To be good at poker "psychology" - to effectively predict your opponent's likely thought processes - there is no need to take a seminar on Card Games and their Relation to the Unconscious. Your opponent is not your patient, and even if he/she is, no matter how well you apply Jacques Lacan to their neurosis, you are still not guaranteed to win.
While strategy is a real and important element of poker, and is certainly more basic than psychoanalysis, it is still only one important tactic. Mindreading would certainly be an asset to wise play, but is this possible? It is in a way.
The best of players, as the best of artists, never required a manual on the subject of their professions. They proceed intuitively, by means of naturally sharp observation which they practiced and developed individually in the course of the years.
Good technical manuals on poker psychology are rare. This is at the very crux of the matter. Whatever tips and advice you may find off the net or in the bookstore, you can not practically or successfully put them into real play. You must have that inexplicable talent of intuition that puts your own creative mind processes over the limit of your opponents.
Most players will lose more than they win because they depend on strict models of play, much like computer programs, or simulations that present themselves as predictions to be used robotically by the savvy player. This could be quite simple depending on the number of variables involved in the prediction.
A talented player will spurn any computer-spun model and make their own decisions on how to play their game and their opponents' game. They are led by intuition into observations that they then combine into rules of play according to their creative imagination and wit. The strategy that comes out of this is distinctively their own. No matter how complex or how elegantly simple their secret strategy is, it makes them less vulnerable.
Artists and good poker players do not reveal their secrets. They may give advice or even write books on their art, but they will never reveal what really sets them apart. Remember this, they did not achieve their lofty peaks by relying on someone else's tips.
It is then most vital to commit yourself to the intense study of personal observation from your own practice to develop your observational skills as well as your imagination. Do this and you will independently create ways of acquiring a manner of play that is unique to you in its every detail.
Everyone is familiar with the common concept of bluffing, for example; but the best bluffers are those who do it consistently in a way which other players, no matter how smart or experienced, have no way of "reading." And the only way to be able to do that is to employ a well muscled intuition which only you have access to.
It takes not only hard work, persistence, and erudition, but also the courage and independence to use your imagination in ways which might seem ridiculous but may prove innovative, individual curiosity and a spirit of discovery which keeps you ahead of the rest.
One could now proceed to elaborate on the processes of intuition, or suggest where to start or what not to neglect, but even that would be too much. Everyone is blessed with intuition; not everyone has the drive to aggressively hone and use it. If the results of your unique intuition are to be unique, you had better start on your own.
What I have written about here calls for a lifetime commitment. Nobody who was ever considered a master at his craft, whatever that may be, was given that title. They worked long and hard and on their own and they earned it.
While strategy is a real and important element of poker, and is certainly more basic than psychoanalysis, it is still only one important tactic. Mindreading would certainly be an asset to wise play, but is this possible? It is in a way.
The best of players, as the best of artists, never required a manual on the subject of their professions. They proceed intuitively, by means of naturally sharp observation which they practiced and developed individually in the course of the years.
Good technical manuals on poker psychology are rare. This is at the very crux of the matter. Whatever tips and advice you may find off the net or in the bookstore, you can not practically or successfully put them into real play. You must have that inexplicable talent of intuition that puts your own creative mind processes over the limit of your opponents.
Most players will lose more than they win because they depend on strict models of play, much like computer programs, or simulations that present themselves as predictions to be used robotically by the savvy player. This could be quite simple depending on the number of variables involved in the prediction.
A talented player will spurn any computer-spun model and make their own decisions on how to play their game and their opponents' game. They are led by intuition into observations that they then combine into rules of play according to their creative imagination and wit. The strategy that comes out of this is distinctively their own. No matter how complex or how elegantly simple their secret strategy is, it makes them less vulnerable.
Artists and good poker players do not reveal their secrets. They may give advice or even write books on their art, but they will never reveal what really sets them apart. Remember this, they did not achieve their lofty peaks by relying on someone else's tips.
It is then most vital to commit yourself to the intense study of personal observation from your own practice to develop your observational skills as well as your imagination. Do this and you will independently create ways of acquiring a manner of play that is unique to you in its every detail.
Everyone is familiar with the common concept of bluffing, for example; but the best bluffers are those who do it consistently in a way which other players, no matter how smart or experienced, have no way of "reading." And the only way to be able to do that is to employ a well muscled intuition which only you have access to.
It takes not only hard work, persistence, and erudition, but also the courage and independence to use your imagination in ways which might seem ridiculous but may prove innovative, individual curiosity and a spirit of discovery which keeps you ahead of the rest.
One could now proceed to elaborate on the processes of intuition, or suggest where to start or what not to neglect, but even that would be too much. Everyone is blessed with intuition; not everyone has the drive to aggressively hone and use it. If the results of your unique intuition are to be unique, you had better start on your own.
What I have written about here calls for a lifetime commitment. Nobody who was ever considered a master at his craft, whatever that may be, was given that title. They worked long and hard and on their own and they earned it.
About the Author:
If you are into poker, you may well also like browsing through the quality casino supplies at buildyourownpokertables like Red Casino Cloth and Cactus Rogue Poker Table Vinyl.
No comments:
Post a Comment