Drawbacks of Traditional Poker Psychology
My experience in sports psychology in the late nineties is now reflected in client testimonials about traditional poker psychology: “It helps up to a certain point, but you can't rely on it at crucial moments.” With “bad” variance and other psychological aspects of the game, such psychology suggests dealing with them by deep breathing, taking breaks from the game, engaging in visualizations, meditation, neurolinguistic programming, and even hypnosis. Each of these strategies can be a great choice at a certain moment (in the short term), but it is necessary to start addressing the deeply rooted psychological game problems. Otherwise, they will constantly resurface, like weeds that haven't been uprooted.
My experience in poker only confirmed the knowledge I brought from golf: by applying a deeper strategy to the mental game, it is possible to find not only temporary solutions to problems. A deep understanding of theory and the ability to develop psychological game skills in real life is what has been lacking in traditional poker psychology. Traditional wisdom knows how everything should be, so players are told that they must be fearless, confident, and not let variance throw them off balance. However, for many players, this is not enough. It's one thing to know how everything should be, but it's another to take real action to solve the problems that hinder successful play.
Psychological Game Fish
Fish are fish partly because they believe in things that aren't true. They play significantly weaker than their opponents but don't realize it. They suck out once and think they played great. A stronger opponent outplays them, but they think it's just bad luck. They believe they don't need to improve their game, but even if they did, they wouldn't know where to start. They have no understanding of what they can control and what they can't at the poker table. You'll often hear them say: “I knew that king would come” or “I always win with AQ.”
Maybe you are a solid winning player who recognizes opponents' weaknesses, but when it comes to understanding the psychological aspects of the game, you are likely no different from a fish. You are a fish in the psychological game if:
- You change a proven successful strategy when you are doing poorly/well.
- You don't understand when someone plays well against you or think that everyone plays badly but always gets lucky.
- You try to win every hand.
- You think the outcome of a hand can be influenced by shouting, praying, or having a “lucky hand.”
- You get annoyed when a bad player plays badly and even try to explain to them why they are playing badly.
- You feel unhappy when you lose a hand that you played profitably.
- You think you can end a bad run by stopping playing or changing limits.
- You think that after reading a poker book, you know everything.
- You watch Phil Galfond's instructional videos and think you can play like him.
- You think you are cursed or that others are luckier than you.
- You think it's possible to delve into another player's soul.
- You play more hands when you are winning/losing.
- You play fewer hands when you are winning/losing.
- You play badly when the stakes are too low to matter.
- You get personal with other players.
- You tell bad beat stories to anyone who will listen, without trying to improve your reaction to those bad beats.
- You say “one time.”
This series of articles is based on Jared Tendler's poker psychology book: “Mental Game of Poker.” Those who want to purchase the original, which is in English, can do so at amazon.com
