I’m having a bad run. It’s been a long time since I finished in the money, much less won.
Some of it is bad cards. Last week my best hand in two hours of play was A-J. Last night I did get some good starters. K-A twice. Pocket 3s twice and pocket 6s once. That’s reasonably good. None of these hands connected on the flop. Not once. In the last two weeks I haven’t finished with a hand higher than two pair. And that has happened once. Generally, I have nothing or a pair. That makes it hard to win. It means a lot of bluffing. It makes a huge difference to get a set once a night or so. I don’t know the odds on that, but I don’t think that’s two much to ask.
It’s time to reset myself. Here are my resolutions for the next few weeks.
- Play less hands: I need to be more patient. I can’t get sucked into playing hands like A-5 just because I’m in position and it seems like a good time to push. I love stealing blinds but I have to try it less.
- Don’t raise as much pre-flop:I’ve been raising a lot with hands like A-9, K-10, Q-J. If no one calls I win, and if they call I have a decent shot at winning anyhow. I need to reduce that. Those are pre-flop calling hands.
- Trap:I haven’t had many cards I can trap with, but if I ever get them… Since my reputation is increasingly loose (plays marginal hands, goes all-in without power cards), I can use that to my advantage.
- Body language: Pay more attention to tells that other players might be giving off. Work harder to reduce any that I have. When I’m not in a hand, make a guess what the players have and see how well I do.
In other words, play more conservatively. In the last year I’ve learned to bluff and play loose. I’ve swung too far in that direction, it’s time to come back.