Slowly but surely…
February 21, 2008
It’s been a busy few weeks for me away from the tables, but I’m slowly easing myself back to the virtual felt. I’ve had plenty of time to think about the game and to do a bit of self-analysis.
Self-analysis is one of the most important aspects of your poker game.
Life moves pretty fast. If you don’t stop to look once in a while, you could miss it!
- Ferris Beuler -
This same quote can be applied to poker. If you don’t stop to analyse your game once in a while you could potentially miss out on pinpointing any problems you may have. Stopping and looking for areas where you can improve is a must, or you will find yourself going nowhere in the poker world. There are loads of ways to do it, and here are a few of the things I have done……
- Recalled my hand histories and reviewed specific hands to see if there is any way I could have played them better. Not only losing hands but also winning hands. Was there an oppertunity to maximise the pot? Could I have check-raised or forced a call? Was I overly aggressive?
- I’ve taken advice from people watching me play. Other players can usually pick out your faults long before you do. I’ve had people watch me play (I tell them my starting hand) and they give their analysis of how I played once the hand is complete. You play the hand YOUR way. THEN they give their thoughts. It won’t help you much if you allow those watching you to coach you through a game, virtually playing the hands for you. The best way to progress in the poker world (and in life in general) is to learn from your own mistakes. This is a fantastic tool to help you improve your game. And we here at SuitedJokers can help you with this if you so wished.
- I’ve watched other people playing without getting involved in a game myself. Try to find a table with someone you know to be a good player and just see how the action unfolds. You may not see their hole cards at any time, but that doesn’t mean you can’t pick up some tips – if you look hard enough. Just by watching a table you should be able to determine – within a short spce of time – who the monkeys are, who the rocks are, who the aggressive players are etc… If you watch close enough you should also be able to pick up patterns of play for each of the players. Do they play the same throughout the game? Do they mix it up? Are they prone to bluffing and what kind of betting pattern do the employ on a bluff? These are the sort of questions you should be asking when watching a game. All this stuff helps if you happen to run into any of the players in the future. You will have a knowledge of how they play. If you do analyse a game, be sure to use the player notes which are available on most sites. Remember to date the notes as players can change their style in the space of a few weeks or months.
There is one area of my game that I need to work on improving more than any other though, and that is my concentration levels. I’m still losing concentration at critical times in games. I know some of the problems causing this (mainly alcohol…lol). I just need to have a little more self discipline, but that’s easier said than done, as I enjoy a beer or three when I’m playing. But it definately impairs your judgement and I tend to make silly moves that end up costing me dearly. (except for omaha hi/lo as I play better at this game when drunk!!!)
So, as you can see, you can be busy with poker without actually playing a game. If you need a break from poker, don’t abandon it completely. There are lots of ways to improve your game away from the table, and I’ve only given a couple of examples of what I personally have been doing.
And if you are playing but not faring too well at the tables, stop and do some self analysis and try some of the things above. It will benifit you and start to mould you into a better and hopefully more profitable player!
Comments welcome as usual. Or give your own pointers for helping to improve your game.
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2 Responses to “Slowly but surely…”
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I am in about the same place as you Goph, just starting to re-find my poker mojo.
For my part, I’d agree 100% that having some poker peers with you when you in a game ‘can’ be a real boon. Unlike you, I don’t mind them questioning my moves as they happen, sometimes they stop me from making a tired mistake, or they may have even noticed something about one of the players that I had not picked up on.
I’d much rather have my game affected dynamically and hopefully save some chips in the process and learn from the experience that way than lose the chips in the first place.
Got to hold my hands up and say I think it works against me sometimes and usually it is when I am swayed into a move which I wasn’t fully convinced about in the first instance. But horses for courses as they say, I say tomardur you say tomatuh, I say potaduh you say wtf you talking about blagz?
I know where you’re coming from Blagz. The reason I say play your hand THEN get analysis from others is because of what you say sometimes happen. Sometimes you know within yourself what the correct move is and you can be talked out of it. Most of the time you find out it was better to go with your own original thought.
I don’t mind people watching me and telling me something about a player that I might have missed, but as a general rule, I’ll try to play my own hand my own way. Anything else thats going on within the game, I’m more than happy to take on board.
You say potaduh… I just call it a tattie!