Hey, you take your wisdom any way you like, but me - I'm not particular. I was dining in my favorite Chinese restaurant when I had an epiphany courtesy of the message in my fortune cookie. It reminded me of how important certain basics are in the game of poker.
The little piece of paper read, "A handful of patience is worth more than a bushel of brains." I've been playing a lot of limit hold'em lately, and this wisdom, right out of my cookie, reminded me that aside from a keen understanding of the game, patience is the most critical criteria in winning.
Call it discipline, tightness or whatever, but tight is right in limit play, and its foundation is patience.
Many players fail to demonstrate this trait and just can't wait to get their chips in play. They've heard the accolades regarding aggressiveness or just have too much gamble in them. Either way, while aggressiveness is rewarded, it needs to be tempered with selectiveness to have any value. Unbridled aggressiveness may work on occasion but when overused it will melt your bankroll like ice cream in the hot summer sun - maybe quicker.
I've always believed that those action junkies who need to play every hand should really be at the craps table instead of the poker table. To play poker well and win consistently one needs the down time of not playing hands in order to study the competition. Most losing players waste their time by watching TV, chatting, reading or a multitude of other non profitable activities when they're not involved in a hand. A good way to determine the good players at the table is to observe who is paying attention when not in a hand. You can be certain that those who pay attention are thinking about the game and how they can outplay everyone in the lineup, including you.
The evaluation of patience and brains has already been summed up in a great song lyric, "Wise men say...only fools rush in." I've seen some very smart players who just can't seem to exercise self control and patience lose money regularly, while less knowledgeable players who embrace patience book regular wins.
Patience might not be the most important weapon in your arsenal but without it you are doomed. Don't think of patience only as the ability or discipline to wait for premium hands. How about not falling prey to "chair glue?"
If you determine that you're not in a good/beatable game then here is the best single word of advice I can offer: leave. Have the patience to wait for a better, more exploitable game even if that means cooling your heels on the rail for a while.
We don't have to wait for a fortune cookie to awaken us to the fact that without patience our fixed-limit poker game will definitely suffer. But it's probably the simplest, truest and most often ignored advice on the game that can be offered.
Take stock of your play, and if your results have not been what they should be lately, reflect on how many hands you've been playing. It's especially easy if you're playing online because the sites keep those records for you. Opening up your game by playing too many hands can be a slippery slope that we all slide down once in a while. Just be a little more patient and watch your results improve. See you next "TIME."
See you next "TIME"
