My first major problem with becoming a better poker player was letting my tilt get wayyy out of control. I would start spewing money at every table and eventually go busto after a bad beat. I no longer get tilted because I realized someone making bad decisions is profitable for me in the long...that became more evident as I increased my volume. Now I even tell ppl gh, wp, etc. just to encourage their horrible play.

I give my game a C+, Ive won a few donkaments and made some nice cash from ring games without knowing theories, odds, etc.. Now, I have started taking the game more seriously by reading and studying. I'm starting to see and think of the game differently than previously. My biggest problem is executing the rational decisions I compute. There are so many times when I know to lay it down and dont ex: I just busted w/ AKs by calling a three bet shove...I know damn well that I'm most likely wayyy behind this tag player, yet I call and busted to KK. I cannot find a way to consistently execute my decisions. I am absolutely 1000000000% positive that this has seriously costs me alot of money specifically because these decisions are made on the bubble or deep in the tourney. I'm starting to realize that executing late in tournies is what separates good from ok players....which is why I'd def like to hear from you guys that have taken down some nice size tournies and executed decisions in the clutch.


I was reading a post on p5's on why menlo is so good and a few of the pros stated because his table awareness and execution. TheWackoKidd and ActionJeff said that he doesnt make mistake and his execution is perfect....when many ppl go back and look over a hand and say they would have choosen another line, menlo doesnt because he always chooses the optimum play and executes it.

anyone have suggestions on how to execute better or see anything I might be doing wrong since im experiencing this alot??

You're not talking about the thing that separates one top pro from another, you're talking about a basic poker imperative. A top poker player has to make a decision with more money than he can afford to lose, not only without the slightest hesitation or flicker of a tell, but with the internal serenity to listen to the quiet voice that's observing the table and computing odds over the mental shouts of fear and greed; all the while experts are trying to make him do the opposite. If he's also worrying about acting on the decision once he reaches it, he's toast.

The interesting thing about your question is that you ask it. The biggest group of poker losers don't understand the basic mathematics and strategy of the game. The next biggest group masters that (and it's trivially simple compared to games like bridge or chess) but has trouble executing. The first group often knows it, and will complain ruefully about being terrible players. But you're rare among the second group in that you acknowledge the issue.

Any sort of winning poker, even the lowest level, requires you to know and master yourself. If you can succeed at that, the life benefits are greater than poker winnings.

The quickest answer is to force yourself to systematic play. Grind out at the lowest stakes necessary, but don't deviate at all from the system. But don't do it on autopilot. With 1% of your brain playing the cards, use 98% to observe the other players. Memorize every card, every bet, every potential tell. Use another 1% of your brain to chat and act relaxed. You'll start to notice lots of opportunities to improve from the system results, but don't use them yet, just play the system. You're there to get discipline and basic poker skills, not to win money.

A harder but better answer is to ask yourself why you're playing poker anyway. It can't be to make money, or you'd do what you know has positive EV. It can't be for fun or satisfaction, because your impulsive play bothers you. The biggest mistakes people make are not from miscalculation, they're from confused goals. If you're working out some emotional conflicts, then I hope the therapy is worth the money you lose. If you're pretending to be a hot shot poker player, then I suggest you stay home and daydream instead. When you decide to become a good poker player, you'll find it's much easier to improve your game.

There's a stupid poker saying, attributed to many people, "if you don't know who the sucker is at the table, it's you." A better one is, "if you don't know why you're at the table, you're a sucker."

Excellent post as usual, AaronBrown.

I agree completely.

Thanks, Arron. I appreciate the sincere reply and for the most part, on point analysis. I read some helpful information, particularly the recommendation of systematic play and discipline.

I suppose my original post is indeed interesting because I do believe I know exactly what the answer is yet, I felt the need to ask and seek verification from others responses; similar to an obese person asking someone if they should diet.The problem as you said is self-mastery and discipline. I lack consistency in it in life. Not to say thats im doing poorly by any means! my "average C" is comparable to most peoples "good B" essentially that goes for every task I undertake.... schoolwork/grades and in this case poker.

I'm not sure I play it for fun..the obv. question to consider is do I have fun when im playing? sometimes, but again as you said, it I cant because my impulsive undisciplined play really gets me pissed at times (I just busted again doing something impulsive, ill post it below). The biggest reason I play is for the money. I make enough to help me pay rent and buy groceries while im at school. I'm def. profitable as I said in the OP, I have won some smaller buy in large field tournies, I have a sng ROI of 55% (sharkscope), and I do pretty well with proper bankroll management in cash games. As you might assume I make the most/perform my best when I need the money. I also play because alot of the ppl I hang around happen to be some of the top ppl online (I go to U of Illinois its what ppl do).

With all that said I know what the problem is disciple, but I still need to figure out how to become better at it. You;re right once I do itll benefit fit me not only in poker but everything I do.

AP

This happened while I was posting the reply above..........

Poker Stars $4.00 $0.40 No Limit Hold'em Tournament - t200/t400 Blinds - 8 players
The Official 2+2 Hand Converter Powered By DeucesCracked.com

UTG: t12476
UTG+1: t11358
MP1: t14245
MP2: t1245
CO: t14905
BTN: t8072
Hero (SB): t8575
BB: t12613

Pre Flop: Hero is SB with 7 3
2 folds, MP1 calls t400, 1 fold, CO raises to t800, 1 fold, Hero raises to t8550 all in, 2 folds, CO calls t7750

Flop: (t18100) T Q K (2 players - 1 is all in)

Turn: (t18100) 6 (2 players - 1 is all in)

River: (t18100) 6 (2 players - 1 is all in)



I tend to do this on occasion. This is what I meant when I said I know for a fact my compulsive actions cost me alot of money. I think there were 9 left to the bubble and I had an average stack. I dont make these plays to lose (who likes losing?) I do it because I can not stop doing it. I get strong urges/impulses to make a play like this at times. I thought his min bet was week and I wanted to steal it, but this is always MEGA -EV and im aware of that, yet I cant fold.

It's not a terrible play, but you have to know when to do it. There's 1,800 in the pot. BB, MP1 and CO all have you well-covered, so they're likely to play conservatively. At a lot of tables, this will get folded to you unless one of those three players has JJ or better, which is unlikely. That's positive EV to you, plus it makes people more likely to call your next all-in bet. Doing it with 73 means you are unlikely to share a card with anyone who calls you, so it's hard to be dominated. Against AKo, for example, you have 34% equity.

You're much better off having to fight urges to be overagressive, than having to work up the nerve to make a strong play. You also need to listen to the part of you that reads other people. You'll often be wrong, but if you give up trying you might as well give up poker.

This is probably not a smart play against bad players, because you can win more surely without taking these kinds of chances. But if you move up to better competition, you'll have to trust your instincts and be willing to make aggressive all-in bluffs when the time is right.

Instead of blaming some uncontrollable impulse and feeling bad, you should try to take responsibility for all your poker decisions. Say "I tried a super-aggressive play on a read, and the read was wrong." Then try to figure out why the read was wrong, and think carefully if this was a good play even with the read. Don't try to be perfect, no one is. But if your reads are right 51% of the time and your play is well-thought-out, you can be a strong player.