Poker bad beats are probably more regular occurrences online than they are in any land poker tournament, they cannot be helped as there are many unskilled players who win with mere luck on their sides. This is probably the reason why online casinos provide Bad Beat Bonuses. However a bad beat can still leave the poker player feeling as though they have just been put through the wringer! Some experts call this “Bad Beat Syndrome”, while others just call it f^@*%#g tough luck!
Exploring your reactions to a bad beat is a very useful exercise, as most of the time after a really tough bad beat, the player feels some rather strong emotions. Emotions are not supposed to be part of playing poker, but as we are human beings, emotion is understandable. It is how you deal with these emotions which counts and they range from complete disbelief to utter disgusts as a rule. A bad beat can stay with a player for a good long while and it is for this reason that it is not considered going tilt. It can slow down the brain and put it into a fog, it even tells in the glaze over the eyes. Bad beats have caused many sleepless nights as the player tosses and turns; re-hashing the circumstances.
Exploring bad beat syndrome, or the one that got away, is pretty boring for the listener who really wants to tell the poker player to “get over it already!” It is all part of poker psychology where it is natural not only for poker players, but for all human beings to be mired in egocentricity. This comes as a tendency to believe that the world really should be fair, it isn’t! The natural cognitive reaction is common and it brings out the “why me?” in all of us. You know what, the bad beat is all part and parcel of playing poker, so as a player of this game, you really do need to just “get over it” and move on.
“That’s Poker” is not nearly enough justification for many players in terms of the bad beat, unfortunately the emotions are still in control and the mind remains focused on why? If the statistics say you should have won and you didn’t, searching for answers is what your brain is trying to do. There is also a large element of fear involved and fear always shakes confidence. But just like the old adage goes, if you fall off the horse, you have to get right back on and ride, so too does combating the poker bad beat. This has to be combated by training the brain through exposure and restructured thoughts.
What the poker player is looking for is others who will commiserate, but what they need to do is to look to themselves for reassurance that they still have the confidence and ability to win. Professionals are so good at what they do, because they don’t let a bad beat bother them and take it as part of poker playing life. Consolation and re-ignition are not the way to get over the exposure to a bad beat. Acceptance of something you may not be able to change is vital to conquer this issue.