do you enjoy poker

prepare

prepare

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more then when you first started out?

when I started out I was just another donk that did not know how to play and really did not care. I was gambling not actually playing. I loved it, there was no stress and since I was playing play chips when I lost my bankroll I waited 5 minutes then I reloaded.

Then I thought that I should try to become good at it (just a horrible idea). I read books, joined this site. I actually come on this site a lot but I never post. Thats when poker started to suck.

after losing countless of playchips, a 20$ dollar bankroll (that I grinned up from freerolls then .01/.02 tables) from a bad swing, bad play then tilting the rest away I have come to a conclusion that poker sucks.

okay this rant actually has a question involved in it.

has anyone ever felt like this?
if you have how did you get over it because I felt this way for months.
should I just give up because I honestly do not enjoy it anymore.

and the main qustions is

do you enjoy poker?
if so, do you enjoy it more now or when you were beginning
 
wrung24

wrung24

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I started playing poker in home games. While learning I was really playing bad and not paying attention, That was fine because the main goal was to have fun with a few friends on a boring weekday evening.

One day I was watching TV, bored and flipping through the channels. I came across Poker After Dark. (can't remember which one exactly but it was an old one, european freeview TV is just so far behind). That's when I realised that skill was that much more of a factor than luck. I thought that if I could learn the game properly, I could have a small advantage over this home game I was playing. I've never looked back since.

You would have to be a really pessimistic guy to be winning a bit at poker and wanting to quit because you don't like the game anymore. (You said you win some freerolls and can grind 2NL a bit). There is no shame playing a game you beat just to get on a high (something will click after a while and you will be able to move up)

If you combine that and a little bit of will to study to try and get the better of the games you're playing, then you have a very good chance of clearing that hurdle. The only problem is that the next hurdle is just around the corner, the one after that even closer. The lows will be very low and the highs will not be so high.

If you really don't enjoy it, then there is no other option than to stop playing altogether. Maybe take a long break that could help. If you still think you want to keep going, then either lower your expectations, or lower the competition enough so you can enjoy beating them more often (you will still get a few lows trust me).

You mentioned play money, how about that ? You could make it a goal to get to a certain amount of play chips. (If you do try this, then play SNGs, IMO easier than play money cash games).

I do still enjoy poker, and I think I will until I either all of a sudden have to stop for an outside reason or I get to the very top of poker. (I think I know which will happen first).

Hope my advice helps.
 
Daniel72

Daniel72

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Yes, in the beginning poker was a mysterious thing for me, an exciting game. Today it´s more like a grind, but still fun. When i started out, i thought for instance, the tournament chips were real money. I was confused about bet sizes, until i realized, there is limit holdem / nolimit holdem. I had trouble to remember which hand beats what. I played obscure playmoney on yahoo, i guess. Good old times ! But i still love the game, although some magic has gone...
 
B

BluffYou123

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I have gone through times where I have hated poker because I felt like I couldn't win and anyone that played a hand against me would beat me regardless of what they held.

This was quite a while back now and I enjoy playing again.

I would say what got me over it was learning from mistakes I was making at the table and not taking bad beats to heart anymore.

I am still somewhat affected by bad beats but most of the time I just laugh them off and get on with it.

It is alot tougher taking bad beats when you don't have a bankroll to handle it.
 
COVID2

COVID2

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actually i love and enjoy the poker, since my start to playing poker i guess i was a normal player, i playing with precaution and obviuslly i lose like all the players, but when you want money, you need invest money, the best choice is read and always keep on the game for practice and make more strong your game, if you loose a bank of 20 dollars, this is not the end if you can make 20 dollars from 0, then you can make 100 from 0, this is the way and your game gonna be strong and better :)
 
sharkyo01

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No it = Stress,

Just habit i guess...
 
madtom1337

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Sounds likes this may be a bit of a tilt post, lol. I wouldn't sweat about losing a $20 bankroll that I made from freerolls. I've played 140k hands now and I'm probably enjoying it a little less at the moment because I'm having to grind hard at 50NL, but I think once I get to 200NL I'll start enjoying it more because I'll be able to cash out to play live at the casino which I imagine will be fun. After I worked out how to beat micro full ring games (be a nit) I got pretty bored so I started playing 6-max. Now I'm beating 6-max and can play lots of tables, I'm thinking I might have a dabble with HU once I move up to 100NL, since 50NL is the lowest HU stake and I'd prefer to learn at a level below the stake I'm rolled for, so gonna wait till then. But the point I'm making is, there's lots of different things you can do with poker to make it fun, you can play a bit of Omaha, you can go play live, you can play some tournaments, blah blah blah. I think perhaps the grind of trying to build a bankroll from 0 can be pretty stressful? Maybe just deposit a BR...
 
LuckyChippy

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Some people enjoy playing without the stress of winning or beating the game. Some enjoy the challenge of beating others at a game of skill which rewards the winners with money.

Decide which you are and do what makes you happier. Though I think if you learned to beat the game, you'd enjoy beating it.
 
M

mikejm

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yea i started playing ten dollar games with my friends and there was never anybody that consistently won. but now that i started reading into the strategy i pretty much beat them every time and that has definetely made poker more fun.
 
blankoblanco

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in the immortal words of chau giang: poka is nice, i love play poka
 
O

onemorechance

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in the immortal words of chau giang: poka is nice, i love play poka

chau.gif
 
P

ProGuy

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I'm getting to the point where I can't win anymore. Talk about hitting a low point, my variance just sucks. It seems the randomness of the cards is killing any potential profit I may have. I can be way ahead and still get sucked out on and of course behind and never suck out on anyone. I'm sick of the one way street I'm currently on...Loserville Boulevard.

I went to the local casino Friday night and all I play is 1/2 NL. I bought in for 200 bucks and after thirty short minutes at a VERY loose and lively table I busted out after flopping top two pair. The low points in poker can absolutely bust your bankroll, even if you're playing top notch. Variance, suck outs, bad beats, etc, have busted my bankroll. I've been beat on two outers twice in the last month, a pure one outer about six months ago and countless four and five outers. I'm running like a 72' Pinto and thinking about quitting. I've also been stacked off when I flopped the smaller flush, twice in two weeks. Such a fun game. To much good hard earned money going down the drain to TERRIBLE players who are just luckier than I am. It's maddening and of course I've read tons of books just to make it worse. These are all live games too. I would venture to say that I have a command of the game that few on this board do, but I'm still a loser in the poker arena. There's so much luck involved that I'm ready to play blackjack.
 
TheOne2Watch

TheOne2Watch

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I like poker, whether it is playing it, reading about it or watching it. I would say 45% watching, 30% reading, 25% playing. I dont need to play to enjoy the game. My best thing is watching 25.00/50.00 NL ring tables. I learn alot about the game by just sitting back and taking it all in.
 
M

Mr Whatever

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Lololollol Prepare, I see ur frustration.

Playing that stuff.. . .lolololololo too many bad beats and bs=much frustration for me. I wouldn’t like playing that stuff even if im winning at it.

Its like eating dinner. Do u want little kids eating at ur table and throwing food and doing silly things or do u want to relax and enjoy a meal?

i like the idea of setting goals by one of the posters here though.


GL
 
B

Bovinity

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Sometimes.

Right now - despite actually being up 50% on my initial deposit this time around - I've withdrawn all my money and uninstalled all my poker sites, lol.

Sometimes I just don't have the patience for the insanity that goes on. Other days I can play all day long.
 
AtiFCOD

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I still enjoy playing poker. It's like a mix of strategy, conformity, finding out other players and yeah luck of course.
And defeating hundreds or thousands of players feels very good. :D
 
fletchdad

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1. has anyone ever felt like this?

2. if you have how did you get over it because I felt this way for months.

3. should I just give up because I honestly do not enjoy it anymore.

4. do you enjoy poker?

5. if so, do you enjoy it more now or when you were beginning

1. Probably many people. Feelings are emotions and pass. I will give you an example from my life. I am a professional musician (I compose music for films and advertising, I write songs for my self and to sell to artists, I play guitar and sing, I have a studio bla bla bla...) I used to practice my guitar up to 12 hours a day, cause I wanted to be the best in the world. I got pretty damn good. I loved playing good guitar more than anything. Seriously. I have been playing as a pro for over 30 years. I cant stand guitars sometimes now. That will happen with any hobby you take seriously, and devote a large portion of your time with. but read on to the next questions...

2. I hate guitars and music AT TIMES. But I get the same if not more satisfaction and fun as I always have when I write a good song, play a killer gig, etc. So if your fun does not exist anymore....hmmm... do something else.

3. YES. Its either a hobby or profession, and since you are not a pro, if it aint fun, do something else.

4.Yes. Immensely

5. Now
 
A

AntiKhrist

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No.

When I was a rookie, I was just happy to play. I didn't know what bad play was(mainly because that's how I was playing).

Now that I know the odds, to see someone go in with garbage and catch, kills me.

I still play but it's a completely different game than back then.
 
M

Madness_does

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I enjoy live poker alot, online is just to kill the time, cause when you win in live play most games and just out right get sucked out so much online you get to hate the game.
 
Worak

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I still love playing poker though I must admit that a lot of the fun comes from winning from time to time.

As I started I was one of the typical freerollwhores - playing any game at any time on every site I had access to.

I had loads of fun because the play was so bad at times that even my very limited knowledge was good enough to cash in and even win a few FRs.

If I had lost everything over an extended period of time continuing to play wouldn't have made much sense, would it ?

(It wouldn't have been fun either)

It's hard to say whether I enjoyed it more as a beginner since my game has changed alot since then (some of the regs here will disagree and say I'm still a donk, lol).

I have put some time in studying the game and though I'm not even playing mid stakes I can cash out enough for a nice pocket money (bought a laptop, a 23'' display,HEM, vacations, a few evenings out with my girlfriend from that money and even withdrew to an extra banking account to get some interest).

A few suggestions OP:
  • cut down volume until you feel the urge to play again
  • work on your game to make it more profitable
  • don't play playchips (you won't learn anything good there)
  • keep your posts coming until you can join the CC freeroll club - CC freerolls are a great means to improve your game and build a BR.
Edit:
I actually come on this site a lot but I never post

^^This is a major flaw imo: - You need to discuss your game in order to improve. Post in the HH section and let the regs there analyse your play.
 
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madtom1337

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Sorry but this thread is slightly moronic. Those moaning about their oh so awful variance are clearly not that great at beating poker. You can't say that you beat your games until you fully understand variance and you're fully comfortable with it. Half the people moaning are probably playing MTTs which are high variance, and if you look into the "good" variance that you need in order to do well in a large pool of players, it's actually rather rich expecting to win MTTs very often at all. For example...

Let's say to win a tournament you need to turn your 1500 chips into 1 million chips. You need to double up 9 times and win a couple of shorter stacks, and that's without losing a hand, and oftentimes you need to win more than 1 million chips to win an MTT. A lot more, in fact. 9 double-ups in a row without getting stacked 1 time is really a long shot, even if you have pocket aces every time. Half of those times you're likely to be flipping, and half of the flips you're going to be a slight dog. If you research the chances of this many double-ups with these kind of odds, it's really optimistic to hope to cash in the top spots in MTTs regularly.

I go into detail about MTTs because I notice a lot of people on CC are tournament players. If you're a cash player and you're moaning about how utterly horrendous your variance is, particularly at the micros, your play probably just isn't that good to beat the games significantly yet.
 
lektrikguy

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I have liked it all my life, but the more I read(books and the posts at CC) and the more I understand it the more I enjoy it. I can take the bad beats now too, it's just variance. I had a real tough time for a while, but I let affect my game. Now I can get over it-most of the time.
 
Ice Wolf

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I dont know if I enjoy it more but I definately get more of a thrill out of it than when I first started out. I am definately more addicted to. I started out playing in friendly tourneys about 3 weekends a month and then I started playing online and now I play almost everyday.
 
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