how can I handle the variance and the ups and downs of poker

S

SinkieCon

Enthusiast
Silver Level
Joined
Apr 12, 2014
Total posts
65
Chips
0
This post might seem a bit slanderous but in actual fact it's not

I am still trying to handle the ups and downs with poker but ever time I do something good something bad comes in it's way,but I never NEVER seem to do well in tournaments, the last time I did well in a tournament is when I played a Sunday Million sat and got the ticket but I unreg'ed because I wanted to keep it as a bank roll, but I don't know why I played two $109 tournament's I know it's stupid thing to do but I did it. I'll give you an example I was playing the Saturday Splash I had AKS and I opened shoved knowing the guy on my left was a loose player he called 15k with A9 I couldn't believe it and guess what ?! he hit on the river, I was sooo mad it was unreal I decided I wasn't going to play in it anymore and left.

The question is I keep n busting my bankroll and I am not learning from my mistakes, how can I get my mind into that state when I can play solid poker without ruining my BR and become a winning player, I really want to learn from these mistakes and put it behind me.
 
S

SaadOmizer

Rising Star
Silver Level
Joined
Apr 18, 2014
Total posts
19
Chips
0
The only way to handle variance I feel is mentally, simply because a number of beats which you lose after you have got in with the best of can rattle you. If you can live with the fact that you got in with the best of it and it was your opponent that made a mistake then you're on your way to accepting that variance is a part of the game.
 
psy0nyd3

psy0nyd3

Visionary
Silver Level
Joined
Apr 20, 2010
Total posts
929
Awards
1
Chips
31
IMO, if you go bust because you are not practicing solid BRM I don't think you can chalk it up as going broke due to variance.

Have to remember to be playing tournaments with no more than 2% of your roll or else the feeling of watching the last of your cash walk away will be a familiar one.
 
Arjonius

Arjonius

Legend
Silver Level
Joined
Jun 8, 2005
Total posts
3,167
Chips
0
You seem to know that your main problem is poor BRM. So you don't need to learn BRM, but rather how to exercise enough self-discipline to keep yourself from doing things you know you shouldn't.

For many people, this isn't something that can be improved by quick tips. IMO, the first place to look is how you get yourself to be more self-disciplined when you have to IRL, and see if you can adapt that to poker.
 
BearPlay

BearPlay

Cardschat Elite
Silver Level
Joined
Jan 15, 2014
Total posts
10,631
Chips
0
Spewing chips, especially when losses beget losses, is a common issue for a lot of undisciplined players.

Jared Tendler has some great videos on YT for emotional control.
 
transformpoker

transformpoker

Enthusiast
Silver Level
Joined
Mar 21, 2014
Total posts
31
Chips
0
Variance in poker is difficult to handle. As humans, you expect the right decision and hard work to get you to a goal. With poker, that isn't necessarily the case. 50 buy in swings can be soul crushing.

Some suggestions for handling the variance (of the scores of possible answers) are
  • It's a game with particular properties - Even with a bad run, unless you're the one making poor decisions, it can be helpful to tell yourself that poker is just a game with particular properties. If sometimes the cards line up one way and cause a large losing streak, it could just as easily have happened the other way. Poker is a zero sum game, so one player's downswing is an upswing for other players.
  • Set a stop loss - Stop losses are when you quit playing after losing a particular amount. The advantage is that you eliminate to a large extent the possibility of making very poor decisions when on tilt. It may also cause you to miss out on good games when you've just been unlucky a bit.
  • Play your A game - When your win rate is higher, the chance that you are going to lose is lower. So make sure that you're playing when your win rate is the highest it can be. Sometimes it's worth beating up on weaker players, but when you're going to play a limit that challenges you, make sure you're up for the challenge.
  • Game select - Same as "play your A game" just with different parameters. If you play with people who decrease your win rate, then your chances of losing are increased.
  • Use the proper bankroll - With too small a bankroll, even a world class player's risk of ruin is 100%. You simply must have a sufficient bankroll to play the game you want to play or you are just allowing variance to pillage the few buy ins that you have. Typically for a No-limit game, and for a player with a fairly good win rate, you'll need around 30-40 buy ins. You can certainly be more aggressive with that number if you're willing to move down the moment you can't stand the variance. The main idea here is that with a large bankroll relative to the buy in level, the more likely you are to make good decisions that aren't based on money or fear, and the less likely you are to have your bankroll eaten up by the variance monster.
 
S

SinkieCon

Enthusiast
Silver Level
Joined
Apr 12, 2014
Total posts
65
Chips
0
Variance in poker is difficult to handle. As humans, you expect the right decision and hard work to get you to a goal. With poker, that isn't necessarily the case. 50 buy in swings can be soul crushing.

Some suggestions for handling the variance (of the scores of possible answers) are
  • It's a game with particular properties - Even with a bad run, unless you're the one making poor decisions, it can be helpful to tell yourself that poker is just a game with particular properties. If sometimes the cards line up one way and cause a large losing streak, it could just as easily have happened the other way. Poker is a zero sum game, so one player's downswing is an upswing for other players.
  • Set a stop loss - Stop losses are when you quit playing after losing a particular amount. The advantage is that you eliminate to a large extent the possibility of making very poor decisions when on tilt. It may also cause you to miss out on good games when you've just been unlucky a bit.
  • Play your A game - When your win rate is higher, the chance that you are going to lose is lower. So make sure that you're playing when your win rate is the highest it can be. Sometimes it's worth beating up on weaker players, but when you're going to play a limit that challenges you, make sure you're up for the challenge.
  • Game select - Same as "play your A game" just with different parameters. If you play with people who decrease your win rate, then your chances of losing are increased.
  • Use the proper bankroll - With too small a bankroll, even a world class player's risk of ruin is 100%. You simply must have a sufficient bankroll to play the game you want to play or you are just allowing variance to pillage the few buy ins that you have. Typically for a No-limit game, and for a player with a fairly good win rate, you'll need around 30-40 buy ins. You can certainly be more aggressive with that number if you're willing to move down the moment you can't stand the variance. The main idea here is that with a large bankroll relative to the buy in level, the more likely you are to make good decisions that aren't based on money or fear, and the less likely you are to have your bankroll eaten up by the variance monster.
[/QUOTE

Thank you all for your reply's I will learn on how I can self discipline my self when it comes to my brm skills, alsoo when I am on a bad run and a big thank you to Transformpoker for that reply I'll keep everything which is said in mind and will stick to it
 
blueskies

blueskies

Legend
Loyaler
Joined
Jan 31, 2009
Total posts
3,643
Awards
9
Chips
304
You need to set up strict BRM rules for yourself and not let the emotions get to you.

It can get really difficult but sometimes the best solution is just turn off the computer and go out for a walk or run.
 
Samango

Samango

Legend
Silver Level
Joined
Dec 2, 2008
Total posts
1,014
Awards
1
Chips
0
The variance is not the issue here.
But as others have said, you seem to know just what the problems are.
Suckouts with A9>AK are part of poker but they won't trouble you if you can learn to accept this fact, and play within your bankroll management to allow you to ride a losing streak until you win again
Don't Go Broke
 
Starting Hands - Poker Hand Nicknames Rankings - Poker Hands
Top