Headache Free Holdem for your B-Game

I used to be a solid proponent of never attempting to "play through tilt" - something i had to learn the hard way as a beginning full-time online grinder back in my Limit HE days.  My Coach Dr.Eldoradon had to point that out to me at the time, as I was constantly trying to "power through" during times of tilt.

Head versus Wall.  Wall wins.

It was an example of flawed-male-superhero-ego thinking:

"Kaya ko to, okay pa ako."

"A few deep breaths and I will be back on track."

"He calls?!?  OKAY, I won't do THAT anymore, I promise."

"Jesus fucking Christ, another suckout!  (Breathe) ...but that's okay, that's fucking poker."


So I learned - and taught others - to recognize the beginnings of their tilt, and to nip it in the bud by choosing from a pre-selected list of "untilting activities" - e.g. immediately swapping the mouse for the xbox controller, or jumping off the computer chair and straight into the swimming pool.

In short, don't just sit there and expect to be able to gather yourself without actually standing up to do the gathering.


There was one problem with that approach, if unregulated - and it was one pointed out by Dusty "leatherass" Schmidt:  when you grind full-time, that's your job.  A good worker does not take breaks whenever he suddenly does not feel like working.  You can't close the shop every time you feel a little stressed - you must have a way to keep going.

So, conflicting ideas?  On one hand, don't try to power through tilt...But on the other, don't stop working just because you happen to be a human being with some remnants of emotion.

There had to be a compromise - so I added two options to apply to the generally sweeping "don't power through tilt" idea:

1. Retreat, BUT regulate your "untilting sessions" - I learned this the hard way when I stayed away from the game more than three days just because I did not feel my confidence had returned.  The price to pay was a huge momentum loss.  Okay, I stopped the downward momentum of my tilt, BUT I also sat back down and thought "now, where the hell was I?"

It's hard to pick up where I leave off without risking that a brief relearning curve will cost me.  Breaks or no breaks, the routine of the game must not be compromised.  Some call it a grind, but as a gamer, I have a different perspective.  It is a game, and we work on it daily because it is fun and it is fulfilling and we can always find ways and chances to do better.

When I started playing Fallout 3, I stayed on that game day in and day out till it was done three times over.  That game does not even pay the bills.  So why should my dedication to my grind be any less?

So, practice quitting to take a break, but also practice that we actually rest and come back mentally reset.  Don't walk away just to stay away.  I know many people in relationships who also make this same mistake - running away without a clear plan to fight another day.


2. Stand your Ground.  All that being said about the necessity for retreat, I felt a need for an alternative to quitting a session.  B-Game.  I know the classic advice is to "always play your A-Game or not play at all," but times have changed.  Perspectives have changed.  Many mental game coaches now advocate "embracing your B Game"

For basketball players and fans, this is the equivalent of the scorer who sits back and passes the ball for a while because his jumpshot keeps clanking.  B-Game helps him get his rhythm back.  B-Game eases the frustration and allows a small "in-game" retreat without actually turning the player into a non-contributor.

John Lucas once had a whopping 24 assists for the spurs.  He finished that game with 0 points.  Not bad, for a B-Game!

HEADACHE FREE HOLDEM
for my B game

No matter how pro I try to be about my grind, there will always be days when I don't feel like a well-oiled machine.  Not everything is clicking.  My hero calls are way off, my bluff timing is bad, or I am constantly one bet shy of a takedown.  For rhythm-deprived times like these, going to the beach is always tempting, but kind of unproductive - especially when I still have plenty of energy for the grind.  Quitting the session would just be too drastic, so instead I downshift for a while.

B-Game: not crushing like the A-Game, but just enough to not bleed while I gather momentum and realign my poker brain to The Now.  B is for Basic.  As in, just get me BY until I'm ready to go back into high gear.

Here are my B-Game reminders:

APA Basic Rules of Engagement
1. don't put chips into unraised pots
2. don't accept a proposition where you will be out of position unless you have initiative

SMALL HAND SMALL POT
1. 3bet only for value for now
2. when cbetting, one bullet is fine for now
3. ATS till they play back, then leave them alone for a while

VALUE ONLY
1. CCPF only from the button, and never with dominated hands
2. RFI, RWPC, SQZ for value only
3. never LWPC
4. Decide (go or give up) EARLY (Flop), not late (River, after check-raising and getting reraised lol)
5. get MAX value, shove over him EARLY (while ahead)

Don't be a HERO
1. absolutely no river calls (or calls of shoves) when in doubt!  (as a study exercise, those of you with pokertracker or HEM can do this: set your filter to show only hands where you call on the river - any river call - and see what comes up!)
2. Just hold on.  That double-up will come for you.  WAIT FOR THE MISTAKES, THEY WILL MAKE IT!!! (THE REGS MAKE THE BIGGEST MISTAKES!!!)


Hey, sounds easy and headache free - why don't I just play like this all the time?  It sure beats busting too many brain cells complicating a game of imperfect information, eh?  If you are in the micros, this B-Game can easily plow through it anyway.

But just to reiterate, this is a gear I use while I re-situate myself.  B-Game is nice to have as a fallback, but I want to be better than that - most of us do.  After all, this is why we play every day, to keep levelling up.

To RPG gamers reading this:  consider B-Game as that time when you stop questing for a while so that you can go to the forest and level-up your skills and perks on critters.  It won't move the story forward, but it will build your character so that you can move well once you decide to continue the questing.

Sometimes you just wanna kill the boardom, get it?