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EMOTIONS IN POKER

Anyone who has seen poker played knows that it doesn’t pay to get emotional on the table.  If a simple twitch or bead of perspiration every shows up on a player, it’s like showing your opponents what type of hand you got there.  How much more if you made an angry outburst while playing?  I mean I’m not even one of the best players around yet by that simple action, you’ve given me an idea of what card you got.  Unless you’re trying to set me up for a bluff, you might get away with it but that also depends on your image around the table.  You will also start to understand that as the stakes go higher, you cannot afford to be any more emotional than a mannequin.

No Limit Poker

Emotional giveaways are never more important than when you’re playing in no limit poker.  Think of a $5/10 limit plays in a Texas Holdem.  If you start shaking or fumbling, you might lose a bet or two worth $10-$20.  But if you continue to play with the same display of emotions, you will surely lose more than that. Try doing it with a no limit Texas Holdem with $150 buy-in.  Say goodbye to the $150 bucks you just used.  I hope this drives the point.

Controlling Your Emotions

Would you recommend I stop playing until I can get a hold of myself?  Something like that.  You’d have to get some tips from pro players who also experience frustration and boredom from time to time.  In fact, I recommended taking breaks every 30 minutes of continuous play just so you could take a full stock of how you just played.  It is easy to fool yourself into thinking that you’re on a roll and stopping right then and there might make you lose your momentum.  Are you still emotionally balanced to say your momentum might be going in the direction of winning hands instead of the other way around?  Poker is more than just luck.

Start acting deliberately.  It means looking before you leap.  Know that whatever call you make, you are aware of the consequences instead of just saying things automatically.  You don’t want to give anything away to your opponents without thinking it through.

Be sure to size up a table first before joining them.  It is important you’re evenly matched up with your opponents.  See how far they could be manipulated.  Are they playing loose or tight?  If you have good chances of winning then go ahead but don’t forget to keep your emotions in check.