WSOP | Why Do I Play Poker?

February 9, 2010

Winning Poker – How to Crack the Code

Filed under: Poker, Texas Hold'em, WSOP — Tags: adrenaline rush, Poker, poker players, WSOP — WhyDoIPlayPoker @ 4:00 am

I enjoy the process of figuring things out.Â Puzzles make me feel alive. Get my brain swirling about in the best of ways.

You probably think I am going to say that poker is the biggest puzzle I have ever encountered. Not true.Â That award goes to being a husband and father. Much harder AND much more rewarding.Â But poker comes in second.

There is something so enticing about the puzzle that we call poker.Â With all the books, discussion groups and casinos, there are literally thousands of avenues to explore that can you help you crack the code. Most of us have tried them all. So why aren’t more of us winning? As I’ve said before, I am not a winning poker player, so I often ask myself why I play?

To crack the code.

More than money, ego, bragging rights or that adrenaline rush of getting a one-outer on the river, I play poker simply to figure out what it takes to be a winner. What is that formula?

I keep a book of all my sessions:

When I play. For how long. What stakes. What game. Won/lost amount. Who I play against.

This book is a cryptic puzzle that I desperately want to figure out. Somewhere in those pages is the answer as to why I don’t win more money at poker.

Some of the answers are obvious: I play when I am tired. I play against better players. I go on tilt and give away my last $30 (did that last night!). I play too long. I play too loose when I am winning. I don’t leave when I am losing.

On closer look, I realize these are not results, but really symptoms. There is something deeper. Something within myself that prevents me from winning more money. Not sure what that is yet.

I just started reading a great book: The Secrets of the Millionaire Mind. It says that rich people think differently than poor people. This reminded of Alan Schoonmaker’s book, Poker Winners Are Different.

Both books imply that rich people and winners (in poker this is often the same thing) have different wiring in their brain.

If that’s the case, then I guess I need brain surgery. Now I need to figure out how to pay for that.

Maybe I’ll win the WSOP Main Event. A few million should cover the surgery, right?

Why do you play? Let me know atÂ stories@whydoiplaypoker.net

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January 25, 2010

Like Dexter, I also have a “Dark Passenger.”

Filed under: Commerce Casino, Hollywood Park, Poker, Texas Hold'em, The Bike, WSOP, Winning Streak — Tags: chips, dexter, Flop, flush, iphone, PLO, Poker, poker player, straight, tilt — Why Do I Play Poker? @ 4:00 am

“I’m all in!”

“I call!”

He shows me his straight. I muck my 2 pair in disgust. It’s not that I got outplayed. That doesn’t piss me off too much. What DOES piss me off is when I make a solid game plan on the way to the casino, but when I get there, my dark passenger takes over and the game plan goes out the door. It’s like I am two people. On the one hand, I am a responsible father and husband. Patient, creative and frugal. On the other hand, I am an aggressive poker player – impatient, impulsive and sometimes reckless.

Okay, maybe my comparison to Dexter is an exaggeration. After all, its been years since I hacked up some evil dude and threw his body parts in the ocean.

I have the same conversation every time I go to the casino. “Today I am going to play tight. No fishing. Only play position. Fold draws when I don’t have the odds. Go home when I lose my edge. Don’t go on tilt when I get a bad beat. And most importantly, FOLD WHEN I KNOW I AM BEAT!” I look in the mirror. Remind myself that I am in control.

Then I get to the casino, fast walk to the felt and plop down my chips and eagerly await my first Christmas present. 2 minutes later, all my chips are in the middle. 3 way action and I am on the nut flush draw on the flop. I almost have odds and convince myself this is a good spot to get it all in. 30 seconds later…..I am on tilt, calling for chips and ready to gamble. Just like that, enter my dark passenger. It doesn’t take long until, I have lost my second buy-in. At this point, I look at my phone and realize I have been here for only 75 minutes. Luckily the wallpaper on my iPhone is a picture of my son. Instantly I snap back. My horns retract, my fangs retreat, my tail disappears and I am myself again. I breath deeply and remind myself that I am not defined by my last hand of poker.

I am always surprised when my dark side comes out, but I have come to be grateful for him as well. I use him as a measure for my personal growth. The day I can take a beating and shake it off will be the day I have made it to the next level of consciousness. It may sound a bit metaphysical, but that’s one of the reasons I play poker.

Why do you play? Let me know atÂ stories@whydoiplaypoker.net

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