Quote:
Originally Posted by Biju
Above quote: Can you expand on when and why you consider leaving a table or stopping a session and what you mean by a bad image. Isn't this a great time to change gears?
I struggle every few months or so when I get on a downswing run of continual coolers and suck outs and then my play deteriorates to a degree and I can blow through multiple buyins. I assume these swings will always happen even when I'm good and I just need to accept them as a fact of life and just remove the poor play part induced by the variance!!! Any advice here on dealing with downswings and bad runs. I feel I'm getting better handle on them mentally and figure experience is key. Also breaking this down further to individual sessions on why or when you will normally leave a table/session during a downswing or in normal circumstances if different.
It's generally correct to leave the table when you have a bad image because it becomes very obvious to your opponents when you have it and when you don't. A bad image implies that you've been losing a bunch of pots by calling down too light against your opponents value bets or by bluffing too frequently into spots where your opponents continue to call you down. So if most players at the table are only going to fold to you when you have it, call you when you don't, and value bet you very thinly, you are in a lot of trouble.
The only remedy in this type of case is to make a hand, which is actually pretty tough to do.
If nothing you seem to be doing is working, the correct decision is always to just get up and get on another table, or just quit the session altogether.
What you said about building experience to deal with downswings is the best advice I could give to anyone. I don't think there is any one magic formula, but one thing I think I do well in real life that allows me to deal with these downswings better is I don't really sweat small stuff. When I was younger, if I was driving and somebody cut me off, I used to lose it and get really upset. Today even if I get in accident and it's not my fault, I'd probably be very subdued and matter of fact. Accidents happen, I was probably due, no big deal. I get upset at very few things nowadays, so when I get 200bb sucked out on the river by a 2 outer, it just doesn't effect me that much.