Poker Tourettes
This week in my local game, I coined the phrase ‘Poker Tourettes’ much to the amusement of my friends and opponents, Wilko and Tourist. This isn’t intended as a cheap gag at those that suffer with the terrible affliction (even though I can’t resist laughing at times), it’s just the best way I can explain how my mind works. When I was a kid, my best friend at school suffered with tourettes at a time when it was relatively unknown and misunderstood so I do actually understand the pain it causes and certain ways in manifests itself. It’s a truly horrendous affliction
The reason I was thinking of why I had the phrase in mind was that I managed to overcome and control an involuntary and sudden action that I didn’t intend; the same way in which my friend used to just blurt out ’shitting hell, shittin hell’ with no good reason but learned through various exercises to control his outbursts. The tourettes seems to take hold of me at certain stages of tournament poker, normally when I’m approaching a short stack position, say 10BB’s or have a healthy stack and am trying to dominate a table when the blinds are starting to damage my competitors. This action must have cost me numerous torunaments over the years and it’s only now that I’m starting to correct it.
It stems from the generally accepted ‘aggressive’ approach that seems to be bandied around by anyone willing to put their thoughts about tournament poker on the web or in print. I’ve been indoctrinated by Mr Harrington into thinking that as soon as my M goes orange I need to think about shoving every pot I can open. Mr Hansen told me to dominate the table when I’ve got the chips to use and Mr Ivey just looked so cool when he bluffed Paul Jackson off that hand in the Monte Carlo Millions. I’m not criticising these players, but I’ve taken their advice far too literally and I’m exaggerating their impact on my poker style.
This week I’d been playing well and was generally in control of my table until I got it all in on the flop with AK overcards and the nut flush draw to an opponent holding second pair which held up and he cut my stack in half. I was 90 % sure I was favourite, was happy to play for stacks, and was right to do so. All of a sudden though I feel like I’m short stacked when really I’m not. (You may be seeing echoes of my last DTD write up here). For the next half an hour, all I wanted to do was throw my chips in at every chance I got. I saw every raise as a steal that I should re-steal. Every unopened pot was a chance to take the blinds, I almost announced ‘all-in’ involuntarily on at least three occasions. I’m sure it’s another example of tilt manifesting in my play as I really don’t get upset when the cards fall against me, but even though I always remain calm, this must be the way in which my mind lets the tilt take control
Whilst I was trying to distract myself from shoving all my chips in the pot with 6-4 offsuit I tried to think of other occasions in which this had happened to me. I came third in a tournament recently against two of the worst players I’ve ever come across when I bluffed pre-flop/flop/turn/river with nothing but A high against the biggest station I’d ever met. I knew he had nothing and he duly called me down with nothing but J8 which hit a J on the river to win him the pot! Most people, if they’re honest, would berate the moron for making every call to river; personally I think I’m the moron for making such a horrendous series of bets to lose a tournament I should have walked. The thing is, I made each bet almost instinctively; I couldn’t control it, I just had to bet.
The upshot of this is that I’m a person expressing their thoughts whilst learning to control a major leak. Don’t get me wrong, I still think aggressive tournament poker is the most fun, and most successful way to play but there’s a difference between aggression and lunacy, I just need to try and reverse an instinct that’s been ground into my poker character for the last four years. Maybe if you look at yourself hard enough you might spot a couple of similarities, even if it’s a different response to an instinctive action.
Anyway, if ever you see me shoving 8BB’s from UTG with 6-8 off, then please remind me of this piece when I head to the rail!!
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