Poker News

Sam Mudaro

The next two 4 cards working together charts below are the results for A-5 and A-6 with a pair.

Not much difference between this chart and the one for A-4. Another 6 combinations or 41.8% of the total are now in the red. Still only 3 NS combinations are profitable butthere is a shift from A-5-Q-Q jumping from a loss of $0.19 to a profit of $2.16 from last time. A lesser swing occurred turning the A-5-3- 3 from a positive $1.01 to a negative of $0.13.

Looking at the A-6, there are 69.1% of the combinations that will cost you money. As the NS 3-3 and Q-Q turn negative only the 2-2 remains worthy of playing. The 7-7 thru the J-J are complete losers with the 5-5 and Q-Q only surviving in the DS version.

Returning to our decision to play poker we should ask ourselves: Are we in the right state of mind to play? Is there anything troubling or worrying us? Our concentration will suffer if we are worried. Did we just have an argument with someone? Did we just receive some disturbing news? Did we just lose that sports book bet and are seeking to get even at the poker table? Any of these will play havoc with our mental state and cause our mind to drift. It may be as subtle as not remembering who raised the pot before the flop. It may be as revealing as betting out of turn or folding a winning hand when we missed our flush draw and backed into a straight. If we lose concentration our opponents will realize it and capitalize on it. When our opponents capitalize on our errors it may worsen our mental state by throwing us on tilt!

Another common occurrence in most pokers rooms, especially those located next to a sports book or with large screens TV’s, is distraction. Remember, you came to play poker. Not to watch a horse race, a boxing match, round of golf or track how the stock market is doing. I find it ironic that most poker rooms forbid you from reading at the poker table as it slows down the game. Well what about those TV screens not to mention the headsets worn by so many and of course there are those who prefer to eat at the tables? Poker requires concentration.

If you are not in the frame of mind to watch your opponents how will you ever develop a read on them?

If we are under the weather this may be a good time to stay home and read or re-read that poker book we purchased some time ago. Yes I did say re-read. You will be surprised at how much more you will learn from the second reading. If our body is telling us rest because we are ill or simply did not get enough sleep we will not be able to play our “A” game.

Do you have enough time to play? How much time is enough? Time is relative. If we are watching our watch and trying to get in a few more hands we are simply going to make mistakes. We will attempt to speed our game up by playing more hands then we should. This is especially true if we are in a hole. One of the biggest problems with many players is the number of hands they play. Time pressure or constraints will exacerbate these problems.

How much money we need to play poker with depends on a host of factors including the limits we play at and how easy it is for us to replenish our bankroll. We will discuss the decision on how to size our bankroll later. If we don’t know what a sufficient bankroll is or are playing with a bankroll we know is insufficient we are asking for trouble. If we are playing with next month’s food or rent money we are said to be playing with “scared money”. If you play with scared money your level of aggressiveness will decline. You will raise and re-raise less, not call when you should and are susceptible to being bluffed off the best hand. Most authorities suggest the best playing style is to be selectively aggressive. Playing with scared money will cause you to play a less then perfect game. Your concentration will suffer as you worry about your money. So what have we learned? There are many factors to consider when deciding whether to play poker or not. Education is key. The more we learn the better our decisions will become.

Filed under: Poker News