Poker Players Go On Tilt - Use It To Profit

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Every poker player has been there before, going on tilt and suffering that rush of blood to the head, and those who claim never to have experienced the red mist of anger descending like a shroud over a session of poker are simply lying to you. Call them on this, instantly. I would like to discuss how to make money from this phenomenon, and how to save money if you are the one who is verging on tilt.

Let's deal with the last problem first since it is far easier. You have to take the proper precautions in poker, and one of those is that prior to a session of play you need to acknowledge the possibility of going on tilt. Is there a much-loathed face (or avatar, loathsome all on their own usually) sitting across from you at your table? You should never let emotion play a part in a game like poker that ultimately rewards dispassionate, analytical decision-making. Passion and emotions of any kind simply cost you money in online poker. You need to discern passion and emotion in others and exploit it. This ability alone will always make your play vastly superior to any poker-bot, but at the same time you must continue to act reasonably. So, don't play against opponents that already irritate you.

With online poker this should never be an issue with thousands of tables to choose from at many different poker websites. If you find yourself getting irritated during a game - making new enemies, in short - then get up and leave. If you develop a vendetta for an individual player you are on the path to losing all your chips. And, funny enough, it won't even be your nemesis who takes the chips. It will be a shrewd player who read this article and observed that someone at his table was on tilt who will take all the money.

If you suffer a bad beat it is a good idea to sit out the next few hands. Congratulate the winner and go splash some water on your face. It happens and you have to get over it. It's like counting to ten before you throw that punch on the playground. Reflect on the hand you just lost. Maybe you made a mistake in terms of the way you bet the hand. Maybe you played it absolutely perfect and nothing you did could have made a difference. Either way, you should feel better. If you don't feel better, if you're still seething then you have to log-off or go home from the poker card room. Play poker in a couple of hour's time at a different online table, or go back to the card room tomorrow. It is simple advice, and yet I see players do exactly the opposite every single day at the online poker tables. They take a bad beat, go on tilt, and then invariably get involved in another big hand soon afterwards.

If someone at your table fits this description then you must seize the initiative. There is no place for any emotion at a poker table, and sympathy is last on my list. Poker requires ruthlessness. When you see someone about to go on tilt it is your obligation to push him completely over the edge, holding him upside-down and emptying his pockets of any loose change while you're at it. You can empathize, but turn that empathy into profit. You know he's irrational right now, and looking for justice. He thinks that his A2 off-suit is now worth a big re-raise because his AA was just cracked by a suited 45. Where is the logic? If he were thinking at all he would be taking a stroll outside and composing himself. He deserves to lose everything in front of him, and no one is more deserving of these spoils than you are for noticing this.

The way to profit is to fly under the radar of this angry person. Sneak up on them in a hand, which is easily done so long as you were not the person who put them on tilt in the first place. Know this about players on tilt: they feel that they deserve to win the next pot they get involved in; they will not be pushed around because they don't want others to think that they are weak (so they won't give up on a draw or a bad position); they will be overly aggressive; and they will be concentrating on their new arch-enemy. This means they ignore the other eight hands at the table, and if you slow-play them early in a hand you will drive them insane with a late check-raise.

If you are the reason for putting someone on tilt then you have to tighten the screws. Be chatty and friendly and try to behave as though you are blissfully unaware that there is a problem. Do not allow yourself to become involved in an argument, and try your level best to isolate the player on tilt. It doesn't really matter if you achieve this with the bets holding or not. Luck has a way of running out on poker players, and there is a very good chance that you could suck out on the opponent again. The value of this result so far outweighs the possibility of losing a pot that it is worth the risk. In addition, you keep the stakes emotional, which will give you another chance later on against the same player, plus others at your table might assume that you are wild and ignorant to boot, which always helps.