Tue, 02/15/2011 – 00:49 – PokerPages Staff

Tilt is a poker term for mental frustration that disrupts your ability to play your best game.  When a player is on tilt, that player acts according to their frustration level rather than according to rational decision-making.  The beginner poker player must learn to control or eliminate tilt in order to have success.

The most common cause of tilt is a bad beat.  In poker, a bad beat is a term for losing with a strong, favorable hand to an opponent who wins with a weak, inferior hand.  Generally, cards on the board improve the weak player’s hand.
 
Dealing with tilt is an essential aspect of poker.  The beginner player cannot allow emotional frustration interfere with their game play and must always apply their best strategy.

The first step to controlling tilt is to recognize that you are experiencing tilt.  Once a player recognizes that they are on tilt, they can employ strategies to control it. 

The most commonly suggested way to overcome tilt is to understand that success in poker is viewed over the long term, not the short term.  With this view, you can simply disregard uncommon outcomes.  Statistically, losing these hands is a result of variance in the game of poker, not bad strategy.

To learn more, check out PokerSchoolOnline, the best source on the Internet for poker related learning.  Afterwards, why not test those skills by playing free at PokerStars.net.  Also, check out the PokerPages section Poker Information and Poker Articles for more poker betting, tips, bets, and strategies.