
When you are playing poker, there is one thing that you should keep in check at all times and constantly remember: Do not get emotional. Unfortunately that is a lot easier said than done and all too often even experienced players end up getting emotional to their detriment.
“What Happens?”
If you do let your emotions get the better of you then you will start to make decisions that are emotional rather than rational. Under normal circumstances when you have a cool and calm head you may be able to properly calculate the odds, weigh the risk vs. the reward, read your opponents, and make the right call.
When you get emotional however, most of that will go out the window. Often you will convince yourself that you are ‘winning’ and make a rash call or raise as a result. At times you may even know that you are behind but convince yourself that you will be able to scare your opponent into folding – despite there being no evidence that they are unsure of their hand.
In short, you could end up risking a lot of money and losing it all – just because you were ‘on tilt’ (as it is referred to in poker vernacular) and emotional. That is why emotions are any poker player’s worst enemy when they are in the game.