Loosing Streaks and Getting out of the rut.

[Kraigus]

I don't know what happened but ever since I won one small 27 player tourney I haven't placed in the money hardly at all anywhere. The weekly home game I go to I feel like I'm just making a donation. I feel that I play pretty good poker but the poker gods are just not with me anymore. I want to change my luck but it seems like to do that I may have to play a little looser or just tighter. I tried both but at different games but if I find that on a table where I'm playing tight everyone else is doing the same and if I'm playing loose on a table then mostly everyone are making stupid moves and moving all in on nothing and end up winning. I know this is the game of poker and I expect ups and downs but come on, I'm ready for my upswing again. I read awhile back that Daniel Negraneau had a streak of bad luck and he walked away for about 8 weeks before coming back. That must have been tough leaving something you love to do, but I guess you need to do that sometime. I know my wife would be happy if I walked away for awhile. She says it is all I do is play poker, but on the other hand she plays Bingo. Sometimes I tease her and say that her bingo habit support my poker habit. lol. Well if anyone has any advice or just want to make a comment feel free.

 

[ChuckTs]

I have been fortunate enough not to go on a long bad streak (more than a couple days)
I'm not saying i hit money all the time but for the most part i do as well as my skill will allow.
Anyways what i'm trying to say is, sometimes in a day i'll be losing SnGs one after the other, and start to go increasingly on tilt. When this happens, I take a step back and do something completely different - TV, read a book, or just grab a snack and lounge - then I go back to playing, and often enough i start to play a little better and break even or start placing again.
Sometimes it is best to just take a break no matter how badly you want to keep playing and get back on track
hope your luck turns around and you start doin better, Kraigus!

 

[Threesixes]

Keep grinding it out. If you are normally a winning player it should all turn around. I was having a bad week myself but flipped it around with a $260 1st place in the Titan Winners Freeroll. As long as youre still playing your game, it will turn around. If youre starting to play bad because you are frustrated, then a break is in order.

 

[titans4ever]

I have just started to come out of a month long streak of cold cards. I would finish on the bubble due to a bad beat or two in a row or get rivered when I thought I would double up early in a tournament. I was actually 0 for 11 at one point with AA and KK in ring games (that hurt the pocketbook). I am just now starting to feel like I am able to overcome some of the bad beats and keep playing solid poker.

I agree with 3sixes, that if you are changing how you would look at your cards and how you would normally play them, you need to take a break. When you look down at AA or KK and kringe at which way someone will beat you, runner runner, flop the flush, hit his set of 3s, etc. then I would back off playing for awhile. That was what did it for me, I started to expect draws to hit, straights to always be there and expected to lose hands.

I took about a week off and then started to play again. I stayed on here and read posts and contributed to keep me thinking poker, just not playing it. When I went back, I started playing right and the cards did not always fall against me. I just finished a day with 2 SNG wins and one quick finish (bad beat) but I am not mad or down. The head is back to where it should be.

Chin up and all that crap. What goes around comes around, you will start catching cards again.

 

[t1riel]

I keep saying this time and time again. Taking a break from poker when you're on a cold streak is one of the best things to do. I ALWAYS do better after I take a break.