Bad Beats

Bad beats are instances in which a poker hand that is a strong favorite to win the pot is beaten by an inferior hand that catches a lucky break. Bad beats happen to us all and they are incredibly frustrating. Instead of winning money with a strong hand, you end up losing money with it. It’s probably the most frustrating aspect of poker.

There’s no way you can avoid bad beats. They will always be a part of poker. The only thing you can do about them is learn how to deal with them. Some poker players are great about brushing off bad beats but others allow bad beats to affect their play and push them into tilt mode.

Learn to Accept Them

You don’t have to learn to love bad beats but you do need to learn how to accept them. Bad beats will always be a part of poker and there’s nothing you can do about it. You have probably already experienced many bad beats and will experience many more in the future.

It’s not a fun fact of poker but the sooner you learn to accept bad beats, the better off you’ll be. I’ve met many poker players over the years who have learned how to brush off bad beats and they are all winning players. It’s not a coincidence – they’ve just learned how to play a strong game at all times.

Don’t Express Your Anger Physically

It’s easy to fall into a habit of swearing out loud, throwing things or punching things but those outward expressions of anger aren’t healthy. Some people will tell you it’s healthy to vent but that’s not true. The more you express your anger outwardly, the more you learn to let it control you.

When you fall victim to a bad beat, take a deep breath and consciously focus on not expressing your anger outwardly. If you’re playing online by yourself, think about how ridiculous you would look if someone was spying on you. Don’t get up and slam your computer chair against the wall or punch your keyboard; try your best to stay calm and collected no matter how angry you feel.

The better you get at not expressing your anger violently, the better you’ll get at controlling it. It’s perfectly fine to feel angry, annoyed or frustrated as long as you can control it. Over time, you will become better at dealing with bad beats and not letting them affect your game.

Take a Walk

An easy way to deal with bad beats is to get up and walk away from the computer / table. Sitting there and staring at the hand history or the person who beat you will only serve to kindle your anger. A quick walk and breath of fresh air will often be all you need to calm down.

Sometimes a single bad beat or string of bad beats is so terrible that you need to take the rest of the day off. There’s nothing wrong with that at all because if you feel that frustrated, you probably wouldn’t be able to play a completely focused game. You will feel much better when you choose to return to the tables.