[Closed] Seriously, how do you guys deal with variance???

I recommend getting 'The poker mindset' book, it helps alot if you think about what is written there, not just scroll through.

I think admitting that you do not play optimally all the time and that you tilt are both the hardest and most important things to do.
Setting stop loss/win = you're prone to tilt;
playing for a certain amount of hands leads to tilt;
playing tired/drunk leads to tilt;
don't play when you have urgent real-life problems;
'Be happy about bad beats' is a bit too much, eh? I dont suggest being happy, but instead of hitting table/cursing/posting bad beats - take a note on villain. Normal note like 'shoved with gutshot on wet board to my c-bet OOP' etc., not 'omfg wanker sick bad pwn him'. Admit that you tilt and: 1) stop tilting because it is a leak. Leaks must be fixed; 2) stop playing until you calm down.

Try to understand variance. I play some other games which include variance like dice, some computer games, board-games. The main difference is they do not involve money. I used to tilt in all of those games. Later, I've worked on tilt-management, and realised that I want to win more/put more emotions in games that do not involve money because I'm fighting for honor/bragging rights and that it wont really affect my life, just give me short period of satisfaction if I win. Poker, however, involves money, so I just calmly accept variance and try not to tilt because it would cost me money. It is stupid to get angry/depressed and lose money because of that, right? Also realise that poker is not a battle for bragging rights, it's all about the money therefore holding a grudge on a particular player or thinking in the terms of 'I will get my money/chips back from that idiot' is a -EV thing Only recently I've come to this revelation but already feeling positive results.

Good luck fighting the beast.

Also try Omaha games - after those Hold'em will seem like a variance-free child-play

I think it takes experience to be capable of dealing with variance. If you've never seen a ds before, it's going to feel like the end. When you've seen that few times it doesn't hurt that much. When you've seen some 20K hand ds losing maybe 30 stacks you propably wont be tilting when someone sucks out on you with 4 outer.

Originally posted by Jackalof
I recommend getting 'The poker mindset' book, it helps alot if you think about what is written there, not just scroll through.

I think admitting that you do not play optimally all the time and that you tilt are both the hardest and most important things to do.
Setting stop loss/win = you're prone to tilt;
playing for a certain amount of hands leads to tilt;
playing tired/drunk leads to tilt;
don't play when you have urgent real-life problems;
'Be happy about bad beats' is a bit too much, eh? I dont suggest being happy, but instead of hitting table/cursing/posting bad beats - take a note on villain. Normal note like 'shoved with gutshot on wet board to my c-bet OOP' etc., not 'omfg wanker sick bad pwn him'. Admit that you tilt and: 1) stop tilting because it is a leak. Leaks must be fixed; 2) stop playing until you calm down.

Try to understand variance. I play some other games which include variance like dice, some computer games, board-games. The main difference is they do not involve money. I used to tilt in all of those games. Later, I've worked on tilt-management, and realised that I want to win more/put more emotions in games that do not involve money because I'm fighting for honor/bragging rights and that it wont really affect my life, just give me short period of satisfaction if I win. Poker, however, involves money, so I just calmly accept variance and try not to tilt because it would cost me money. It is stupid to get angry/depressed and lose money because of that, right? Also realise that poker is not a battle for bragging rights, it's all about the money therefore holding a grudge on a particular player or thinking in the terms of 'I will get my money/chips back from that idiot' is a -EV thing Only recently I've come to this revelation but already feeling positive results.

Good luck fighting the beast.

Also try Omaha games - after those Hold'em will seem like a variance-free child-play

Thanks for the recommendation, I'll get a copy of that book... If it stops me tilting it'll pay for itself a hundred times over (hopefully).

I have to admit that this was a bit of an aimless thread in the sense that I am a little frustrated at the moment and there's not really anything any of you can tell me that I haven't read before. Every reply here has been good solid advice but in the heat of the moment it doesn't seem to make a blind bit of difference. Strange that because I seem to take on board everything else I never even knew what the different hands were in poker before I started reading strategy 18 months ago... I'd say probably 30% of what I've read has been about variance and mindset yet I can play most hands well but show me a string of bad beats and it's like a switch flicks inside my head which forces me to play like a complete muppet and completely ditch BRM.

I'll get that book and see if I can sort this monumental leak out. Atoks mentioned before that this is exactly what stops alot of otherwise solid players from being profitable long term. I don't want to be one of those players.

Cheers all

You seriously do just need to realise when you are tilting and close down all the tables. I'm now managing to limit my tilting damage to one stack at most each time I tilt. As soon as I think "Why the hell did I do that" after a hand I close the tables down and have a smoke ♦ It works.

Originally posted by Wriggers
You seriously do just need to realise when you are tilting and close down all the tables. I'm now managing to limit my tilting damage to one stack at most each time I tilt. As soon as I think "Why the hell did I do that" after a hand I close the tables down and have a smoke ♦ It works.

Yup, you're right and I do that to a certain extent, the problems start when the bad beats keep happening... After about 20 cigs I tend to just start being a muppet

Originally posted by Wurble

Originally posted by Tampaloeres81
Hi,

I play NL SSS CG. winrate 2xbb/100. 15BI swings very are common every some 10k hands. Biggest swing+tilt is 45 BI down in 10k hands I really felt like !@#!@ After a break and other poker variants (MTT/SNG/BSS low stakes for pure fun) I fixed it in the next 10k SSS hands + RB ♠_biggrin:

So deal with by learning, think positive (real hard if nothing works) and getting better ♦

T.

Thanks for this - It actually makes me feel better. Whenever I've dropped 10 buy ins in 10k hands (A few times) it has sent me on super donk tilt mode and I've blown most of my account through stupidity.

♦ Yup, I couldnt stand that big swing either. So I took a break. Prolly should have taken it earlier I can take the 15xBI swings now without too much problems. The more you have the easier it becomes

two words. Bankroll Management.

Use it , or lose it! <use BRM or lose BR>

If you're looking how to dealing with variance, then FL is great one.. it'll crush you completely..For me the most powerful motivator when i get out of this downswing i will be more powerful then before. The bigger the downswing the more powerful i will be".Good tables do good to good people.

Originally posted by Dvince900
If you're looking how to dealing with variance, then FL is great one.. it'll crush you completely..For me the most powerful motivator when i get out of this downswing i will be more powerful then before. The bigger the downswing the more powerful i will be".Good tables do good to good people.

I don't see how variance in FL can be bad at all.. the BRM is 300-500BB.. which sounded like a complete joke when i first read that being a sng player.. In NL suckouts and bad beats can lose you your entire stack.. in FL you lose a few BB... who cares.. seriously?

Once i lost my entire roll (60 dollars, a lot of money for somebody as young as i'm) in a week. I started playing heads up, where the swings are brutal. I was playing really well, but against a complete luckbox. I lost with JJ+ on a flop with 3 undercards almost everytime. I think this helped me a lot to understand variance in poker. Since then, i almost dont tilt (maybe only after enormous suckout) and take variance pretty well. I think it's because i have had so many monster suckouts in such a short period.
I think that every poker player should lose his entire roll at least once, because it will give you better lesson on the importance of BRM than any article or book in the world.

Now i'm having a huge downswing as well (lost 5 BI in about 800 hands :/), so i return to SSS and am doing really well.

Originally posted by Wurble
So how the hell do these people and all other long term profitable players deal with variance and just how bad does it get?

I just rub my balls and say FUCK YOU VARIANCE YOU AINT CRUSHING ME! And then I just grind some more.

Dealing with variance is exactly the test,the problems start when the bad beats keep happening. so have to cover this problem then you can make it easy

Originally posted by Hahaownedlolz

Originally posted by Dvince900
If you're looking how to dealing with variance, then FL is great one.. it'll crush you completely..For me the most powerful motivator when i get out of this downswing i will be more powerful then before. The bigger the downswing the more powerful i will be".Good tables do good to good people.

I don't see how variance in FL can be bad at all.. the BRM is 300-500BB.. which sounded like a complete joke when i first read that being a sng player.. In NL suckouts and bad beats can lose you your entire stack.. in FL you lose a few BB... who cares.. seriously?

I'm down 600 BB. Not just variance, of course, but I don't think I'm playing THAT bad. NL "bad beats" are just jokes after FL ;D

I don't deal with variance, I just accept it.