Oof

So here is my lifetime to date NL100 graph. Seeing as how the massive downswing that you see at the end coincides almost exactly with the massive downswing of NL200 I'm finding it harder and harder to believe that this is just a normal downswing within the variance of poker. It's a brutal game and all, but this has gone on for long enough that I'd better start warming myself up to the possibility that I've opened up some serious leaks in my game.

Mostly I think it's just been frustration setting in causing me to stack off in situations where I know I'm beat. Not even just in overpair vs. set situations, which has always been a leak of mine, but in situations where I have top pair and I know I'm up against an overpair, or I have a strong starting hand like KK or QQ with an overcard on the board.

Of course, having set stats like the following doesn't exactly help either:



That's for the past four days, encompassing some 6k hands. That, my friends, is running BAD, and since so much profit running a 13/10 style at NL100 comes from sets, it's no wonder I'm on a downswing. Also note that in this timespan I'm actually down money in both set vs. overpair situations (the one time I had this was up against a 35bb stack who hit a runner-runner flush) and AA vs. KK situations (I stacked a SS and was stacked by a fullstack that flopped a K). Also of note is that my lone KK vs. AA was actually against a fullstack where I managed to lose only $30. The guy rivered a full house with his AAA, but played it just about as badly as aces can be played.

None of this is independent of my playing bad, though, and I certainly need to fess up to myself, at least a little bit. I need to shore up my game and get back into my rhythm, rather than playing bored, distracted, and/or frustrated. I played 2700 hands tonight and managed to break even (I won $29.45, same difference) and just kept digging myself into holes that I had to get out of with stupid plays.

On the bright side, every big bluff that I tried actually managed to work today. It was a nice change of pace, and I specifically only allowed myself to do it vs. players I knew were capable of folding. One was a beautiful triple-barrel, another was a wonderful river raise. Things of beauty.

In any case, handling this downswing and pulling out of it is something I'm just going to have to deal with by playing better and keeping my focus.