Mind Building

I loved the anon quote Iggy posted yesterday."Luck is nothing but probability taken personally".When you start feeling the ( non-existent) poker gods are teasing and toying with your head it's time to get a grip and think about quotes like that one.

I hit the tables reasonably early last night and two tabled the $16's.I played about ten in total and finished down $16.I actually felt some of my hands were beginning to hold up a bit more frequently and I even managed a suckout or two, but ultimately I continued to run into two outers and didn't come out ahead.

I mentioned needing a thick skin to absorb the blows variance can deal and I've come to the conclusion that although poker is not strictly a sport,there are definitely similar traits required to be successful in both.

It's almost like there's an invisible "X factor" ( not the crappy tv talent show!) which separates the good from the great or even the winners from the losers.The tennis players who retain belief even when two sets down and storm back to win,the football teams who just seem to have an ability to always grind out a result no matter the circumstances, or the snooker player who can shut-out the pressure and all thoughts of the millions watching, to sink the final balls in the World Championship.

Perhaps that X factor can be learned to some extent.Poker Pro's often write about how they are totally indifferent to bad beats and the rest of us shake our heads and wonder how that can be when the game is so brutal at times.I've heard of martial arts experts who take repeated blows to parts of their bodies as a training aid, in order to toughen up the muscles and help them absorb the punches better in future.

I'm hoping for plenty more bad beats over the next few months to help toughen up my poker muscles....