Poker Forum > General Discussion
Mental Game - The Process Model
VBlue:
--- Quote from: AAroddersAA on November 01, 2012, 12:50:57 PM ---
I am assuming we are taking about online poker here. My preparation for live games is generally terrible to say the least, I am not really a live player though.
--- End quote ---
Yes - online poker. Sorry, I should have made that clear.
--- Quote from: AAroddersAA on November 01, 2012, 12:50:57 PM ---
Preparation - Not anything major, just make sure your mind set is right. The problem with online poker especially cash games is they do not stop. You can play anytime. It is not usually right to play too soon after getting up or straight after getting home from work. Don"t play when too tried or when you are just not in the right frame of mind. This does not need to be anything major either, but if something has pissed you off in work and is likely to play on your mind and interfere with your focus don"t play. If it an early morning session I make sure I have at least had a shower and a tea/coffee first and have been up for at least 90 minutes.
--- End quote ---
Jared advocates that this pre-game preparation is very important and if missed can result in the early part of our session spent warming-up, instead of being warmed up ready to play from the 1st hand, which could cause us value from our session. I like the stuff about showering and having a drink, doing your best to be in the right frame of mind.
Some other ideas are to have some specific goals for the session. I have been working on pre-flop aggression recently, so might have a goal to 4-bet every time I am 3-bet, as I am experimenting with this in my game currently. I might also have some other goals to ensure that my focus and concentration are good throughout - like turning off other online distractions (social networks), or perhaps a goal to make a note on each opponent I come across during the session.
I don"t agree with the bit about being tired though. It is important that we learn to play in different states and it can be sometimes profitable, if the game is good, to play our B game, or even our C game for a session. Also, to improve our C game and B game we have to focus on the back-end of our skills and playing when we are not at our best can help improve us.
--- Quote from: AAroddersAA on November 01, 2012, 12:50:57 PM ---
During the session is also important. One of the most important skills is quitting. If the game is bad or you start to get unlucky and it is annoying you then take a break. Go for a walk or watch something on TV whichever you prefer at the time. Music is good as well sometimes. Don"t play for too long, this is my biggest leak and it can be expensive as you stop playing your best game and leaks creep in. I for example start calling when I should be 3-betting and chasing draws when I should be getting it in/folding.
--- End quote ---
Again, with reference to quitting, similar thoughts as to those I have shared above apply. I do think regular breaks are important and sure, if you are going to go on monkey-tilt and blow your roll, then quitting is certainly the right thing to do.
Des:
I think Jarad having a required registration on the page you"re linking to is a barrier to discussion.
VBlue:
--- Quote from: Des on November 01, 2012, 13:48:23 PM ---
I think Jarad having a required registration on the page you"re linking to is a barrier to discussion.
--- End quote ---
Sorry Des. I did not think that through. It isn"t important to the discussion so I have removed it from the OP.
VBlue:
--- Quote from: AAroddersAA on November 01, 2012, 12:50:57 PM ---
Evaluation/Analysis - I don"t think it needs to be done straight afterwards. You will have used Poker Tracker or Holdem Manager during the session so should have all the hands there to review. I will talk about cash games as there are better people who can tell you about tournaments. I tend to look at the decent wins and losses first. With the losses could I have done anything better to prevent it, usually you will know. Look at filters on hands that went to the flop, is there a spot where you could have picked up a pot when you didn"t, did you try in a bad spot. The more you look at these the more familiar you become with them and the better you get at making decisions at the table. Look at the flop and evaluate the way you have played it. Look to see if there are spots where you should have picked up a pot on the river, are there good spots to bluff raise the river that you missed. If you find something on a player that could be useful make a note in your poker client.
--- End quote ---
Evaluation is something which Jared advocates should always be done immediately after the session. This is not a deper Analysis stage, but purely some kind of an evaluation of your play. What was your focus like? Your concentration? Did you achieve your session goals? How did variance affect your results?
I might score 1-5 in each area I evaluate - for focus 1 would be mashing buttons, 5 would be giving full consideration to the table and individual player dynamics in reaching each decision I make in the session.
It may take only a few minutes to complete this evaluation. As in professional sports where on leaving the field a football team would go back to the dressing room and have an immeidate evaluation of their performance.
The stuff on utilising HUD stats into your analysis is very useful - thanks.
VBlue:
--- Quote from: AAroddersAA on November 01, 2012, 12:50:57 PM ---
Other tools you can use are Pokerstove (I use Odds Oracle myself, but Pokerstove is free). Forums are great resources, the Strategy section of this one is good but personally if I really don"t know what I should have done in a spot it gets posted here http://blondepoker.com/forum/index.php?board=24.0, the responses are honest and really very good, these are some of the best players in the country. If you need help using the tools (mainly Odds Oracle as it can be quite hard then there are a fair few people on this board who can help you - PM me if you like)
Post the hands on your blog convert them first and people will comment.Oh one thing even if you disagree with feedback given, and sometimes you will, don"t get defensive about it people are always trying to help.
People to talk too about hands helps as well. If I am really stuck on a run or something I tend to ask advice from people I know are good. There are some people on here who I won"t mention as they may not want to be mentioned.
Also take part on the discussion on the PHA board (link I posted above). It is sometimes a bit intimidating and I don"t always understand what they mean but I just tend to ask them and they then explain. It occasionally goes over my head but I have learnt a lot by posting in there and still do. The strategy section on here allows that as well and is a more comfortable environment for your rec player. However there are not many posts. If you do post there PLEASE make your replies more than a sentence. A post like
"I"m folding here"
is not use to anybody least of all you (it is just basically spam imo). You should be able to explain why you think a certain line is best and when you type up a post sometimes you will find that what you think is actually wrong and sometimes people will make points that make you rethink it. It also enables you to make contacts for discussing your game with when you want some help.
To do all this properly is hard work and you have to enjoy doing it really to get the most out of it. I would have thought there are some people on APAT who can add a bit to this so hopefully we will see some more responses soon.
Maybe PM Noble1 if he doesn"t mind be recommending him, this sounds like the kind of thing he is great at.
--- End quote ---
For the last part, I do use pokerstove, but certainly need to start spending more time on equity calculations, something I want to do a lot more of.
I do post hands on another forum I am a member of and the discussions are in depth and have intelligent contributors.
I am also signed up for a 12 month online poker course which is forming the major part of my game analysis. I am pretty new to HM2 so will consider your advice and may come back to ask some better questions on how I can get the most out of the package.
Thanks for your detailed contribution Rodders.
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