The Slumpbuster

In all forms of competition there seems to be a time when even the best competitors appear to be performing at a level less than they are capable. There seems to be no logical reason for it, and no explanation on how to fix it. This is commonly known as a slump.

On an average week, I play in three to five No-Limit Texas Hold’em poker tournaments, and although it’s not for big money like the pros play, the level of play is generally pretty good, and each tournament is taken very seriously. As every poker player should do, I keep track of statistics and make notes about each tournament I play in. 2006 was my best year in four years of playing Hold’em, but I endured a two month period that had me leaving the table shaking my head in disbelief.

I’m sure every poker player has suffered the notorious “Bad Beat’. This is when, for example, you’re holding Ace-Jack, the flop brings AJ- 4, and you push the remainder of your chips into the pot, knowing you almost certainly have the best hand. One player, usually with a lot more chips than you, calls your all-in, and flips over Ace-4. You both have 2 pair and you pair of Jacks beats his pair of fours, but when another 4 shows up on the river, giving your opponent a full-house and the winning hand, all you can do is stand up from the table, shake your head and walk away.

In the example used here, you pushed all-in and were a huge favorite to win the pot, but poker is a game of statistics, which means if there’s an 80% chance for you to win the hand, then there’s also a 20% you will lose. When the improbable 20% chance actually comes through, we curse the Poker Gods for their cruelty. The two month slump I most recently went through featured a string of 15 consecutive tournaments where I never finished in the top 50%. I’m sure this is something every poker player feels he has dealt with. Almost every hand I was eliminated with, I was a statistical favorite.

There are a lot of reasons why this happens. I was playing too many hands early in the tournament, and taking too many chance, resulting in being shortstacked after a few blind raises, forcing me to play hands more aggressively than I would otherwise like to do. But what about the other times?

To answer this, I look to the slump. I feel I was playing well, but for no logical reason, the Poker Gods seemed to be conspiring against me. Now, I don’t honestly believe that there is some supernatural force watching me play poker and making bad things happen to me, but this form of superstition can be found in all forms of competition, especially during a slump.

So how do you break out of a slump? In professional sports, I have heard many stories of players doing a variety of things to stop a slump. Anything from altering a superstitious pre-game ritual to altering their style of play or even shaving their heads. Then you have the Slump-Buster.

"Slump-Buster" is a term I first heard about from an interview on the Jim Rome Show with baseball star Mark Grace (pictured here while playing for the Cubs). Now retired. Mark Grace describes the type of woman who he believes helped him overcome on-field struggles.

When Grace (who’s name now appears to bring new meaning to the term “irony”) would find himself in a hitting slump he would seek out "the gnarliest, ugliest chick" he could find and attempt to "lay the wood to her". If he was successful, the next day he was sure to break out of his slump, hence the phrase.

Now, I’m not recommending that you do anything of this sort, but instead I’m offering a fresh idea. An offering so great, that the Poker Gods will most assuredly look down upon you, and grant you favour and good fortune at the poker table. The next time you find yourself in this type of a slump, and you peek at your hole cards to find pockets Aces, fold them. If possible, show everyone at the table what you’re doing. You’ve just made poker’s ultimate sacrifice.

Does it sounds crazy and superstitious? Of course it does, there’s no such thing as Poker Gods, and it’s idiotic to lay down the best hand possible. On the other hand, it’s worked for me...twice, and I won’t hesitate to do it again if I feel I need to.