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Sessions, breaks and tilt

Cash games have no end, so you decide when the session ends. The best players decide before they sit down.

Set the session

• Pick a length, such as two hours, and a stop-loss, such as three buy-ins. Stop when you reach either one.
• Take a short break every hour. Stand up, drink water, look at something that is not a screen.
• Play fewer tables when you are tired. One good table beats four sloppy ones.

Tilt

Tilt is playing worse because of how you feel, most often after a bad beat or a run of losses. The signs are easy to see from outside: calling more, bluffing more, buying in again at once, moving up to win it back.

• After a big loss, sit out a few hands before you decide anything.
• If you notice that you want to win the money back, end the session.
• Look at the hand later, away from the table. Was it a mistake or just poker?

Keep a log

Write down the date, the stake, the hours, the result and the rakeback after each session. A month of notes tells you more than any single night.

Music helps

Calm music without words keeps a long session even. Music for grinding has streams that run all day.

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