Are You Playing Poker, Or Is Poker Playing You? By Kyle Swanson

Are You Playing Poker, Or Is Poker Playing You? :dirol
By Kyle Swanson
If you are a serious poker player, or aspire to be, there are many questions to ask yourself as the days, weeks, months and years go by. Most of us know the technical questions pretty well by now, particularly the basic but all-important equation: am I getting the right price for my hand? It's crucial to go deeper than that, however, if you seek success in life as well as cards, and ask the most important question of all in poker: are you getting the right price for your time?

Most poker writing is concerned with getting the maximum for your poker dollar, whether by raising or folding, choosing the right game, having the right bankroll for your limit, reading your opponents, et cetera. These are all worthwhile issues, but they pale next to another vital poker question, which is why are you playing poker in the first place?

The two questions dovetail perfectly. If you play poker once in a while, play for small amounts well within your means, and always walk away from the table at the right time, you really are playing for fun. Most of us think we play poker for fun, but honest contemplation and analysis of our playing patterns will probably yield a rather different answer. If you're playing for more than fun (or less, perhaps), then you might start figuring what price you are truly getting on your time.

One thing poker can do to your mind is set up an inner bluff mechanism whereby you lie to yourself. A lot. We think we know ourselves at the poker table, but do we? The unexamined life is not worth living, according to Socrates, and I would add that the unexamined poker life is not worth the ante. The ante is your time as well as your money. But what is the pot worth? What's the payout? Where's the value?

Ah, value. Any real player can judge any hand in any situation for its value, and ram it home or let it go...but how many can be honest enough to face the thought floating in the subconscious of most every poker player, like a pair of aces up the sleeve of your brain: "I am wasting too much of my life playing poker."

Curses! How dare he even mention that question? Sounds like my wife! My poker habit, I mean my deep love of poker, is well under my control. I play when I want to, and stop when I want to, and never lose more than I can afford.

Oh really?

Take a look at those three statements. Now cut the crap and be honest with yourself for a change, o fellow poker addict. Go ahead, try it. Not so easy, or pretty, is it? I know, believe me. I've been there and will no doubt be back again. I love to play poker. Love it!

When I was in full swing a few years ago, I would be the first guy every night at the local pot limit hold'em or PLO table, and usually the last to leave. Six or sometimes seven nights a week. I was single and solvent and did well enough to stick around night after night, year after year, but that's not the point in question here. Winning doesn't ameliorate every other consideration. I played over three thousand hours one year, live games only. That's one and a half full-time jobs.

I think I'm qualified to speak about poker addiction.

And yes, it is addiction, folks. Call it what you like, but if you can't pass the following test, then you are a poker addict.

Have you ever said to yourself, tonight I'm going home after three hours (or two, or five, or...), no matter how much I'm up or down? Sure you have. We all have. And have you then found yourself sitting there as the game folded, dazed and confused, and stumbled outside into unexpected daylight and realized that you stayed, oh, about four (or ten, or twenty...) hours longer than you'd promised yourself you would?

You bet your life you have. In fact, that's a dead accurate statement. Every time you tell yourself something in relation to poker and don't follow through, you are making a wager with your inner self and losing. But hey, who suffers, right? It's your time, your life, and you can damn well do as you please. True enough. But...would you risk your bankroll with QQ when the pot is triple raised to you? (If you said yes, go watch celebrity poker; this article is not meant for you.)

No you wouldn't, because you know your odds are poor at best. Then why would you lie to yourself, repeatedly, about so many aspects of poker? One thing I've noticed over the years in poker and gambling in general (I mean gaming...gambling is a bad word...we just like to play games), is that the very few guys who win year after year have a number of things in common. And the top thing on that list is that they are damn straight with themselves.

When they are playing poorly, or just running bad, they lay off. They don't go Martingaling merrily along and blow off their hard-won cash. They shift down. They play lower limits, easier games. They get their confidence back before jumping into the ring with the top contenders. Sometimes they just stop playing for a while. Sounds easy, right? So why isn't it?

The fact is that almost every long-term successful player I have met has a wonderful life away from poker, a life full of people who love them for who they are, not what they do or how their bank balance looks. They also tend to be the most gentlemanly players out there, which is part and parcel. And by successful at poker I mean years and years of regular winning, not just running good for a few months. These guys win because they have a firm base upon which to build a balanced game, and because poker is not the most important thing in their lives. When they lose, it's just money. The really important things are all still there when they get home. And that's why they don't lose much: they don't need to win.

Their happiness in life is not based on winning at poker. Their winning at poker is based on their happiness in life.

Sounds simple...but it isn't.

A lot of us, maybe most of us, love poker because

This is heavy stuff man.
heavy

Wow
What a downer he is.
Thanks for the rantings of another.

I guess some players have a disease and he is definitely one of them.
How negative can one be on poker, Beat it to death and beat it some more.

Ok
I get it, you think you and many others (addicts) should not play the game.
Those that need help and are addicted should get help and stop playing. I agree with that 100%.

We all have opinions and he has the right to his.

But I think he would be better served to shed it in a more positive manner.


Call Gambling's Anonymous if you have an issue.
PLEASE ......