Blowing your bankroll

[lvlarc_uk]

 A monkey has 96% of human genomes, maybe hes missing the sympathy gene 

[matt674]

Matt, I did much as you with my addictive gambling...I sought help, got it, controlled it, moved on

What I am talking about is those who have an addiction but some life event has caused it...so in effect it is a huge displacement activity. This is what happened to me. A very significant family controversy completely pushed me off the rails, though I didn't realise it at the time.

 Some people might over eat, some people might under eat, some people turn to drink, some gamble, some turn to drugs. Whatever it is if they are out of control or don't have a support mechanism around them to turn them towards help, then surely some sympathy is in order.

not at the poker table

[TightEnd]

no, fair enough

but sympathy for their predicament in these circumstances, even if you will obviously try to beat them across the felt (otherwise you might as well not be playing) ?

( I WILL GET HIM TO SAY THIS, I WILL.... )

[maldini32]

Absolutely brilliany thread, especially tightend, tank and andrewt. 

[matt674]

no, fair enough

but sympathy for their predicament in these circumstances, even if you will obviously try to beat them across the felt (otherwise you might as well not be playing) ?

( I WILL GET HIM TO SAY THIS, I WILL.... )

When i am sat at a poker table i am not interested in peoples predicaments away from the poker table. I am there to win their money. Alas you will not get me to change my views on this.

If they have a problem and they are gambling with money they cant afford to lose then they shouldnt be sat at a poker table with me.

[TightEnd]

no, fair enough

but sympathy for their predicament in these circumstances, even if you will obviously try to beat them across the felt (otherwise you might as well not be playing) ?

( I WILL GET HIM TO SAY THIS, I WILL.... )

When i am sat at a poker table i am not interested in peoples predicaments away from the poker table. I am there to win their money. Alas you will not get me to change my views on this.

If they have a problem and they are gambling with money they cant afford to lose then they shouldnt be sat at a poker table with me.

OK, I will not beat a dead horse monkey. All I am saying is that some people are not in control. I have a moral problem, having been there, with watching them do their dough.

[matt674]

OK, I will not beat a dead horse monkey. All I am saying is that some people are not in control. I have a moral problem, having been there, with watching them do their dough.

I understand that some people have a problem with gambling and i understand that it is difficult for them to control but i cant be hypocritical and say "oh yes, i would help them seek guidance on how to stop their problem" and at the same time be trying to win their money on the poker table.

I think the difference is i dont have a moral problem with it - and i have also been there myself.

They are consenting adults, they know what they are letting themselves in for when they sit down with me in the tournament arena. Once they pay the entry fee then their chips are up for grabs just like everyone elses

[Trivial]

Quite an incredible array of responses thus far, which gives me an immense amount to think about . All your comments have been read and re-read, and I have made some notes of certain suggestions which particularly hit home here .

As a follow-up, it looks as though my main troubles are centering around the following issues:

(i) An Addiction to Gambling (I will include Poker here AT THIS POINT IN TIME)
(ii) Poor Bankroll Management (When I had one!)
(iii) A Lack of Discipline when at the tables. -- {Playing while DRUNK/TIRED/HUNGRY[!] aka less than optimum conditions}


However, I did not originally turn to poker to treat it as a "get rich quick" scheme . My desire initially was to derive enjoyment from beating the game, which, when I finally obtained some results back in the beginning, was an unparalleled feeling . Who remembers the adrenaline thrills which accompanied their first final table? In my experience, at least, despite the fact that I was practically too nervous to play a hand, I was awake for the rest of the night in a cold sweat, reliving every moment. This taught me a valuable lesson about retaining one's cool at the table, and it was evident that I would have to develop a nerve of steel if I were to progress.

Throughout my short playing days so far, my main concern has been with learning, every step of the way. When the blackjack debacle set in, and I recovered from it, I think I needed that harsh blast of reality to remind me of the value of the money. Unfortunately, it didn't quite bust me, and the lesson wasn't brutal enough; so when I had built up another nice stack, I was all too willing to toss it away, throwing bankroll management to the wind, and playing far above my roll in the most volatile games I could find.


This time... I am truly down to the felt. And judging by some of your stories, I am lucky that I am not in debt . I believe that I have now reconciled myself to the loss, and if I treat it as an educational expense (and for £3k, I expect a particularly useful lesson), then it may even bring some good to my poker game.

I have played several $5 and $10 STTs since awakening, and a combination of brutal beats and good results has left me roughly even for the day. On the other hand, I have tried to make a return to the original techniques which saw me enjoy success in the first place. In other words, attempting to play my optimum game, considering my opponents' holdings and the relative stage of the tournaments every step of the way. Ignoring the fact that I have money on the line. This may be second nature to most of you, but equally, if your concentration is lacking, this is the first skill to deteriorate.

Importantly, I think that the financial pressure is now OFF, as the big money has gone away. I don't have the cash any longer, nor do I have the means to chase it. End of. So I can concentrate on the task at hand -- the ultimate challenge -- to build a new 'roll from essentially nothing.


If any interesting developments turn up then I may take the liberty of updating you via this thread . Otherwise, I thank you all once more for the feedback, and hope that I can get a bit more involved with the forum via other postings in the future .

[Wardonkey]

Vitrually all my income from my working life has come from gambling. Mostly from working in casinos and latterly from poker. I can't explain the power that gambling holds over people but we are all aware of it. Very few people are immune. It can be extremely destructive, driving apart families and ruining careers. Of course it's not usually so dramatic, but gambling has had serious negative effects on most people who gamble regularly.

I've never felt guilty about the money I've made, but I do sometimes think I should be serving a nobler purpose in life.

[AndrewT]

sympathy for their predicament in these circumstances, even if you will obviously try to beat them across the felt (otherwise you might as well not be playing) ?

Tightend, sympathy is an emotion you feel when you see or hear about someone who has befallen some kind of misfortune. However, feeling sympathy towards someone, and then immediately partaking in actions which will exacerbate that misfortune seems hypocritical to me. Making allowances for someone because of an addiction seems to absolve them of responsibility for their actions.

i have no sympathy for those who tell stories of going broke with money they couldnt afford to lose.

not even with those who are "ill" for whatever reason and unable to help themselves?

Like rapists and serial killers? They can be considered 'ill' and unable to help themselves.

AS I said before, it's very easy for me to take the high ground and think that addicted gamblers should 'just pull themselves together' because I have little understanding of what they are going through. However, the poker table is a level playing field - there are no allowances made for circumstance. We can only play the cards that life has dealt us - some people just get dealt crappy cards.

[TightEnd]

However, feeling sympathy towards someone, and then immediately partaking in actions which will exacerbate that misfortune seems hypocritical to me.

Like rapists and serial killers? They can be considered 'ill' and unable to help themselves.

a) I worry that I am a hypocrite, so point taken

b) Of course not. Perhaps I phrased it wrongly and "ill" is the wrong word. I mean otherwise decent people whose lives move out of kilter for some reasons and they turn to addictive displacement activity, not serious crimes like those you mention

[AndrewT]

b) Of course not. Perhaps I phrased it wrongly and "ill" is the wrong word. I mean otherwise decent people whose lives move out of kilter for some reasons and they turn to addictive displacement activity, not serious crimes like those you mention

Sorry Tighty, I deliberately made an overblown exaggeration to make a point. Either you are fully responsible for all your actions, or we are nothing but slaves to our genetic sensibilities.

At the risk of another reductio ad absurdum, if I had seriously considered rape in the past but managed not to act on those urges then I would have a greater understanding of the internal struggle that a rapist had faced, and failed to overcome. However, it would be wrong of me to feel or think anything which would lead me to absolve the rapist of the responsibility of his actions.

[TightEnd]

Andrew, I get you

Let me tell you as someone who knew what they were doing was "wrong" and damaging to myself both at that point in time and potentially in the future but literally did not possess the means to stop myself, for whatever complicated pyschological reasons, that it is the strangest feeling in the world and not one I possess the intelligence to adequately put into words

[AndrewT]

Let me tell you as someone who knew what they were doing was "wrong" and damaging to myself both at that point in time and potentially in the future but literally did not possess the means to stop myself, for whatever complicated pyschological reasons, that it is the strangest feeling in the world and not one I possess the intelligence to adequately put into words

This is the inherent problem with our discussion - I have no way of relating to what you, Trivial, or anyone else in similar situations went through. You may as well try and describe the colour green to a blind man. This may well devalue my input somewhat. You fell into a deep pit, but managed to climb back out again, despite the effort this took - you're going to know more about struggle than someone who's known nothing but flat ground, like me.

Am I now making allowances...?

[TightEnd]

we have reached an understanding