[chris]

I need to know whether it's time to hang up poker for about a month or two. i scratched and clawed for about 2 weeks building a pretty solid bankroll at low limits playing solid poker (lee jones). now for about a week now i have had NOTHING but bad beat after bad beat and have lost eveyrthing i made - i am back to even. no matter what i have, and no matter how good it is, it finds a way to lose. is it time to throw in the towel for a couple months so i can clear my head? every day i try to come back with a clear head and i usually am fine until about 5 consecutive bullshit drawout losses....so just lend me some advice here because i am just very frustrated.

[lork]

I'd take a few days off to clear your head before you get back into the game. Identify your state of mind and state of emotion at all times when you play, esecially after a beat, because you might be steaming off your chips from tilt. If you're playing from emotion and not from objectivity, you're just going to give your chips away. Re-read Jones in your time off, new things pop out of the pages each time you read it.

You will get sucked out on quite often in low-limit. These are the people who are paying you off the rest of the time though so you can't get very upset with them. Remember, you can only get outdrawn if you're putting your money in with the best hand. That's your main goal in poker regardless of the outcome.

[norshvind]

Just take it easy, maybe take a break for a few days, read some more, and when you can objectively do so, analyze your play before (and also after)getting back in.

It could well be that you just had a natural downswing. If so, then analyzing it and seeing it for what it is will help you stay unemotional and off tilt. On the other hand, it's quite common for a player to break through to a winning skill level, only to become a bit overconfident, add an extra unprofitable hand or two to their play, and before they know it, they're on a losing streak. Re-reading will help you identify whether that's what's happened, and if so to adjust accordingly.

Regarding drawouts, maybe you should play with a "drawout trigger," meaning that if you get three truly bad beats in a row then you're out of there for the day. Really that's NOT good advice, because you will win money over the long haul from players who go for longshot draws, but only if you can stay unemotional. The previous poster observed correctly that those are the guys you make your money from. On the other hand, if you play at a table full of them your swings will be huge - - table selection may be an area you'll want to look at more closely.

You might also get a simulation like Turbo Texas Holdem, that would provide a solid reality check on your game. You may not need it but form your psot it sounded like you were questioning your game, and TTHE provides some great hand-by-hand feedback.

Oh yes, and thanks for not posting an "it's rigged" narrative.

[johnf]

Here's my advice... I was winning at .50/1.00 tables at paradise... and as my game improved... my winnings went south a little... and I was trying to figure things out...

here is what I discovered... I was choosing tables with high flop percentages to take advantage of the fish...

well, as I started to play more aggressively... (better) the more I was being beaten on the river by a bozo...

so I switched from tables with around 50 percent flop percentage to around 38-42 percent... and bingo! The money started pouring in again...

so if you're taking bad beats... find a table with less fish... and your smart play will be rewarded more, and punished by luck less...

[ThomasR]

Well it looks as though tilt kicked in a while ago...

I would advise taking a little time out after a bad beat. They say to get right back up on the horse after you fall off, but if you called it a bad beat, then you're thinking that it was a bad beat. Then you start to wonder if you beat yourself or if it was bad luck. And if it was bad luck, is it going to continue?

Once those questions start rearing their ugly heads, it's time to cut your losses for a day or two before reappearing fresh at the table confident in your abilities. Play super tight if you have to, playing just a hand or two now and again, waiting for the top cards.

They will come, you just need to be careful you don't try playing more aggressively to regain what you lost, as this doesn't always work out...