Follow the heart or the brain?

[badia232323]

In poker as in the life you have to choose between following your heart and following your brain. As I mentioned in a previous thread, I prefer to follow my heart, because I know that I have a good feeling, then I trust it almost all the time.
But sometimes I allow my decision to pass via my brain before to go out in the reality.
I am very interested to know your opinions about that, what do you believe more, your heart or your brain?

 

[Newzooozooo]

I try to be patient and avoid mistakes. And all this is due to the processes that take place in my brain. My heart totally belongs to my girlfriend.

 

[cranberry]

I think that every person feels his heart individually. But still, I believe that it is better to rely on brain. Heart in poker can be used, if you are sure.

 

[Edison A]

You have to follow the logic

 

[Deedgee]

Good players can do both. Playing a patient game is much more effective in cash games than it is in tournaments, especially freerolls, where aggression is a much more necessary component. In a tournament, if you wait too long for premium hands, you get blinded down too often.

 

[COMIRRR]

You choose what you think is best for you

 

[martina pinto]

I think that in poker the brain is the main organ that has to be used .. then the instinct

 

[Millie232]

I do both. You need to rely on your senses because they give you subconscious reads on people that you didn’t know you got, but you need to rely on your brain because not every situation can be solved with intuition.

 

[goaldriversv]

in the majority of cases, i'm all about the brain and calculation, but just like in life there are times you just follow your gut and intuition. in most cases you'd be surprised how right you are and all the math in the world can't explain it. happens for me in poker too

 

[firstcrack]

The so called 'heart' is actually part of the brain. To me, it's really more aptly defined as the struggle between the affective domain versus the cognitive domain, if you will. It's what makes us human. I believe you'll experience more success yielding to the analytical side, or cognitive side, but then again, I don't know you. We are all different and while I have a mathematical background and tend to put more stock in that realm, there are those that seem to thrive in the world of reading others and their 'feel' for the game. I would say, though, that even those that seem to be relying on their 'gut' are often relying on their math skills, even if only subconsciously.

 

[syarbouh]

Strong hands

What happens if you holding AA or AK and your senses are telling you not to play the hand, would you played it?

I do having having bad results.

 

[Bee]

I vote for the heart.

 

[charliej]

Brain tempered by gut.

 

[Serbianbeauty]

I agree with most everyone and say both, but probably 70% brain and 30% heart/gut.

 

[Anton Fedorov]

The so called 'heart' is actually part of the brain. To me, it's really more aptly defined as the struggle between the affective domain versus the cognitive domain, if you will. It's what makes us human. I believe you'll experience more success yielding to the analytical side, or cognitive side, but then again, I don't know you. We are all different and while I have a mathematical background and tend to put more stock in that realm, there are those that seem to thrive in the world of reading others and their 'feel' for the game. I would say, though, that even those that seem to be relying on their 'gut' are often relying on their math skills, even if only subconsciously.

Very well said! Often we give preference to feelings, thereby separating the solution from the mental. In fact, feelings are the product of our brain. Making seemingly some decisions unconsciously, our brain does this very quickly based on the previous method. The only thing that previous experience is not always good, for example, if you won where mathematically were weaker, will not bring you a plus in the distance.

 

[MishkaZL]

I rarely rely on intuition. Usually, I try to make sound logical decisions.

 

[Dzob]

I think that after a few years of learning and playing poker, intuition is based on this experience and gives us good advice. If someone makes an unusual move and we know from experience that 90% is a bluff, intuition will automatically tell us that it is a bluff.

 

[Alex70793]

When I preflop with pocket AA put all-in fact I think the brain, and when someone makes the call that thinking with your heart so I moved )).

 

[NCDaddy]

Logic and fact trump emotion almost always, even if we don't feel good about it. That being said, there is that "gut feeling" we get sometimes and it can be both right and wrong but we *have to* go with it despite our brain telling us to stop.

 

[Comboss599]

Have this situation all the time, have a good feeling about a hand but starting trust my brain and pass a hand then it turns out it was very good feeling then i feel angry. Off course it's not going only this way.

 

[neptun1914]

Definitely my brain. When you allow emotion to drive you result is worse in most cases. In coin flip situations i sometimes rely on my feelings to decide what to do but only after the brain made its calculations.

 

[Loky13]

I think it should be a symbiosis between the two..

 

[Jon Poker]

Unless you are a soul reader - logic and reason are the building blocks to the best foundation. The more the brain knows about the game, the better and easier the decisions. Sometimes I follow my "heart" and more often than not it's the incorrect play. Online I try to use nothing but my brain - live, sometimes I think you have to trust your gut along with all the information you can get and just go with it.

 

[domfudao]

Depends.

Sometimes follow brain.
Sometimes follow hearth

 

[kowrip]

When it comes down to it, the brain should have the final say. If you really think somebody is going all-in on a bluff, you should be making the decision based on your observations of their play. Calling off your entire stack to a guy that just sat down at your table because "he looked like the type that would make a big bluff" is just being stupid. Instinct might, however, tip a close decision one way or the other.