Going on Tilt

For the beginners reading this, going on tilt is not a good thing. We'll have a look at what going on tilt is and more to the point, how to avoid it when playing poker.

First off, for the uninitiated, going on tilt is, when a poker player, normally through frustration, plays hands that they can't win with or raises the stakes with nothing in order to speed the game up or win more quickly. It very seldom works to their advantage, if ever.

Going on tilt can cost you dearly and can easily wipe out any profit you've made, or indeed, wipe out your entire bankroll. I doubt any poker player can honestly say that they've never been there but the secret is recognising when your starting to tilt so you can act on it.

Poker is a game of discipline and patience and this needs to be remembered the whole way through any game you play. Often players will go on tilt when in a winning position and have made some money, greed gets the better or them, and it can soon change that players fortunes.

So what makes players go on tilt?

• Getting bad cards;
• Hitting a losing streak;
• Not being able to make any headway in the game;
• Players being mouthy or trying to upset the other players at the table;
• Getting a bad beat or two;
• Tiredness;
• Just had a bad day?

And of course anything else that unsettles your natural game.

You need to recognise when in your game you are going on tilt and starting to make bad judgments or poor calls just to stay in the hand. Remember, with poker, you shouldn't be playing all that many hands and you should be limiting your loses for you to win in the long run. The sooner you learn to recognise that you're not playing correct or good poker the better, you can then start to take control when you start going on tilt.

Try to keep you mind clear and concentrate. Whats in the past is in the past and it's now that you need to concentrate upon. Dedicate yourself to the current cards and don't stay in the hand if you can't win.

If you find yourself going on tilt and not being able to take a step back, a deep breath and start playing again, then stop playing poker for a while. Your wallet will thank you in the end.