Tilt Happens But...
August 17, 2006 -
Lately, I've been playing a lot of sit n' gos. They're quick. Usually easy to win and keep me from self-destructing...not nearly as often.
The last several tournaments I've played in - biggies - have really been frustrating. I've taken a bad beat - like an A3 beating an AK or AA being cracked by a 42. Yes, it's happened. I don't understand why people play some of these hands. I just don't, but before I go all "Hellmuth" and lose it completely, I'm gonna move on.
I've gone from massive chip leader to on the rails in two or three hands or less. I've completely fallen apart. Steamed. Tilted.
I'm convinced there's something defective with me - emotionally. I'm Italian-Portuguese. Controlling my anger - and my mouth - is something that doesn't come naturally to me. Anger is something that is not handled well by either of my parents. Could I be genetically predisposed to tilt? Or perhaps - ethnically? Environmentally?
Joe Hachem mentioned on the ESPN broadcast of the Las Vegas event of the WSOP Circuit that as a man of 'Lebanese' descent, he's also emotional. I think he may have referred to himself as a 'hothead.' However, he seems to handle a bad beat pretty well. At least he did when his pocket kings were beaten by a jack-ten and he went from a healthy chip stack to short stack in a blink of an eye. He even hugged the dude who dealt him the crushing blow as he was heading home in 4th or 5th place.
Personally, I couldn't have been so classy. I might've punched the guy. I've often wanted to punch my computer after taking bad beat after bad beat. Of course, if I had 7.5 million and a WSOP Main Event bracelet, I might be able to be more magnanimous than I currently am.
So, is anger genetic, ethnic or environmental? Psychiatrists aren't even sure. Geneticists haven't isolated any specific 'anger gene'. Many ethnicities claim anger as a driving force. Anger is universal. And natural.
What we do know is that anger is definitely an obstacle to good decision-making. This is why tilt is so dangerous. When we let the game get to us and upset us, we make mistakes we otherwise wouldn't make.
It's how we handle anger. Perhaps, Joe has learned much better to handle anger than I have. Maybe he was hugged more as a child. Who knows? The fact remains that I have to manage my anger, or I won't get much further as a poker player.
Editor Note: How do you handle anger at the poker table? What are your tips for dealing with tilt? Send them to editor @ chicksnchips.com (remove the spaces)! I need all the help I can get.
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