How to get rid of a dry spell?

The last couple thousant hands I've played I'm having a dry spell. I get the feeling I never make my draws, let alone sets, never get payed off if I have the best hand and get drawn out if I do have a good hand. I'm normally a (very) winning player. The 6K hand before this dry spell I was running 24 bb/100 hands!

Does anyone got some advice for me on how to get rid of a dry spell? Maybe I've got to drop a level, or play tighter, change my mindset or something? Please share how you get rid of this problem

If your play is consistent with before, the dry spell should take care of itself. However, you might want to examine closely whether your play has changed at all, or if you are playing at limits where you are a bit timid to push your advantages. I just went through a hell month - I looked at my game from all angles - I figured that indeed I had loosened up too much, combined with playing too high limits for my bankroll, so I dropped down the limits and tightened up a bit. And I am now back on track!

i believe u just go through cold and hot spells online, mostly cold, but it should probably jus work itself out like stated above...of course someone once told me an old poker...thing...was to get up, walk around ur chair, and sit back down, because luck cant follow u in a circle...it hasnt worked for me the 2 times ive done it, but i didnt really think it would, im not for supersitcion(?) and i was reeeeally desperate for a hand at that time so i tried for some dumb reason. maybe u should try it and see how it works out for u if u believe that sort of thing!

Did you request a cash out recently? If so, things should be back to normal just as soon as it clears, or maybe when the money's all gone at the latest.

Seriously, sounds like you've been running good. Here's how it goes for me:

Ahh...life's good then...
BAM!
It seems like you never played the game. After a while you may have no idea how to play your cards. You're down so far you don't EVEN want to think about it. Then, just when you think it will never come back, it does.

Try dropping down 2 or even 3 levels. Hell, drop to the bottom of what you'd consider money! I just went through 8 or 10 days of what you're going through. I dropped down to $5 SNGs and lost 6 straight. I laughed it off cuz it was 1 buy-in at what i'd been playing $30. Then I started making money again (a day ahead of my check ) and moved back up.

goldog

24bb/100 is pretty much unsustainable over the long run, and 3-5k dry spells are completely, 100%, utterly normal.

Do not react to any sample of less than 10k hands, preferably at least 20k. Anything less is too influenced by luck.

But if you are getting frustrated, my personal cure is to banish myself down to the lowest limits until any potential tilt is out of my system.

I don't particularly like that approach because if I move down too far sometimes it makes me feel like I'm not playing with real money. I'll chase my draws way too much, because after all it's only another little bit. I can agree with dropping down one or possibly 2 levels, but don't go from playing $1/2 to playing $0.01/$0.02, when you're drawing to a gut shot and the opponent raises all-in to $1.20, how can you fold that? It's an easy fold when it's $120 at a $1/2 table. You get the point I think though.

In terms of the original question. The first question you have to ask yourself (and you have to be honest with yourself) is "are you really a winning player?". Are you in a dry spell now or was the earlier part just a hot streak? Or maybe you're a winning player but (I would bet this is the case) not as good as your performance was showing in the first 6k hands.

If I were you I'd take 1-2 days and just examine from top to bottom your play in the "hot" run and the "dry" run. Look at your stats, your big winning hands, big losing hands, everything you can think of and compare the 2. If they look pretty much identical then try to clear your head of the past (this is not easy to do, part of the reason I said take the 1-2 days off) and continue to play poker like you know how to. If you do see a difference, try to figure out why there was a difference between earlier and later and then try to correct it. If you need to depending on your BR, maybe move down a level.

That's just what I'd do, I'm no professional, but that's my advice for what it's worth.

Take a break. When you get sucked out on, quit playing for the day. Just plain stopping playing has been the only way I've found to get myself off tilting.

I hear what you are saying, and since I am Not A Pro, nor a low/mid stakes $ player I cannot advise on the levels.
But I concur that dropping down to 0.01/0.02 stakes is not the way to fix your game, as you stated, 'Chasing' for $1.20.
But as there is one player on here who has posted a 1-Month attempt to recover his BR..september meltdown - weekly diary (http://www.cardschat.com/f46/september-meltdown-weekly-diary-93366/)
there are factors, to consider. Those being..

• Stakes you are 'Comfortable' with
• Table Choice = Opponents that you are Good/Bad against (LAG,TAG)
• How bad you are Running & for How Long
• Try S&G's to 18 players max. or Shootouts.
• Limit your Play per day by 'X' # of Hrs. Max.
• take 1 whole day off to review Hand History
• Take 1 Whole day to do something Totally away from Poker
• Accept that some days the cards 'COLD'
• Play Less Hands and watch Opponents More
• Take More Notes

In the Blog Section there is some good stuff by F.Paulsson.
This Forum has good posts about TILT factors also
And BR Management
Goals & Aims
Studying
Build a Bankroll
Discipline
Leaving a Poker Table
5 Thoughts that Could Cripple Your Stack

~Check these out, Hope this helps~
Good Luck on the cure! and at the Tables!

When I start getting too frustrated I just stop playing poker and do the homework that I should already be doing instead of playing poker. Nothing like some accounting to get poker off the mind.

Thanks for the heads up guys/girls. Been reviewing some numbers and key hands at PT. Saw that my river agr factor for the last 1.5K hands was under 0.1! I played a lot of hands way too passive and a lot of times I was just really unlucky (these two are of course related). What shocked me was that I even lost on average when holding a full house/flush and straight. When I look at how foolish most of my opponents are playing, I'm pretty confident I'll get back to winning soon enough .

This reminds me of the old saw: "When you sleep with dogs you get fleas."
It's possible that you have, (without realizing it) made some subtle changes to your playing style/strategy that have escalated into some bad habits. It's very easy and only human to have a tendency to lower one's level of play with less skilled opponents. In reviewing your play history, you can see the result of that, but it's difficult to pinpoint the cause, and therefore to apply the cure.
This may be a good time to pick up a book or two written by the pro's that you haven't yet read for some fresh insight on strategies, advanced play techniques, etc. etc.

Read just about all the good books I could get my hands on. I think the problem is that I've got drawn out on a couple of times, which could have made me a bit gunshy. So because I'm playing less and less aggressive, my opponents have more and more chance of outdrawing me, thereby making the problem worse. I've decided to pick up my aggression and I've more than won back what I've lost since the dry spell began. I really went back to my: 'playing for the nuts style' because of those bad beats, while the 'tight, very aggressive' style was working so well for me. I'm concentrating on getting the last style back.

Couldn't agree more. I've tried to manage my tilting without stopping but what I've found is I simply lack the self control, and I think most people do as well. Unfortunately a whole lot of people can't realize they lack the self control, so they keep playing. The emotional part of this game is big and you need to take steps to minimize it's impact.

One bad beat I can typically handle and keep going. When it happens a couple times or knocks me off of a couple tables in a row (I tend to play SnGs). I find I just simply can't cool off quickly or on the spot. So I get away from it. Take at least an hour or two off, go do something else. Come back later.

I've done way better since I started making this my policy for every bad streak. Yesterday I got steamed after a couple of bad beats, walked away, came back a few hours later and finished 1st, 1st, 3rd, and 1st on 4 straight tables. No way that would have happened if I kept going.

The best thing I found that works the best is to take a break for a week or so. It helps stay focused, relaxed and less stressed. You go to realize that playing poker requires a lot of thinking. How are you going to play well when "the dry spell" will constantly be in your head?

Agree with taking a break for a while.
As much as you *think* you are not tilting, when you look back, you'll realize the dry spell was causing a bit of tilt, and you weren't playing your best game, which made the dry spell seem worse.

ya taking a break always is a good idea, course its harrd if u r in a tourny or sng