Poker: Cooling the Steam

Tilt is a difficult thing to try and control. When bad luck comes your way and you’re suffering bad beats, it’s tough to hold your emotions in check. Even some of the most experienced players in the world still tilt out and steam too hot to play a proper game. If this is you, it’s important that you develop a method of dealing with these emotional roller coasters on which you’ll find yourself.

Many players will get up from the action and take a short walk around the room. This helps you to separate yourself from the situation and collect yourself a bit. Taking a short breather will clear your head of the negativity and will give a chance to realize that you can only control the results of a poker game to a degree, and never all the time.

Thinking about the other things in life that you have a passion for can help to get rid of tilt. You shift your mind from images that upset you to ones that make you feel good. It also helps you realize that poker isn’t that important in the big picture of your life, and that family and interests are more important. You’ll find that once the negativity is gone, the bad luck often stops shortly after.

If you know any jokes it can help to tell the table a good one. It will change the mood of the entire table and will take the attention away from what’s been happening to you. Your opponents will also see that bad luck has no effect on you. That tells them that you’re in charge or your emotions and can’t be rattled; regardless of the adversity you face.