How long can you play well? Thoughts on productive session lengths. (1 Viewer)

[10centguitar]

Just played another beast of a 12hr session. Live 1/2 nlhe.
I have played for 18hrs before and have done well. I have also felt tired around 6hrs and done terribly.



I typically make sure to shower/shave/eat and dress well before I play. I will play for 6-8hrs. I make sure to be in a positive mood and that my head is right.
Sometimes a game has incredible action and I play quite a bit later, or it sucks and I leave early.

A little background:

I play 1/2, 1/3, and 1/3/5 nlhe for the most part. I play PLO as well when I can find a good game. I will play tournaments but prefer cash. I have been playing poker for 10+ years now and have mostly been supplementing my income for the last 3 years with poker. I am a winning player and practice good BR management etc.

I typically make sure to shower/shave/eat and dress well before I play. I will play for 6-8hrs. I make sure to be in a positive mood and that my head is right.


My game-preparation regimen is very personal and I have figured out what works best for me over years of tough times and lots of reading. My strategy for each session is well thought out and i am very flexible in changing my strategy for particular circumstances. Over the years, I have gotten far better at warding off tilt. So i can play longer while stuck then when I first started. Which has turned many losing nights into winning ones. However I know this and tend to play longer than I should at times.
Sometimes a game has incredible action and I play quite a bit later, or it sucks and I leave early.


But the session length thing is tricky. It seems to always be an unknown variable.
Most players fall into certain types, the cards after so many years have evened out (I am not affected terribly by short-term variance), and games usually flow about the same. Stacks change hands, the money flows clockwise around the table etc.

But how long I am going to end up playing I really never know.

I have taken the advice most of the pros agree upon. The more hours you play, the more your profit.

I've had terrible sessions with really nitty players where I break even for 7-8hrs and i think about cashing out over and over again and some new players come in and the game gets super live and I take down huge pot after huge pot for 20 minutes.

Its so much like fishing. If you are a fisherman then you can relate. So many times I've landed great fish on trips without a single bite right before Im packing up. Or you catch tons of fish for only for an hour then the bite shuts off completely, only to come back 4 hours later.

Thoughts

 

[DrStrange]

I can typically outlast the other players at a table, but when a casino table starts to refill with fresh looking/acting players, I consider leaving. So 6-8 hours without a concern but beyond that I am watching to see if I am facing better rested players.

I make sure to eat light snacks when playing even a moderately long session. A little bite to eat makes me more alert and effective.

DrStrange

 

[ParrotheadMZ]

After 6 hours I start making more bad decisions then normal
But thats if i wake up early and worked a full day.
I want to start to build my stamina for long tourneys. Ive been working out at Club Courage

 

[doakwolf]

Roughly zero minutes for me.

 

[RainmanTrail]

It's going to be different for each player. The best thing you can do for yourself is to eat a healthy, nutritious diet, and to exercise before your sessions. I notice a big difference when doing this. Also, a lot of players take Adderall Not my cup of tea, but it definitely works for them.

 

[doakwolf]

Also, a lot of players take Adderall

Going to have to try that and hopefully the result is something like this when I'm counting my odds

 

[RainmanTrail]

Going to have to try that and hopefully the result is something like this when I'm counting my odds

It's great for concentrating and solving complex math problems. I just don't like it because I have turrets and it increases my muscles tics. I look pretty funny walking around on Adderall.

 

[Trihonda]

I've been to Vegas once, and in 3 days played 40+ hours...

Been to several meetups, and in 3 days, generally 45+ hours.

I've always left happy, though probably not well rested.

 

[RainmanTrail]

I think it's important to be on your A game if you care about your results. When I was playing full time, I didn't care as much about time played, but rather the number of mistakes I made. I would often limit myself to 3 mistakes (or 4-5 if the game is really good or if it was a long session). I'd pick myself up after the 3rd mistake.

Obviously the number of mistakes you limit yourself to depends on how you define a mistake, and what your expectations of your play are, but it's a good way to put some objective restrictions on your sessions.

 

[bergs]

I actually play better buzzed. My biggest, longest winning sessions involved booze. I know most people are shaking their heads but with my game, it's true. I play a little tighter when I'm drunk (particularly at NLHE).

My biggest losing sessions were when I've either been physically ill or had a lot of work-related things on my mind.

Provided I'm playing well, sober or not, I can play about 4 hours in the casino before I need something to do - walk around, get a bite to eat, etc. In a home game it's much longer as the conversation is livelier and it's just a more relaxed atmosphere.

Other big thing for me is comfort. I can play well longer when I can focus better due to being comfortable. Rooms that I've played in that I didn't like when I walked in haven't been good to me (Borg, NH rooms, Bellagio). I've had good sessions in rooms that I've liked the moment I walked in (Revel, I miss you....Venetian, I love you....Mohegan Sun you are my mother's milk).

Sole exception has been Parx. Always comfortable there. Feel like I usually play my A game. Losing sessions.