Sunday, June 7, 2020

After a Bad Beat, Avoid Going Tilt

After a Bad Beat, Avoid Going Tilt
Picture yourself looking down before the flop and finding you are holding two aces in your hand. And even before you get to act on your hand there are a number of raises and reraises. Checking around the table you see three other players remain in the game after the flop, and your are feeling confident as you have the best pre-flop hand.
There is what appears to be a harmless set of community cards - Jack of Hearts, Two of Diamonds,Three of Spades heading into the flop. Everyone folds after the player before you moves all in. You call... your opponent has a Jack, Queen of Spades. That gives you top pair. Now the turn and river brings two more spades. No improvement on your pair of aces and you loose to a flush. You immediately know the feeling.
The term itself comes from a pinball machine where aggressive players physically lift the machine after a difficult play. Famous in the 1980s, the term carries over to overly angry poker players today who let their emotions get the best of them. Tilt can impact your play, and inducing tilt in other players can be an effective strategy to keep one step ahead of your opponents.
If you have ever faced a bad beat like this, it is key to stay calm, and not to get involved in a spiral of over-betting in the next few rounds. There will always be bad luck in poker, but, when luck is not on your side, keep your emotions in check, and make sure you don't make poor bets based on impulse. Take a deep breath after losing a hand on the basis of luck. Then continue playing knowing you used your best judgment - and in the end those kind of smart decisions will ensure you win more than you loose, keeping your play ahead of the curve.
How to Avoid Tilt Betting
For beginning players tilt is not unusual and will form a part of their learning curve. At that beginning level ensuring tilt doesn't bankrupt you requires yo play within your limits. Only choose to play at a table where you can actually afford to lose your entire stack. When you start at a low buy in table you limit the chances of your going tilt and your chances of rebounding from a bad beat are greatly improved.
Successful players based their poker games upon likely outcomes - they play "positive EV" strategies which put them in the best possible position to win. Even if a given pot results in a loss, making the right bet will help turn around your luck eventually. While you might have a good or bad night, a long term mathematical strategy is the best opportunity for success.
Remember the frequency of bad beats, especially in multi way pots where your chances of losing are greater. Although you may have the best hand at that point, the odds are you could still lose to a drawing hand like a straight or flush based on the board. Keeping your maximum bets low and carefully studying each bet can decrease your variance over the long haul.

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