker Mood" to play? Or do you just jump in and play when-ever?

Good question! Depends. If you are in a bad mood then its probably not a good idea to go to a NL cash table! Or when you are pissed!

If I am not in the mood to play a long MTT I will just play some rings. But, yes, I think you do need to be in the right mood to sit and play for a good few hours - well play pateintly anyway

I don't have a poker mood but I do have moods or feelings when I won't sit at a table. I don't need to be in the mood to play poker but there are times that I just know I need to stay away or it will cost me in the long run. I have times when I just am not focused or have to many other things going on. Those are the days that I will stay away from poker even if I had set some time aside to play. I will still go to my league but it is not my A game I know it, just to keep my attendance bonus going.

Focused & Calm. If I'm tense or distracted, I might as well go burn some cash in the fireplace. At least I'd get a little warmth out of it. When I want to play but can't get settled, sometimes I play the play money tables or my poker video game. I also might read a poker book or watch a poker show I've recorded. If I'm not in a winning mood, I still gotta feed the habit.

Mood is a very good thing to think about before sitting down at a table.
If I feel rushed or if I think someone (wife) is annoyed or looking over my shoulder I play very badly. Like Mr. Sticker says "Focused and Calm" is the best way to play.

Good question, Shelynn, If I have set aside time to play poker I will almost always play, no matter my mood. I am a fairly stable person, at least for an online poker player, LOL, so what I try to do is pay attention to how I am feeling & factor that in to my decision making at the table; {pause here so those who have set at a table with me can have a good chuckle}, but I have to be in a very bad frame of mind to not play. Indeed a game with the good folks at this forum will almost always improve my mood, win, lose, or draw.

I think it was a good question Shelynn.
I would not join in a game while busy or have different things on my mind. I think a person would have to be in a poker type of mood to play at a winning level.

OK guys this is what happened to me last night. Got into our Titan $5 buy-in series and was relaxed and in card playing mood. Then you end up with a house full of company and some of them are the "Poker K's & Q's" of poker of course I blew it and busted out. It makes you feel real bad because your thinking my buddies think I don't know and can't play poker with those moves.LOL..

I've played when I have too many distractions or am just not in the mood, and my game has suffered for it. And believe it or not {GASP} sometimes I am just not in the mood at all to sit down and play.

LMAOOOO!! That is so my hubs and me. I like to watch him play, to pick-up on some info, because he's a pretty good player. But now that I've been around Cardschat for awhile, I see little mistakes in his game...and you can guess he hates it when I point them out. I keep telling him he should join, but I guess the Scorpio in him is too stubborn to admit he could use a few pointers (just a few)... So I've learned to leave him alone...he does better that way.

good question, shelynn
i personally don't have to be in a specific mood - though being mentally focused and aware is a very big plus - though i CANNOT play when i'm in a pissed off mood
i've lost my whole bankroll that way - i have quite the temper
like earlier tonight i had a hockey game in which i broke a new stick that was $80 - i had just bought it like 2 hrs before the game
anyways i came home and promised myself i wouldn't play 'til i cooled off because i was just steaming too much and i knew it would translate into big losses and increased tilting

Chuckie your just too much! Have to start calling you "Mr. Excitement"!!..LOL

Very good question Shel, i noticed if i dont feel good or if something pisses me off i dont play to good, on the other hand,if i get up and feel great i can almost predict that i am going to win that day, and i have proven that time after time. In Doyle Brunson`s book he says the same thing, if you arent up to playing Dont, and hes rite. A while back i got up and knew 8 hours before our freeroll started that i was going to win it, and i did,, but that dont happen to often, i think its a 6th sense i got or something like that, but i predicted i would win quite a few times and it happened, i dont know why, but it happens every so often, and when it does i take advantage of it, some might just call it luck, but in poker its not just luck that counts, However when you play the lottery thats just plain luck and nothing more.>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> buck

That is where the saying Grinding it out comes from. For the players who do it for their main income, many times they have to grind it out when not in the right mood. Just like getting through a days work for the normal working force on bad days.

A low % of players have what it takes to grind it out day after day.

There is nothing worse than having someone say" You've been playing for hours, I'm gonna burn that computer!" Definetly a mood unenhancer and a very good corelation between that and my game tanking.

WOw... oddly enough, i think this has helped me a lot...
I just realized that YES, i played MUCH better when i didn't have other things I was supposed to be doing. Maybe i was rushing my play, trying to finish an SnG all on my own, so I could do my other stuff. I know i was thinking solidly about the other stuff at the same time. I played good for the first few days, but then a project came up that i didn't want to work on.... Next Buy-In, i won't play if i got stuff i need to do.

Oh "BBB" I see we're on the same track!!!..LOL....I see I'm not the only one that's been down that road!...LOL.....

Don't feel foolish, that's a good question. I'm always in the mood to play poker, however, I find sometimes my mood affects the way I play!

I think the only thing to help here is buy a laptop and lock myself in the bathroom.

Very good post and nice to hear it is not just us ladies who take mood into consideration when playing!

Sometimes I play for a bit when I am stressed to try to relax at a low $ table but set myself a limit like if I lose $2 or win over half what I brought to the table I quit. If I happen to win it almost always helps my mood an then I can get back to some of the other stuff I have to do with a better outlook.