Self Control: Three Helpful Tools

BY: Ashley Adams
Contact at: (Asha34@aol.com)
Author of Winning 7-Card Stud

There are four key ingredients to being a winning low limit no limit player. You need to understand hand values. You need to understand pot odds. And you need to understand other players. Those would be three. The fourth is surely self-control. You can't be a winner playing any form of poker without self control. It's especially crucial at no limit.

Think about it. You're playing $5/10 limit Texas Hold Em or Stud. You space out. Or you get angry. Or you get cocky. And you raise out of anger or call out of boredom. What do you lose? A bet or two. $10 or $20 bucks. True, if your out-of-line play continues it will cost you more. But for that instant of inattention or emotional override you're only doomed to losing the single bet -- which is by definition limited.

But now we're at the no limit table. Low limit no limit to be sure, but still the only limit is what we have in front of us on the table. If we've just bought in to the $100 max buy-in game then we can lose our whole stack of $100 in an instant. If we're at a $2/4 $200 minimum game and we've bought in for $500, well we can lose all of that too. All because we failed to do what we know we need to do. Pretty big mistake, no?

So what can we do about this fatal flaw? Other than just knowing, intellectually, that going on tilt or spacing our or otherwise losing control during a no limit game can be fatal, what can we do about it?

Here are three things that I recommend to the inexperienced or otherwise learning player (and we should all always be learning, no?).

First, intend to play each hand alertly. Be ready to play when you sit down. For some, that means taking at least a few minutes to get ready to play. Don't just slam your money on the table as soon as you sit down and post the blind before looking at your cards and getting settled. Get settled. Size up the opposition. Size up yourself. Are you tired? nervous? Eager? Juiced up? Take note of it. Watch your opposition for a while. Can you at least put people into some broad category? Is the 3 seat tight? The 8 seat loose? No one says you have to dive right in the first chance you have. Sit back and observe for 15 minutes or so -- at least a couple of rounds so you can see what your opponents are doing.

Second, plan on a short session. Don't stay for more than a few hours - and take regular breaks to keep your focus. I recommend that all but the most experienced players take a break after the first 30 minutes or so -- even if you're running really good. Stand up, walk away from the table, think about how you're doing. Doing fine? Noticing how others are playing? Thinking about your own play? Fine, then sit down again and play some more. Feeling restless? Distracted? Bored? Maybe you need a longer break. Maybe you should go home. There's no award for playing your best under bad circumstances. Don't be afraid to be honest with yourself and pull yourself out of a situation in which you don't feel fully comfortable.

Finally, pause before you act. I'm not talking about a dramatic pause of a minute or more like you see pros do in tough moments on TV. But I am suggesting that before you do anything you take 2 or 3 seconds before you act. Make this your routine. Think about what you're going to do before you do it -- even if it's an automatic fold. Say "I'm folding" and then pause another second and fold. If you see a raising hand, think "I'm raising. 3 times the pot -- no 4 times the pot." and then raise four times the pot. Every so often, whether you need extra time or not, you want to pause for a full 15-20 seconds to make sure that you're not giving anything away when you really need to pause this long. But nearly all the time there should be at least a small pause so you act deliberately.

Three things -- intent, breaks and pausing -- should help keep you engaged and thoughtful and prevent you from getting distracted or going on tilt. They won't prevent this completely of course. But they should help.

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