[OnTheButton]

The last few weeks (since I went to Vegas about a month ago, which seems to be about when it started) I've been getting incredibly bad card suck-outs.

Flopping the K high flush with two of the suit in my hand, pushing it all in, only to have the Ace (of the suit) low off, call and get runner runner.

Flopping top 2 pair, only to find out someone else flopped bottom trips with their low PP.

Going all in in a tourney with AA getting called by 44 to have the board make a straight and we split the pot.

I'll have the "magic 5" when checking BB to see the board hit: 4 6 7 turn 8, I keep pushing only to get called by a 10 J and then a 9 drops on the river.

My stacks are disappearing.

I'll be ahead 80%-20% at the flop on 5 different hands in one night and lose them all on the final 2 cards.

I just don't seem to be able to turn or river my flush and straight draws (getting 10 a night and chasing/raising them all, and hitting maybe 1) and everyone else is pulling theirs our of their arses when up against me.

My normally solid game has become a mess. I'm limping PF with QQ because I KNOW if I push hard, I'm getting re-raised and Aces and Kings will be on the board. It's almost like everyone else also knows that my cards are going to miss even if I'm ahead.

I'm wanting to play my junk cards because waiting for the "good cards" are just costing me more money.

I'm not sure what to do. The cards hate me right now.

I used to be the most feared player at our table, but now I feel like oatmeal in a chair as I'm always getting beat by the cards, even with proper play. I've read and studied at least 6 of the "poker pro" books and have solid play skills to apply what I've learned. I used to average about a $100-120 walk away from a $40 buy-in and now I've become another fish with a $40 donation to the bank.

I'll raise 5x BB pre-flop with JJ only to get put all in by someone with 77 and I'm leading until they pick up a 7 on the river. Gaaaaaaa. This is not just once, but enough times that even my wife is shrugging her shoulders at giving me advice.

I'm afraid of the cards.

And I'm getting good ones to play with too, which makes it even more frustrating to lose hand after hand to people playing K 7s and 9 10o when I'm holding QQ and push into them, but yet they keep calling, drawing and hitting.

If anyone here has been through a rut like this I'd like to hear how you pulled out of it. I used to be wiggling in my chair to play every Saturday, but for the last few weeks, I've done what I can to sit down with a positive solid attitude only to get beaten up again, and again...

It is disheartening. I've had bad hands, even bad games, but in the last month, I've been afraid of the cards and how they seem to want to take my stacks away from me every time I sit down behind them.

[tm55417]

Originally Posted by OnTheButton

The last few weeks (since I went to Vegas about a month ago, which seems to be about when it started) I've been getting incredibly bad card suck-outs.

Flopping the K high flush with two of the suit in my hand, pushing it all in, only to have the Ace (of the suit) low off, call and get runner runner.

Flopping top 2 pair, only to find out someone else flopped bottom trips with their low PP.

Going all in in a tourney with AA getting called by 44 to have the board make a straight and we split the pot.

I'll have the "magic 5" when checking BB to see the board hit: 4 6 7 turn 8, I keep pushing only to get called by a 10 J and then a 9 drops on the river.

My stacks are disappearing.

I'll be ahead 80%-20% at the flop on 5 different hands in one night and lose them all on the final 2 cards.

I just don't seem to be able to turn or river my flush and straight draws (getting 10 a night and chasing/raising them all, and hitting maybe 1) and everyone else is pulling theirs our of their arses when up against me.

My normally solid game has become a mess. I'm limping PF with QQ because I KNOW if I push hard, I'm getting re-raised and Aces and Kings will be on the board. It's almost like everyone else also knows that my cards are going to miss even if I'm ahead.

I'm wanting to play my junk cards because waiting for the "good cards" are just costing me more money.

I'm not sure what to do. The cards hate me right now.

I used to be the most feared player at our table, but now I feel like oatmeal in a chair as I'm always getting beat by the cards, even with proper play. I've read and studied at least 6 of the "poker pro" books and have solid play skills to apply what I've learned. I used to average about a $100-120 walk away from a $40 buy-in and now I've become another fish with a $40 donation to the bank.

I'll raise 5x BB pre-flop with JJ only to get put all in by someone with 77 and I'm leading until they pick up a 7 on the river. Gaaaaaaa. This is not just once, but enough times that even my wife is shrugging her shoulders at giving me advice.

I'm afraid of the cards.

And I'm getting good ones to play with too, which makes it even more frustrating to lose hand after hand to people playing K 7s and 9 10o when I'm holding QQ and push into them, but yet they keep calling, drawing and hitting.

If anyone here has been through a rut like this I'd like to hear how you pulled out of it. I used to be wiggling in my chair to play every Saturday, but for the last few weeks, I've done what I can to sit down with a positive solid attitude only to get beaten up again, and again...

It is disheartening. I've had bad hands, even bad games, but in the last month, I've been afraid of the cards and how they seem to want to take my stacks away from me every time I sit down behind them.

Sad to say, but it's happened to me more than once. One thing I noticed I started doing, is I began to play pretty passively, because you just know you are gonna lose... To me, that was a signal to just take a break for a couple of weeks (or longer if need be).

When you get in a rut like that, you start to play into that rut. It really messes up your game. It's similar in golf. You start to pull or slice your ball a bit and you start to play for it... Now you are just screwing up your swing and making things worse... Never a good thing.

Take a break for a while, before your normally solid game becomes weak passive crap.

My $0.02

Tom

[Slagar]

I'm afraid of the cards.

This is why you aren't the most feared player at the game right now.
I've had runs where people kept sucking out their 1, 2, or 3 outers on me. So I would stop being so agressive and then they started pushing me. You need confidence to play this game well.

[Wylecoyo]

Hang in there, the worm will turn. I know it is easy to get frustrated when your cards turn ice cold, but if you keep playing correctly things will improve.

[Harlequin011]

its the nefarious cold decking that everyone gets.

I went through it this year for about 2.5 expensive months. Take a break. And only play when you don't fear the cards. I think that I'm a little shell shocked still and its affecting my play.

[PhilTheThrill14]

Play tight and aggressive and don't worry about the results. Easy to say - hard to do.

You've done the right thing by posting this and getting it out of your system. You've looked at your game and you see that you are doing the right things. So just keep doing them - the card gods will turn everything back into your favor this evening and everything will return to normal. Peace.

[7thSeat]

These things hurt and I guess we all feel "afraid" of the cards from time to time. (Guess this is not a comfort for you right now).

How ever, if your games generally holds up you are the winner in the end. I am sure you thought like this as well but just do not feel that way at the moment.

You will be back after some good hands I am sure and then you are the one eating oatmeal.

I think this kinds of episodes make us better as poker players in the long run. Thats it, if we are not begin to play recklessly and play with the muscles trying to win it all back.

You seem fine though.

[OnTheButton]

Originally Posted by Harlequin011

its the nefarious cold decking that everyone gets.

I went through it this year for about 2.5 expensive months. Take a break. And only play when you don't fear the cards. I think that I'm a little shell shocked still and its affecting my play.

Perfect wording.

Shell shocked.

That was the way I felt coming back from Vegas.

I put that weekend aside mentally, and "hit the table running" in my home game the next weekend. But it happened again, and won't seem to stop.

I guess I just have to wait it out. Boy does it suck though.

Maybe I'll finally learn to play that bamboo flute my wife gave me, and sit with it in the garden and meditate.

[TheMightyJim2k]

switch to limit for a while. Not as much pressure if you raise with QQ and an A or a K flops. If you think you have it call down a few more bets. If not just pitch it and try again.

Plus suckouts happen much less in limit since most of the time they aren't really suckouts. People have the odds to draw at you A LOT, and they will. But enough of them are drawing with bad odds that it will be profitable, and you can't lose your whole stack if they catch up.

You also will have odds to draw at them a lot, and it feels good to turn the tables and come from behind, and know you were playing the right odds the whole time.

Limit will let you loosen up your starting requirements. Sometimes passive play can even be successful at limit when you come up against lag-tards that want to bluff at every pot.

Plus the variance will be less and since most hands are shown-down you can really break down your play and find weaknesses that might be exacerbating your run of bad luck.

just my .02

[OnTheButton]

I guess for me I mentally argue against the "take a break" statements (although they are appreciated!) since my brain argues that "this shall pass" but is it a certain amount of TIME that needs to go by before it ends, or is is a certain amount of HANDS I need to get through?