Bad Cards or Bad Play?

            Losing is part of poker and all serious players, including the world's best, can carry on losing for months. Often, the downswing starts with a particularly unlucky run of cards. Eventually, you reach a point where you have to ask “Is this just really bad luck, or am I playing badly?” It’s hard to determine the answer, but a lot of players tend to think they are playing better than they actually are, especially during a losing streak. Worse, it could be both. During a bad run, bad luck can then turn into making bad decisions about other hands. When you’re playing like this, it is easy for other players to notice and exploit it leaving you with a bad table image. A bad run can also lead to timid playing, meaning you would back out of hands that would ordinarily win. There are many players who cannot recover from this type of streak, so it can be very damaging to a promising player. The best way out of a losing streak is to win! Even winning just one small hand can help to slowly re-build your confidence and get you back to your usual playing style. A good poker player needs to be very self critical in order to have a long winning career. When playing online, there's every opportunity to assess your play. Save your hand histories. When a session is over and your head is clear, review your actions and see if you can spot problems in your play or how to change.

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