Well, I tilted a few days ago for the first time in a while, so I thought I'd analyse it.

First, there are imo two basic types of tilt. The first is chronic tilt of whatever sort and means that you need to get up from the game. It's usually this kind of "struggling for a hand" thing and often results from those horrible runs where your good hands get outdrawn, all that good stuff. I've actually been pretty good about avoiding that kind lately (knock on wood) and really view myself as having won those hands where I got the chips in as favorite, even if I did go down (had a huge one like that tonight and it honestly didn't even phase me at all--they do get more difficult if the boards just KEEP going bad on you for extended periods).

But it's really the second kind that I want to analyse because I did have that one happen to me. This one, I'd like to call momentary tilt. What basically happens is this: You're in the middle of a hand that you think is yours, and all of a sudden something completely unexpected hits you in the face. I do find this difficult to deal with at times. The solution, I think, is just to be fully aware of the RANGE of hands you're up against as long as you're not holding the nuts. You CAN lay down any hand except the nuts at any time!

Here's my tilt hand: I'm in BB with Jc9c. UTG is a fairly tight player (when you hear his hand, you'll realize how liberal the tightness criteria are at these tables), and we get along pretty well. Actually, kind of almost poker buddies, and I know he respects my play. I think there were about 6 players altogether in this hand, and the flop comes AcQc4c, giving me the second nut flush.

I bet $30 into the pot of $30, and, of all people, UTG flat calls, the others fold. This is a definite surprize, as the rest of the table could call with A7o and no clubs at all, but not this guy, who does overplay some hands, but generally knows what he's got. I put him on a set most likely, possibly some kind of Kc.

This was really my mistake. Not having the nuts myself, he may indeed have a set, or may have KcX, but I may also be beat. We both have stacks of about $700 (he actually had a little more, because I was covered). The fact that I myself wouldn't be playing any Kc except AKc UTG does NOT mean that other (relatively) tight players won't--I've run into this same blasted thing before, by the way.

Anyhow, the turn is a blank, and I bet $80 into a pot of $90. He moves in for almost $600 more. Well, this is where I tilt and call. Ok, I may have the best hand, I have seen the guy overplay some hands before, but he's not a bad player. This was a completely pointless call, really. Of course, he turns over KcTc. He said afterwards that he didn't want me to put any more money in unnecessarily, so he was signalling for the fold.

Objectively, the only place to make this call is against a player who you think "has it in" for you. This clearly wasn't the case. I wanted to believe that he had a set, projected my own hand selection UTG onto this player, etc. But, basically, it was because this shot came out of the blue. Really, as soon as I get the flat call, I need to realize the KcXc possibility very seriously, and I'm not in deep enough to warrant that call without the true nuts.

So, I think the moral of the story is really: Without the nuts, be clearly aware of the full range of hands your opponent can have. And, to a big overbet, just believe it unless you actually have strong reasons to believe otherwise. It shouldn't come as a surprize in any case--the surprize is the cause of momentary tilt imo.

Some advice that I have read which made sense to me was this:
Verbalize your actions before you make them. This way you are tying your thoughts to your actions rather than your emotions. I haven't implemented it with any type of regularity, but think it makes sense.

Ais... It's funny, cause I had almost the exact same hand, except that mine was a little worse (had 4th nuts in a 3-way pot)... But, I had the same read on the players (ie... pretty tight, some of the better players there)...

As of now, while I think I could've played it different (better), I don't see ANY way I'm getting away from that hand most times... And DEFINITELY not away from yours...

Just in case you're curious....

http://livepokerforum.com/forum/viewtop ... highlight=

I know my tilt tends to come when I just start narrowing hands down way to quickly and putting the best spin on a situation so I stay in too long. I am getting better at seeing this and either fixing my mind set of leaving the tables.

I think it is worse when you are down, especially if it was through some crazy crap. I find my own bad play is worse though, when I conspired to lose my money since then I feel I owe it to myself to get it back. Dumb but there you go.

I guess the key has to be accepting human nature and getting out when you can. Its tough to sometimes post a losing session but thats life...

Rich

Ais, you hit it right on the head. I really never tilt from hand to hand, session to session. I'm too old and too experienced to do that. But, oh, that momentary tilt is a killer. You're saying to yourself, "I can't believe he'd have THAT!" and call off your stack when you find he really DID have THAT.

I have no answer for this kind of tilt. If you lay it down too many times, you start to feel you are being bluffed off too many pots. If you don't lay it down, you lose tons of money. Live to fight another day, and die slowly, still? What makes this game so hard, esp at the levels we play at, is that even fools can get lucky on you. They may have no idea how to actually play the game, but if your luck isn't good, YOU are the one they run into with a good hand, that 86o UT+1 that hits the straight vs your set. (That hurt.)

If anyone at all has the answer for this one, you're saving me tons of money and grief.

CJ

Yeah, whether good call or bad, I think the main thing that bothered me was getting into a state where I wasn't really thinking clearly. I'm definitely not a fan of only moving in or calling all-in on the stone-cold nuts--that's just too many bad laydowns. But you do have to play the player, and against many, I'll call all-in without anywhere close to the nuts. It just depends on the plausibility of their having a hand that beats me given the betting sequence and the particular style/psyche of one's opponent.

The real answer imo is just always (ideally--maybe there are actually some that can do this in practice) making rational decisions. If the fool really did have it that time after bluffing ridiculous hands, then it was still a rational decision--although the result is obviously VERY annoying!

I played a guy online tonight that I have played live, which is rare for me to know my live and online players. Outside of the fact that I outclass him. I have beat him out of an absurd amount of money over one year, and generally consider him good with flaws. I wouldn't lay down the second nuts to him, and refuse to do so until he shows me I should.

Is it really a moment of inclarity or the immediate result,like you said. Can you imagine a hand that he would hold that you beat. I know there are people that I will lay down a massive hand too, and others that have to beat me.

If you knew you were beat then you made a bad call, if you had a very strong chance at THIS pot you were in the clear regardless wihether or not he held the nuts this time;.

Don't get caughtup in the fact he reraised massive the nuts, but would he re-raise less than the nuts against you any other time. If he had 56s would he play it the same?

Winston Churchill said, "Second best is truly the worse." and I tend to agree with him, because there is no way out.