John Tabatabai experiences more fear and loathing in Las Vegas, as his seemingly endless bad run at the poker table continues
Possibly the greatest thing about online poker is the ability to play 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. For poker junkies everywhere a few clicks of the mouse can provide instant access to a veritable cornucopia of cash games and tournaments. The night owls of Europe can find a rich variety of games against North Americans way into the small hours, and during sociable European hours there’s no shortage of action against irrepressibly aggressive Scandinavians.
This accessibility has arguably been the most crucial factor in the growth of poker. The problem with this, however, emerges when this accessibility of games starts to become a threat to the players themselves…
As I discussed last month, poker, on the whole, is a series of peaks and troughs, the best players spending the majority of their time riding the crest of a financial wave. But arguably the most important factor for long-term success is realising that it won’t be plain sailing all the time. Now, if games are sparse and your luck is down, the question of self-imposed breaks doesn’t present itself – you’re simply forced to stop. But as it is, with endless online and live action (especially in Las Vegas where you can jump into a game at any time of day or night, and in just about any casino), how do you decide when the choppy waters of misfortune have calmed? When’s the right time to stop and how long should you wait to dip your toes back in the water? This has been my dilemma in recent weeks, and possibly the toughest decision in my poker career so far.
Loathing Las Vegas
I’ve made no secret that Las Vegas hasn’t been the city of dreams I hoped it would be. I’ve run bad, sometimes played bad, and lost sleep and money. I’ve also done what no player should ever do – chase losses. Every day I’ve been lured back in by the promise of a return to form and each time I’ve suffered yet more frustration.
After more than a month of misery I decided to take a couple of days off. Pale, unlucky, downbeat and somewhat distraught, I attempted to find solace in some socialising and intoxication. Despite the hangovers I’ve felt a little better since and hope that by the time you read this, fortune will have looked kindly upon me in the Main Event. (It didn’t – John was knocked out when his Aces were cracked by A-K.)
I was also heartened to see that John Conroy, a friend of mine and managing director of Badbeat.com, came third in a $1,500 no-limit Hold’em event, collecting just shy of $300,000. On the whole though, this WSOP has not been the greatest for many friends and associates, but it has been a wake-up call and a tough lesson.
Harsh times
Poker is very much like life; sometimes you’ll be forced to endure the inexplicable – alone, disheartened and unsure. But harsh times require clarity of thought, bravery and sometimes a new perspective. Those harsh times have been my deepest fear and, at the same, time my greatest reward.
It’s been said that one man’s meat is another man’s poison, and it’s been my turn to sip the poison. Poker represents the karmic balance of life in the most twisted of ways. On the surface no good has come of this trip – I’ll probably return home vowing never to visit Las Vegas again. But, when I’ve regained my focus and spanked the proverbial bottom of misfortune, I will return, enlightened by the fact that success in poker is not about knowing how to win – it’s knowing how to accept and deal with the losses.
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