Ogma
Legend
Bronze Level
Poker and the Ego
We've all seen them. Dominant players, playing every hand, building a super-commanding chip lead. Beating strong cards and strong pocket pairs with their 5 2 off suit after they hit their straights and counterfeit flushes on the river. It can lead a person to start to believe that the game is rigged towards the chip leader.
Flying high, playing whatever two cards are dealt to them, fearless, unstoppable forces, Newton's laws of momentum in full effect. They create a path of chaotic destruction, leaving our carefully chosen and patiently played aces and face cards flying in the wind of their wake.
And then a few hands later, you look at the leaderboard and they're nowhere to be seen. Gone! Out! Crashed like Icarus after his wings melted. They flew too close to the poker sun, because the other side of the poker ego is running into trouble - big trouble. Tilts and meltdowns and bad decisions - all super-ego driven.
The mental aspect of the game is huge. Failure to consider what your opponent is holding can be a fatal sign of over confidence leading to fatal consequences, but also you have to maintain a balance of confidence so as not to believe you have no chance in the hand. Some dip in and out as their intuition suits them. Some strictly play the cards. Some play the blinds. And then some let their ego rip.
Ego can also make players feel entitled to a pot after a pre-flop raise. Say your pocket 10s miss the flop and you're in a 3 handed situation against a board of J 4 4. Does ego drive the continuation bet here? Or is it good poker sense to check and see how the land lies?
The poker ego can destroy patience as one gets caught up in the adrenaline rush of winning pot after pot. I was recently given some sage advice, 'don't try to be sheriff of the town right away'. The ego-driven player with the stack of chips would disagree. Either way, the lack of emotional awareness and control through a patient approach can be fatal to your poker success.
Ego can lead to players being too concerned about their own image, leading to a loss of focus when making important decisions. Some players thrive off of the fear built up through their image but don't let that lead to your downfall, turn it into a tool to benefit yourself. A person's ego can be the perfect way to trap somebody, for example when their pride won't let them fold. This can be extremely satisfying.
And finally, there's the singling out of single players. It might be a player history thing, a certain player who gave you a particularly bad beat before, you may feel 'owes you some good fortune' this time. It may be a ranking thing, a player ranked higher than you who you wish to emulate or maybe you fear. It may be a player you look up to having seen their near-constant success. It may be their avatar, it might be a player you subconsciously find attractive on some level. When any of these factors affect your decision making, it is detrimental to cold, logical, methodical play.
Ego. So how do you keep yours in check? If at all? Or do you let yours run free? Is ego part of our poker DNA? Is it merely a question of balance?
Do you meditate? Focus on breathing? Do you 'reset' yourself after every hand? Clear out the stray thoughts and crap and create a blank canvas or embrace the rollercoaster ride and play out the story to the very end, be that bitter or sweet.
We've all seen them. Dominant players, playing every hand, building a super-commanding chip lead. Beating strong cards and strong pocket pairs with their 5 2 off suit after they hit their straights and counterfeit flushes on the river. It can lead a person to start to believe that the game is rigged towards the chip leader.
Flying high, playing whatever two cards are dealt to them, fearless, unstoppable forces, Newton's laws of momentum in full effect. They create a path of chaotic destruction, leaving our carefully chosen and patiently played aces and face cards flying in the wind of their wake.
And then a few hands later, you look at the leaderboard and they're nowhere to be seen. Gone! Out! Crashed like Icarus after his wings melted. They flew too close to the poker sun, because the other side of the poker ego is running into trouble - big trouble. Tilts and meltdowns and bad decisions - all super-ego driven.
The mental aspect of the game is huge. Failure to consider what your opponent is holding can be a fatal sign of over confidence leading to fatal consequences, but also you have to maintain a balance of confidence so as not to believe you have no chance in the hand. Some dip in and out as their intuition suits them. Some strictly play the cards. Some play the blinds. And then some let their ego rip.
Ego can also make players feel entitled to a pot after a pre-flop raise. Say your pocket 10s miss the flop and you're in a 3 handed situation against a board of J 4 4. Does ego drive the continuation bet here? Or is it good poker sense to check and see how the land lies?
The poker ego can destroy patience as one gets caught up in the adrenaline rush of winning pot after pot. I was recently given some sage advice, 'don't try to be sheriff of the town right away'. The ego-driven player with the stack of chips would disagree. Either way, the lack of emotional awareness and control through a patient approach can be fatal to your poker success.
Ego can lead to players being too concerned about their own image, leading to a loss of focus when making important decisions. Some players thrive off of the fear built up through their image but don't let that lead to your downfall, turn it into a tool to benefit yourself. A person's ego can be the perfect way to trap somebody, for example when their pride won't let them fold. This can be extremely satisfying.
And finally, there's the singling out of single players. It might be a player history thing, a certain player who gave you a particularly bad beat before, you may feel 'owes you some good fortune' this time. It may be a ranking thing, a player ranked higher than you who you wish to emulate or maybe you fear. It may be a player you look up to having seen their near-constant success. It may be their avatar, it might be a player you subconsciously find attractive on some level. When any of these factors affect your decision making, it is detrimental to cold, logical, methodical play.
Ego. So how do you keep yours in check? If at all? Or do you let yours run free? Is ego part of our poker DNA? Is it merely a question of balance?
Do you meditate? Focus on breathing? Do you 'reset' yourself after every hand? Clear out the stray thoughts and crap and create a blank canvas or embrace the rollercoaster ride and play out the story to the very end, be that bitter or sweet.
