Sunday, March 8, 2009

Losing Is a Part of Winning

By Vinnie Belford

No matter how good you are or think you may be at poker; you will always lose. Being a winning poker player does not mean that you are going to win every single tournament that you play. It does not mean you will leave every cash game ahead, and it definitely does not mean you will never lose a hand. The best poker players in the world do not enjoy losing, but they realize that it is a part of winning. You have to lose in order to win in poker.

There are many different reasons that you would have to lose. For one, you could lose just because your opponent has the best hand. This is something that is going to happen. This isnt normally a issue for many people. Just about everyone realizes that they are going to lose hands and they cannot win every time.

Some of us get frustrate if we are on a big losing streak. At this point we have to remember that a losing streak may be necessary in order to get on a winning streak.

In the long run, if you are winning more money than you are losing then you can consider yourself a winning poker player. Don't think of your winning and losing on a hand-by-hand basis, or even a game-by-game basis, take a few steps back and look at the overall picture.

Every game of the world series of poker features a different winner, and although you will see the same winners from time to time, if poker were truly just about skill then the best players would win every time. Instead you often see a new face at the final table, because a certain portion of the game is still about luck.

Keeping a broad perspective will help you keep your spirits up even if you run into some loses. Playing poker on a regular basis means that one game only fits into the puzzle, you have to look at the whole picture to get an idea of how you are doing. One game is not enough to judge how well you play, not even a few games will tell you.

Losing is not always bad. There are some hands that you might lose, that will actually help you in the long run. Sometimes losing a hand is better then winning it. When you lose in a showdown you still get to see your opponents hand. Sometimes that information is more valuable then any amount that you could have won in that particular hand.

Since it is likely that you will encounter the same players a few times, learning about how they play is vital to beating them the next time. So don't let a few loses get you down, as they will help you to win the next time.

If you just keep in mind that poker is ongoing and that you have to lose to win, your life as a poker player will be much less complicated. There are just so many different factors out there that it is impossible to win all the time. You have to be able to win more times then you lose and fro there the money will come in. Improve when you can improve and be willing to change our style of play. The rest will all fall into place. - 16887

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