Dealing With A Slump

Are you not playing well - and we don't mean just for one session but for an extended period of time? In a prolonged slump, are you? Well, we can't promise to get you out of it. But if you're looking to stop the bleeding, there are a few things you might want to try that could help.

One of those things is to play tight and only with good cards. Don't chase pots with bad material, because believe me, if you're not playing well and you're very conscious of that, you're likely playing with less confidence than usual. Better cards aid one's confidence.

When you chase a big pot with something you wouldn't normally move with, you're going to wind up giving yourself away, unless you have incredible self-control, because you're going to look too hungry. You don't want to look too hungry, because in the game of poker, that's when you starve.

So stay patient and wait for that opportunity to happen. While it is true that some opponents may be able to read you that way, it's still better for you when you are in situations where you are likely to be diving into the fray with the best hand.

And by the way, if you are going to be "readable", then you might as well do it with players who are not very good at that particular technique. So even though you may see yourself as a stakes horse, it might not hurt to step down in class to race with the claimers, if you know what I mean.

Keep telling yourself what is absolutely true - that holdem poker is a game of highs and lows, and what you're going through isn't anything that everybody else who's played this game hasn't already gone through. And just like everyone else, your game will come back around.