Gamblers' Anonymous?
Fellow players, fellow bloggers. Has it ever occurred to you that our online real-money poker-playing exploits are seen by many as signs of a gambling problem? An exact quote: "It's one thing to play at a casino. Now, you're gambling at home, too. You spend an hour a day, sometimes TWO hours playing friggin' poker. Your whole life is poker!" Keep in mind, when we entered a tourney at the Tropicana, the rule was NO REBUYS. 25 minutes in, she stands up as if to say, "My night's over." I nod to her, and she rebuys in and makes it just beyond the break (mid-Level 5).
Is it true? Are we just compulsive gamblers?
Here's my profile, in case it will help you in your decision making. I live about 30 minutes northwest of Atlantic City. I travel to the casino maybe 4 times a YEAR. I'm a guy that whether I play the craps tables, blackjack, or poker, I go down with XX dollars. If I lose it (rarely happens ;-), that's it. I go home, or at least to dinner. No ATM. No credit cards, nothing. I lock my ATM card in my truck in case I have a problem traveling, but I don't even have it in the building. Also keep in mind, I am a healthcare professional, with an annual salary of over $100,000. The money I gamble with is mine and has nothing to do with paying bills. We both have individual checking accounts for whatever, and a joint account for our bills. The joint account is funded by automatic deduction from our paychecks and is used only for bills, and only with joint consent. My deposit to PokerStars was the minimum $50.00, and the amount displayed on the screen is what I have total. My initial $50.00, and my winnings. No more deposits, nothing. My Neteller account is still open only to catch cashouts.
Does this make me a compulsive gambler? Or will her railing on me make me a sneaking-around-to-play-poker type of maniac? Nonetheless, I played and made two mistakes today, still at 0.05/0.10 NLHE (certainly the mark of a compulsive gambler). I called a 10BB bet when I had a flush read on a guy because I thought he might be bluffing. He wasn't. I also called a bet when I thought I shouldn't have. Oh well, bottom line is that I'm up, both today and overall, and I still have yet to have a losing session playing the real money ring games.
I've noticed that I play significantly better when I lead a hand, when I play aggressively. The funny thing is that PokerTracker, in my small sample size (and this verifies why I will NEVER buy a full version), has me rated as "Loose Aggressive" because I am a fan of pre-flop raising, most especially with a premium hand. Is QJs not premium? Especially at a loose table? The funny part is all my friends, including some pretty damn good players (as verified by live tournament cashes and success at ring games), tell me that I'm one of the tightest players they know. Harrington-tight. PokerTracker also has me at a win rate at 0.05/0.10 NLHE of 63BB/100 hands over a sample of 750 hands. Not significant, I know, but jeez...Loose Aggressive?
Work tomorrow, quality time on Thursday, work the WHOLE weekend (AND Wild Card Weekend, even though my Eagles are safely at home), so enjoy....
Is it true? Are we just compulsive gamblers?
Here's my profile, in case it will help you in your decision making. I live about 30 minutes northwest of Atlantic City. I travel to the casino maybe 4 times a YEAR. I'm a guy that whether I play the craps tables, blackjack, or poker, I go down with XX dollars. If I lose it (rarely happens ;-), that's it. I go home, or at least to dinner. No ATM. No credit cards, nothing. I lock my ATM card in my truck in case I have a problem traveling, but I don't even have it in the building. Also keep in mind, I am a healthcare professional, with an annual salary of over $100,000. The money I gamble with is mine and has nothing to do with paying bills. We both have individual checking accounts for whatever, and a joint account for our bills. The joint account is funded by automatic deduction from our paychecks and is used only for bills, and only with joint consent. My deposit to PokerStars was the minimum $50.00, and the amount displayed on the screen is what I have total. My initial $50.00, and my winnings. No more deposits, nothing. My Neteller account is still open only to catch cashouts.
Does this make me a compulsive gambler? Or will her railing on me make me a sneaking-around-to-play-poker type of maniac? Nonetheless, I played and made two mistakes today, still at 0.05/0.10 NLHE (certainly the mark of a compulsive gambler). I called a 10BB bet when I had a flush read on a guy because I thought he might be bluffing. He wasn't. I also called a bet when I thought I shouldn't have. Oh well, bottom line is that I'm up, both today and overall, and I still have yet to have a losing session playing the real money ring games.
I've noticed that I play significantly better when I lead a hand, when I play aggressively. The funny thing is that PokerTracker, in my small sample size (and this verifies why I will NEVER buy a full version), has me rated as "Loose Aggressive" because I am a fan of pre-flop raising, most especially with a premium hand. Is QJs not premium? Especially at a loose table? The funny part is all my friends, including some pretty damn good players (as verified by live tournament cashes and success at ring games), tell me that I'm one of the tightest players they know. Harrington-tight. PokerTracker also has me at a win rate at 0.05/0.10 NLHE of 63BB/100 hands over a sample of 750 hands. Not significant, I know, but jeez...Loose Aggressive?
Work tomorrow, quality time on Thursday, work the WHOLE weekend (AND Wild Card Weekend, even though my Eagles are safely at home), so enjoy....
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