Perhaps you are a pro – you have weathered all the storms and mastered the skill level it takes to move up in limits and deal with all the card runs (no matter how bad they are), and you just buckle down and play the game, knowing you will come out of it in ‘the black’ as long as you play your ‘A’ game. If that is the case, this article should reinforce any doubts you may have when the ‘dead card zone’ hits you in the face and just plain flat refuses to leave.
If you are a new player – you may not have noticed nor had the opportunity to experience the ‘dead card zone’ in all of its spectacular gloom and despair. You may be so busy just learning the nuances of the game, trying to master the betting skills, and watching the other players to see how they play the game, that you really have not focused on the hands you are being dealt – or you just choose to play a lot of hands because it is fun to be in the action.
If you have been playing poker for some years and have had to drop down in limits (you may have started too high to begin with), you may find this article will open your eyes to something you have created. It is never too late to change your style of play and the way you analyze your play during and after a session.
The basic, bottom line of poker is that all players suffer through the ‘dead card zone.’ If you believe the game of poker is all luck, you may be the enemy. Yes…the luck factor is huge. But what other factors make up a poker game? The complexion of the game is decided mainly by the limit. The lower the limit, the more players climb into a pot because it is only $2 more to call or $4 or whatever the limit dictates. Keep in mind that low limit games are the toughest to beat and you are always fading a much larger field when you raise with skill cards. The luck factor is much larger in low limit because you cannot narrow the field with a raise, you have instead, just invited everyone to the dance. There are, on occasion, higher limit games in which everyone is ready to dance - the game will play high in the ‘insanity realm’ with chips slamming into the pot from every seat. But this occurrence is more likely to happen in lower limit. And lower limit games normally run 10 handed where higher limit games may play heads-up or with a limited number of players. Hence, lower limit – a larger field.
Do not think that moving up a limit will improve your game or your chances of having winning sessions. It may be the last of your bankroll or poker fun if you do that before you are completely ready. Many people in lower limit games state, “You wouldn’t play that hand in high limit.” That is totally untrue. If one could see all the hands that are turned over in all limits, a large majority of hands would be the same, just a different limit.
How can this happen? And what is a bad hand? What if my cards never change – how can I ever win a pot? And how do you designate a ‘bad player? Before you can answer any of those questions, you have to be able to step inside yourself and thoroughly assess your play, your thoughts when you take a seat, why you are at the table, what your objectives are, how you are going to handle a losing hand – a winning hand – or session, and how you plan to progress with poker.
If you are at the table simply because you want to jam it up and throw chips into the air, there is no reason to even think about any of the above. If you are trying to improve your game and plan on playing for additional income/living, you seriously need to get inside yourself and get ready to play.
The first and last thing you need to remember is that everyone goes through the ‘dead card zone’. The most important thing you need to remember is how to handle it. You are going to get beat – that is a given when you play poker – the question is, how will you handle it? Is it all luck? Is it part of the game? Should you take a break? Do you know how to sort out your own emotions and put poker in its proper perspective in your life? If you answered yes to one of those questions – you know which one it is – you are the enemy. You are defeating yourself before you ever take a seat in the game.
You have to be able to escape the beating your thoughts are going through when you see someone turn over 2-3 off suit to win a monster pot. They ran you down, fading every bet on every street, to the River, and caught two pair, crushing your skill cards. It becomes more painful when the scene repeats itself, hour after hour – sometimes for weeks.
The true skill level of poker is knowing that if you continue to play your ‘A’ game, you will prevail. You may have long periods of time in which you are treading water or getting washed into an eddy by the current, but if you continue to play your ‘A’ game, you will overcome the ‘dead card zone’ and the mind block that could prevent you from being a pro. Keep in mind that playing your ‘A’ game does not always mean waiting for skill cards – you have to be able to mix up your play to PLAY THE GAME.
Always begin a new day when you take a seat. Do not allow the cobwebs and darkened gloom of previous plays to influence how you will play today. Mark the other players at the table as ‘the enemy’…take yourself off the list.