Today's word: Tilt. A player is described as being "on tilt" when they start making reckless decisions. Often an otherwise solid player begins playing a little loose, and then before you know it is chasing draws with bad pot odds, or bluffing far too much. Usually tilt is a term applied to a single session, but a player can go on tilt for days or weeks. Usually tilt is caused by a bad beat. You'll see a guy go all in with pocket aces, lose to some fluky flush or straight, and then just fall apart for the rest of the night.
An essential skill of a successful poker player is avoiding tilt.
I suffered a very big loss ten days ago. It was a huge temptation to go back to the poker table as soon as possible, and to play at a higher limit than I normally do, in order to win back the money I lost as quickly as possible, but instead I took a week off from poker completely. I highly recommend this to any one who has suffered a big loss, or has just been running bad lately. Take a break. Get away from the game and come back with a fresh mind.
When I did hit the tables again yesterday, I deliberately choose to go to a casino where I had enjoyed success (positive feelings are important) and I deliberately played a limit, rather than no-limit, game. I wanted to force myself to think about the fundamentals of the game. When you are running bad, you tend to guess wrong in those big decisions that come up in no-limit, so take the pressure off yourself and play limit hold 'em until you get your mojo back.
So. Long story short, three hours of poker and I only had a $12 gain to show for it. But I feel like the monkey is off my back and I can go back to work again.
You know, tyler, I've heard a lot of negative comments about poker slang lately -- like it's something artificial promoted by the sports channels. But like all (okay, at least some) jargon, there's a genuine utility to a lot of poker argot, and "on tilt" definitely qualifies. It's a situation most poker players find themselves in once in a while, but without a name, it's hard to recognize. Once you know it, though, it's pretty handy to be able to say, "Whoah, I'm on tilt here" and change your play appropriately.
ReplyDeleteThis blog is pretty young, but it's made me a better player already!