I Just Can't Lose!

[StandardDeviant]

Very, very insightful, iHate17.

I have been trading for a long time, and have come to certain level of understanding about risk/reward, statistics, the long run, RoR, and on and on.

I have also come to understand how important psychology is in success. It's no different in gambling (although the Wall Street gang would shudder at there profession being called such).

I'm still learning about myself and emotional self-mastery, and I know that this will determine whether I am ultimately successful with BJ or not.

Right now, I'm betting on myself, because I have an understanding of the challenge and I've been here before.

 

[sabre]

Selective memory stinks.

We remember all the details when we lose, but remember only the great time we had when we won.

BJC

Isn't that the truth. I've had several long sessions where I was sure I must have been down big on the evening, only to tally up at the end and find I'm ahead. When the big bets hit the felt, the "bad beats" seem to overshadow the times the cards fall "the way they're supposed to".

 

[sagefr0g]

for me on this sort of stuff that's being discussed it's been a bit different.

plain and simple i'm not capable to play like a computer for an extended period of time.
i didn't recognize that fact for a couple of years, but as luck would have it my results were well above expectation anyway.

but i did hit a large losing streak finally, that was enough of a wake up call to make me evaluate my competency level.
and like i said above, the thing i realized was that i'm not capable of computer like play for extended periods of time.

really for me, six decks are just beyond my ability to accurately count much more than a pack or two, then i begin fading.
double deck on the other hand i can hang in there a bit better as the frequent shuffling breaks up the time spent counting.

that's pretty much how come i gave up on orthodox card counting and turned to trying to develop the fuzzy count approach along with a different betting philosophy. just me i'm sure but i find i'm much better at applying knowledge and applying thought than i am at trying to mimic a computer.

so i'm not meaning to say that the orthodox stuff isn't valid, indeed i very much believe it is, just i'm one who isn't capable of applying it as it was meant to be played.

so i guess i'm kind of like a blind person who once could see and knows what the world is like. still loving life and wanting do stuff, i can still manage to stumble around and do all right.......... so far.

 

[blackjack avenger]

Here is a Guarentee!

At some point in your playing career you will walk out of a casino
with less money then you walked in with!:joker::whip:

If one has lost in the short term here is what one can do:

Realize one has to play to the long run.
Play a stronger game.
Play better games.
Play more.
and
Have a cup of man up.:joker::whip:

I have more then once lost all hands for 6 rounds in a row! This included the splits and doubles.:joker::whip:

Recently it happened and for one round I got a BJ which was cancelled out when I lost my double on the other hand!:joker::whip:

 

[StandardDeviant]

Have a cup of man up.:joker::whip:

I may have to do something slightly different than this, but I get your drift.

 

[StandardDeviant]

Operating on Faith

Another losing session yesterday. I was down 58 units after just 60 minutes of play. For the game I was playing, this is about a -2.2 standard deviation outcome, with a probability of ~ 1.5%. I did move on to a second casino where I ended up 30 units, for a net outcome of -28 units after ~2.5 hours play.

No big deal, of course, except this is my 10th losing session in a row, and I am down about 400 units overall - about a third of my bankroll. I replenish a portion of my BR each month, so there is no immediate problem there -- but I must say the whole thing is getting a bit tedious...

 

[daddybo]

Keep a stiff upper Lip. Losing streaks are usually rewarded with nice winning sessions.

 

[creeping panther]

Sd

Another losing session yesterday. I was down 58 units after just 60 minutes of play. For the game I was playing, this is about a -2.2 standard deviation outcome, with a probability of ~ 1.5%. I did move on to a second casino where I ended up 30 units, for a net outcome of -28 units after ~2.5 hours play.

No big deal, of course, except this is my 10th losing session in a row, and I am down about 400 units overall - about a third of my bankroll. I replenish a portion of my BR each month, so there is no immediate problem there -- but I must say the whole thing is getting a bit tedious...

SD, sorry about your bad experience. Could you please tell of the BJ game you are playing, rules, pen, amount of players at the table, shuffle...thanks.

CP

 

[FLASH1296]

Unsolicited advice re: losing streaks.

It is best to meditate, relax, exercise, chant, just do what

you must do to avoid thinking about your losing "streak"

Take a sabbatical - a mini-break from play and spend some time

doing non-gaming things, like spending time with family or

household projects, volunteer charity work, exercise, etc.

is highly recommended, as the casino will be there whenever

you return; and you aren't scheduled to die anytime this year.


Having semi-hidden thoughts re: bad luck is malignant.

It can effect you in ways too subtle to be perceived.

Most commonly it can lead to bad bet sizing and/or "F P S"

(fancy play syndrome) resulting in premature deviations from Basic Strategy.

 

[creeping panther]

Flash

It is best to meditate, relax, exercise, chant, just do what

you must do to avoid thinking about your losing "streak"

Take a sabbatical - a mini-break from play and spend some time

doing non-gaming things, like spending time with family or

household projects, volunteer charity work, exercise, etc.

is highly recommended, as the casino will be there whenever

you return; and you aren't scheduled to die anytime this year.


Having semi-hidden thoughts re: bad luck is malignant.

It can effect you in ways too subtle to be perceived.

Most commonly it can lead to bad bet sizing and/or "F P S"

(fancy play syndrome) resulting in premature deviations from Basic Strategy.

Flash,

I would suggest that after a very bad beating at the tables the best recourse is to then engage in very energetic, nasty, hot and heavy sex with the first hot body you can entice into bed.

This will then quickly replace those bad memories with those of a very positive and overwelming type.

CP

 

[StandardDeviant]

Keep a stiff upper Lip. Losing streaks are usually rewarded with nice winning sessions.

Thanks, I know it's just a temporary deviation!

 

[StandardDeviant]

SD, sorry about your bad experience. Could you please tell of the BJ game you are playing, rules, pen, amount of players at the table, shuffle...thanks.

CP

Yesterday S17 DAS LS with about 1.5 cut off the back. 8D at one place and 6D at the other. Some play was heads up and some was with more full tables. I don't know how to describe the shuffle other than to say it was a normal (i.e., hand shuffled) procedure. Start playing at beginning of shoe. Wong out at TC -1.

I went 58 units down at the beginning, playing heads up. Then I spent the rest of the day crawling back at more crowded tables. Interestingly the RC hovered around 0 for most of those early shoes. There was only 1 multi-unit bet in the early shoes -- a split with double downs which I won.

 

[StandardDeviant]

It is best to meditate, relax, exercise, chant...
Having semi-hidden thoughts re: bad luck is malignant. It can effect you in ways too subtle to be perceived. Most commonly it can lead to bad bet sizing and/or "F P S" (fancy play syndrome) resulting in premature deviations from Basic Strategy.

One "good" thing that happened is that I didn't get "too" upset (well, OK, a little). Having all these losses is helping me get used to losing, which I know is an important skill that I need to learn sooner or later. I guess it will be "sooner" for me.

 

[creeping panther]

Sd

One "good" thing that happened is that I didn't get "too" upset (well, OK, a little). Having all these losses is helping me get used to losing, which I know is an important skill that I need to learn sooner or later. I guess it will be "sooner" for me.

Please, never get used to... or accept losing. If the game, counting does not work for you just give it up. Many before you have.

It is way too bad you could not have attended the BASH last weekend, you would have played a game that would have really put your skillz to the test, as you would of had many + situations and been able to meet very skilled players.

CP

 

[StandardDeviant]

Please, never get used to... or accept losing. If the game, counting does not work for you just give it up. Many before you have.

It is way too bad you could not have attended the BASH last weekend, you would have played a game that would have really put your skillz to the test, as you would of had many + situations and been able to meet very skilled players.

When I said "get used to losing" I meant temporarily and in the short run. Ups and downs are a part of the landscape in gaming as in trading. I've experienced the ups and downs in trading, so I know it's normal. So far in gaming, I've mostly experienced the downs , but my gaming career is young - I've only got about 150 hours in. So it's a little too early to form any conclusions.

Funny how this goes, when I was just playing BS at the very beginning (i.e., not yet counting), I won most of my sessions. Now that I've switched over to advantage play, I've lost most of my sessions!

I'm not too concerned about this because my playing time is relatively short. And I saw the same thing in trading...sometimes it seemed like the securities would change direction right after I bought or sold them.

 

[kewljason]

Please, never get used to... or accept losing.
CP

I can appreciate your attitude here, CP, but will all due respect, I disagree somewhat. For most of us, losing sessions or worse yet several or sometimes many losing sessions, are a regular part of our experience. We have to learn to deal with this aspect of our play.

I recently went through a 3 month period of losing. I lost about 25% of bankroll over a period of several hundred hours, before I bounced back and now have won back twice that amount in the past two months. Had I steamed and bet more money chasing loses , my losses would have been far greater and I may not have been in a position to bounce back. So I feel learning to play disciplined especially when losing and mentally dealing with these losses is indeed a huge lesson that needs to be learned.

Without knowing SD's exact location, I see that she is on the east coast so she is probably playing many of the sub-standard games that I have been playing. This means there will be losing sessions and many of them. Learning to deal with losses is going to have to be a part of her game.

 

[creeping panther]

Sd

Funny how this goes, when I was just playing BS at the very beginning (i.e., not yet counting), I won most of my sessions. Now that I've switched over to advantage play, I've lost most of my sessions!

Well, that is very interesting, and very enlightening.

May I asked how you knew when to raise your bet when you were using basic strategy playing??

In Kewls post replying to mine it is good to remember that he is a Pro, I do not believe that you are or even aspire to be. Nor do I. So Kewl looks at things through a different prism, that of a pro, and probably a very skilled one.

CP

 

[daddybo]

It is way too bad you could not have attended the BASH last weekend, you would have played a game that would have really put your skillz to the test, as you would of had many + situations and been able to meet very skilled players.

CP

We couldn't afford it! :laugh:

 

[psyduck]

No big deal, of course, except this is my 10th losing session in a row, and I am down about 400 units overall

Maybe you really should go to the Bash and see how impressive those APs are in person.

 

[StandardDeviant]

We couldn't afford it! :laugh:

Hmmm...