Poker News

James A. McKenna, PhD.

“He knows no fear!” “He bets on anything and when he loses, he doesn’t flinch or whine!” That’s the kind of “over the table” gossip you can hear every day in a poker room. It brings up the question of whether people who play with no fear are better players or, quite frankly, what role fear and emotions have in the game of poker.

When we are strongly stressed there’s an automatic response from our nervous system. It’s referred to as The Fight or Flight Response. It’s our body’s primitive, automatic, and inborn response that is preparing our body to “fight” (call, raise) or “flee” (fold). This is based on a perceived attack, harm or threat. Therein lies the rub. What one player would call an attack (like an all-in move), and what another player would call a trap (like soft playing the nuts) often makes the difference between fighting and folding.

Some players never show emotion, and may never even experience emotion. They are in a zone all their own. Emotions, like fear, hunches, and intuition are a good player’s arsenal. These players can “smell” a bluff that looks like an attack. You will, however, find players who interpret every loss as a threat to their survival. This is the case for players who know how to handle a short stack of chips. Notice any tournament and be aware of how often the lowest stack ends up winning the tournament. Is that because the player has no fear or is it because he/she listens to feelings and knows how to handle bad times as well as good ones?

Here’s an interesting way to view this Fight or Flight Response: Notice that successful players determine to stay or fight based on odds and probability. Players who stay in, no matter what, are loose and don’t do so well over time. Players who are tight as a bark on a tree may get out whenever the going gets rough.

Rate yourself on how much you flee when things get tough. Now put an “x” on the horizontal line in the above Fight or Flight chart.

Next, rate yourself on how much you flee (fold) when the going is rough. Now you can put an “x” on the perpendicular line in the above chart. Join the two “x”’s to see which quadrant is your style of playing when things get stressful.

Example:

So, what’s the verdict? Do you stay too long because you don’t listen to your feelings or because you are just stubborn and let your feelings rule your game? Do you decide to fight or withdraw based more on how worth the risk it is for you? How do you determine this risk? By pot odds and the number of outs you have? Or, by the seat of you pants because you hate to be forced out of anything? Now, tell me about the guy who knows no fear and I’ll show you a player who goes home mad or sad instead of scared.

I’ve had some fun grouping players in these four categories. Of course, it’s just for fun and I am sure that you could add a bunch of your own ways of looking at calling, raising, bluffing, and folding. For more information on handling good times and bad times, my book is now available (Beyond Tells: Power Poker Psychology). You’ll also learn about players in three core personality groups-Winners, Loser, and Non-winners. Recognizing key playing styles, such as the Loner, the High Roller, the Hunch Player, and the Boss are clues in whether to fight or fold. If you are interested in my new book, visit my website for more information at www.JimMcKenna-PhD.com

Remember, though, that better players don’t fight every hand and will often lay down a good hand. That’s because they know how to, “Fold today and live to play another day.”

Filed under: Poker News