Over the last few weeks my good friend Aaron had been in a poker slump. Normally a big winner in any game he plays, his usual positive results have recently been lackluster at best. Yesterday he sat in a $2 - $5 blind no-limit hold 'em game that he described as "pretty good." In middle position, after two players limped, he raised to $35 with Jd-Jh. Earl, on the button, and the two limpers called. All the players started the hand with about $500.
The flop was Jc-4d-4s, just about as perfect a flop as Aaron could wish for. After the limpers checked, Aaron made a continuation bet of $120 and Earl called. The two limpers folded. The turn was the 2s. Aaron bet $175, Earl moved all-in, and Aaron called, of course. Earl showed As4a. The river was the 4d.
Losing to a one-outer is bad luck, of course. But that wasn't the Aaron's only issue. A few orbits later, Aaron raised to $25 from early position with Ks-Js, with Earl calling from the cut-off and Avery calling from the button. On the flop of Ad-Jh-6s, Aaron made a continuation bet of $45, with only Avery calling. On the turn of the 7d, Aaron fired a second barrel with a $75 bet, Avery raised to $175, and after thinking for a few moments Aaron folded. Avery folded, flashing Ac-7c.
Here, Avery could have avoided this problem by just folding from early position. K-J is a trap hand even if it's suited. While a good case can be made for raising with this hand in late position, from early position what kind of a flop do you really want to see? If the flop is king-high, it's likely you're facing kicker problems with your jack. On the actual flop, the most likely hand for the callers is one containing an ace. That's especially true when you're in a good game; many poor players have never seen a hand with an ace that could be folded.
When we spoke yesterday Aaron knew he made a mistake. He suffered when he lost with top full to quads and was almost certainly pressing. That's a form of tilt, but Aaron only realized it when he went home from the casino.
Vacations are good for the soul. Our brains need time to recharge; doing the same thing day-after-day gets tiring. One of the reasons businesses offer paid vacations-some even offer sabbaticals that last months-is that vacations lead to more productive employees. When tax season is over, I always take a few days off to rest and recharge; I'm burnt out after six weeks of sixteen hour days.
What's different about a poker player in this regard than, say, a tax accountant? Nothing. Playing poker at a high level is just as mentally taxing than the strain of finishing 200 tax returns with a deadline staring you in the face. I suspect many poker players would tell me that there is no comparison, and that poker is far more challenging.
Aaron told me that his recent session was typical of his results for the past few weeks. I asked him when he last took some time off from poker. He thought for a few moments before answering, "I can't remember." He then laughed and said, "Good idea," even before I suggested the obvious solution.
Russell Fox is the co-author of "Mastering No-Limit Hold'em," "Why You Lose at Poker," and "Winning Strategies for No-Limit Hold'em." He's a federally licensed tax preparer specializing in gambling, with a blog at taxabletalk.com. E-mail Russ at rcfox@claytontax.com
