Poker Junkie

We've all seen it.

Joe Smith Poker Player suffers a bad beat. His blood boils, his face turns red and the next thing you know, he's busted out.

He's on tilt, and it's the most dangerous state in which to play poker.

In the online world, it's more common to see a player go on tilt, because there are so many more factors that come into play.

The biggest cause is usually fatigue. Sitting there after work (or during work...shhh) watching a computer monitor can weigh heavily on the eyes. If you catch yourself dozing, it's time to stop playing.

Set time limits, adhere to them and try to avoid late, late nights.

Another cause can be the domino effect. You get a bad beat on the river, then you get a string of unplayable cards, then some smart-aleck riles you up with a tease and a taunt about bad play. The next thing you know, you're throwing too many chips into the middle from a bad position with mediocre cards and a bad draw.

In this case, you have to be able to walk away, put your game on auto-fold or even just leave the table all together. There's no sense in losing chips (and money) because of a short swing of misfortune.

That goes for your life away from the table, too.

Did you have a fight with your significant other? Did your pet cat run away? Did you have a spat with your boss?

Perhaps now is not the best time to be playing poker. Some would argue that it would be a source of calm, but in reality, it might entice some daring moves as you subconsciously try to make up for the bad things that happened during the day with a big win.


One of the biggest dangers of going on tilt is letting your emotions get a hold of you. You know, those darker feelings of, "I'm gonna get you back, if it's the last thing I do."

This takes your focus off the game at hand, and it focuses you too much on a vendetta. This can lead to poor decisions, because you're not playing the whole table, just one player.

It can be easier said than done if you're playing live, as opposed to online, though. It's not like you can flip a switch and watch the room and all of your friends and playing partners disappear (though sometimes you'd like to).

But you can apply some of the same principles.

It just might save you some money.

One-Eyed Jack is the Sun Journal's resident poker junkie. If you have questions for him, e-mail him at pokerjunkie@sunjournal.com. This column is for entertainment purposes only. It is not to be relied on for advice on how to win at poker, nor as a recommendation that the reader should gamble.

News Added: 02 December, 2007

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