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Avoiding Tilt

Everybody has suffered from going 'on tilt' at some point. Even the best players do and if they think they don't they are wrong. They just have not noticed because they might only do it slightly.

Going on tilt does not have to mean you just lose it all together and blow your stack, it can just mean you start to play worse than normal and not play your best game.

The trick is to know when you are going on tilt, why you are going on tilt and what to do about it. If you can do this then you are on your way to taking those poker site bonuses along with other player's money.

Here are a few of the main reasons you might go on tilt.

YOU ARE TIRED

If you have been playing for a while or late into the night then you are likely to get tired. If you are tired you start to lose concentration and make mistakes. If that's the case then call it a night and play again tomorrow when you are refreshed and fully alert.

YOU HAVE HAD A BAD BEAT

This happens to everyone, somebody hangs in with a hand they should have folded and makes their hand with the river card to beat your solid hand that was winning from the off. Get over it, easier said than done but if you lose your cool and let it get to you then you will start to make mistakes.

YOU ARE HAVING A LOSING RUN

You have been having a run of bad luck and think it has got to turn round sometime. It will if you stick to the strategy but if you think you are due a change in luck and play a poor hand then you only have yourself to blame when you lose again.

YOU HAVE NOT HAD A DECENT HAND FOR A WHILE

You have not had a decent starting hand for ages and Q 7 unsuited looks like a hand worth having a go with because a Q is the highest card you have had for a while. Its not, you have to be disciplined and wait for the good hands, they will come. But even a good hand can be beaten so you still have to consider what the other players might have when one finally comes along.

YOU ARE OUT OF YOUR DEPTH

You have built up your bankroll and decided its time to take on the high rollers. You start to feel intimidated by the size of the bets, you start to check when you should be raising or worse still fold winning hands because you are worried about losing your money. You are out of your depth, there's no shame in it, drop back to a smaller stakes game where you feel comfortable.

There are many other reasons why you might go on tilt but as a rule if you feel you are then you should turn off the computer. If you don't feel you can correct it there and then, switch it off and come back another day.