Looks like someone has to start using these new forums 
I consider myself rather succesful playing the smallstakes nonturbo 10seat $5 sitngos (samplesize 1,1k), but I am having a rough time handling the downswings. I've had sessions where I've lost around 20 buyins in a row before cashing, and an overall downswing "length" of 80 sitngos.
I'd like to know what kind of downswings people have experienced, such as length and longest losing streak for the smaller stakes sitngos.
Also, inputs for handling these scenarios mentally are appreciated. I'm not normally going stonecold super-monkeytilt, as I often close down the client as a "stop-loss", but I guess tilting subconsciously is also a fact to be considered. If I suffer from a very bad session where everything goes the wrong way, I usually take a break of 1-2 days.
Downswings are difficult for me to handle, I question myself if I lose like 14/16 games, I avg about 15-20 buyins downswings from time to time at the $6.50 turbos, but I recently moved up to the $12 so the downswings are double the $ I used to lose, which sucks. I usually take a break/review my game after losing a set of tables.
It really sucks to have downswings especially when playing well. To me, its all about BR management. If your bankroll cant handle a 100 bi swing, youre not properly funded to play at your level.
Everything is also compounded but losing, getting sucked out on etc...Your game ends up suffering and leaks start to form. It ends up being a vicious cycle.
I have to stop when I just don't win hands that I should i.e. high blind pre all in with AK just to lose to AQ.
I used to just re-open another table straight away but will now just take a bit of a break. It's frustrating when you've been playing a SNG for ages and bubble.
I used to just re-open another table straight away but will now just take a bit of a break. It's frustrating when you've been playing a SNG for ages and bubble.
Yeah it sucks so much when you're the bubble boy finishing 4th on like 5 tables at the same time.
If you are feeling like u are playing good solid poker, and ahead alot of the times, to just get busted with a river card, thats what to be expected. D ont lower ur level of play because everyone else is either no good, or just learning. Downswing come and go, as long as u play solid poker u will eventually come out of the swing and make the money back u lost
With SNGs you've got to get some volume in. I used to play 2-3 at a time and stop after busting in 5 straight...'taking a break' like a lot of people do. And of course if busting in 10-20 straight puts you on tilt and you're not playing right, then YES, it IS time to take a break. But it will take you a long time to grow your bankroll if you keep 'taking a break'. You've got to increase your volume and play through the variance.
I only have 2 monitors, so I play 8-10 single table turbos at a time. I average 15 per hour, and I like to set a schedule for myself...usually 8pm-1am. I sit down and just keep firing 'em up...bust in one, start another. In 5 hours I usually get in about 75-85 games. Most of the time, after a session like this, I'm usually up, but downswings happen...I'm used to it now. As long as you continually analyze your plays to make sure you're making +EV decisions, the numbers will come around.
I'd like to know what kind of downswings people have experienced, such as length and longest losing streak for the smaller stakes sitngos.
Looking back through my PT stats, it looks like the biggest downswing I've had so far is about 15 buyins. And that was after 111 games in that session. You have to stay in the right frame of mind when things aren't going well. It's almost as if you have to numb yourself to the money. I've kinda trained myself to not look at my balance when I'm firing up new games. And I don't really keep track of how many straight games I've busted in...I just keep grinding. Then when I'm done with my session, I'll take a look and see how I've done.
well ....
my biggest downswing was going from 10,000 to about 2000 in 6 weeks
i can blame maybe 1500 on bad luck , the rest was my BIG FAT EGO who thougt,he
could play 8 109 $ SNG while watching TV and smoking lots of pot :=)
point beeing, always focus on making the right descision, cuz in the end thats all you can really do.
..............unless of course the universe has a grudge against u in wich case you' ll probably wanna get a day job =0
Just went on a huge downswing today trying to grind STTs during the FT SNG madness promotion to get the bonuses, sigh, lost about 23buyins,
Hey Pink..Im OutrageousJuice..been at your tables a few times.. I honestly think this is the worse time to play sngs on FTP. SngMadness literally brings out the madness in some people and they make ridcoulous -ev plays that cost both of you money. Im taking a break till monday. Good luck!!
I just went through a rather large downswing playing super turbos on FT. At one point I about lost my mind because I was losing dominations back to back for days. I found that the only thing that got me out of it was to import everything into sit n go wizard and begin analyzing all the games. I was making relatively few mistakes but found a few leaks to plug. I consulted with a few friends and had them watch to determine if I was doing anything majorly wrong. Then I watched them play for a while and asked a few questions. After seeing that I was basically on the same page as everyone I felt a bit better. The swing continued for a while but gradually everything got back on track. I think the most important thing to do when you start losing is to examine your play and make sure that you are in fact losing due to variance and not leaks in your game. Sit n go wizard is priceless for this, it keeps me sane.
Hey man, thanks, yeah first time actually playing the sng madness , I tend to miss this promotion throughout the year, its filled with regulars definitely a harder game than your usual STT, I'm strictly playing 45 mans now until its over.
do any of u guys actually play thru ur downswing? sometimes i take a day's break or other times i just drink some coffee and fire up another set.
Its tuff to say. If I have a few bad sessions, I usually check my hh's on Wiz and most of the time, it says I played well on key hands. So what I do is fire up another 12 table set and I lose MORE money. DUH!! I'm one of those guys that take a break. There are some people I know who play thru it and have good results. Its all up to the individuals and their personal experiences to deceide what to do when running bad.
I recently had some serous tank sessions. The most important thing I took from it was I had become more hesitant with even decent hands because I'd been spanked so many times even when the odds favored me. A break helped but I had to consciously trust the mathematics of the game when I returned.
My longest downswing ever has been 16 tourneys. I find that if I feel I'm not playing well, it's best to either take those few days off or actually do something else that you have been putting off. Go fix that toilet or mow the grass or whatever, usually if you aren't playing well it is because you are distracted and you should get rid of those distractions.
Changing up the game helps sometimes, too. Play a few games of Omaha or Razz. It might help put your head back right, I know it helps me.
this ROI simulator will give you all the horrors that can come with SNGs
http://rvgsoftware.com/roisimulator.zip
beware.. its scary stuff !!! 
The program doesn't give correct informations..it gives me like 756 % roi...
If you are on a 80 game downswing, it is time to reevaluate your play and look for holes. You can blame bad beats all you want, but at that high of a sample you have leaks in your game everywhere. If you are bubbling quite a bit, then it is time to either tighten up or loosen your play. ABC poker is fine in SNG's until the bubble, especially in a turbo. It's a whole different animal.
I am so not confident with using Sharkscope. Brand new subscriber only a couple weeks. I have been a winning player for over a year and show a modest 10% ROI and 1600.00 profit at $6.oo average buy in and 69 ability ranking (whatever that is supposed to mean). In 2 weeks I have lost 1/3 of my bankroll. I am not playing any different really other than looking at opponent stats on SS and considering what weak or strong players might be doing. I am getting killed at the felt. It's almost as if everyone playing against me is targeting me for their suckout plays. Am I wearing a sign on my head that says fish? I just finished a game with another bubble loss when I flopped second and bottom pair for two pair as the short stack. I shoved and got called with top pair and he outdrew me for yet another loss. Of course winning the hand would have put me in the chip lead. This is the worst downswing I have been on for well over a year.
I can't win even when I walk away and come back in a day or two, it just starts all over again, lost 3 in a row playing solid poker. I emailed the site in anger with the subject line saying "I am getting tired of this shit" and the main message was STOP SETTING UP THE SUCKOUTS...They did not appreciate the email!
I was venting and so is this message but I am almost sorry I bought this service from SS
Sask_hunter - sorry to hear about the downswing...as long as you're getting your chips in as a big favorite the numbers should even out. Sounds like it's just an unfortunate batch of variance. It may or may not make you feel any better, but go take a look at PimpinDonks' last blog entry. He had a 7 day downswing of ($9000)!
I've been dealing with the same suckouts. It's aggravating when it happens, but in the end, we want our opponents to get their money in when we have them dominated. Just keep your head up, your play solid, and fight through the variance.
GL
i pretty much broke even over 1000 sngs which was pretty frustrating when i was ROI'ng 15% through the previous 3500 $22 sngs.
i managed to lose about 1.4k over about 700-800 games which is sick, without a doubt the worst i and im sure the large majority of people have ever run considering my roi was 15% when it started. While its happening you never think its going to turn around, but since that ended last month ive won about 4k my last 1000 games!
hey there
couldnt be bothered to read everyones post but here is my 2 cents.... bacnk roll management is always good while playing these games.. especially when your multi tabling! sometimes one bad set becomes another bad set = 30-40 bi down swing,..... ok but generallly speaking this is like a severve case.... im sure people out there have been hit like that..... i too , should be included in this category... ive play 1kish games and to just break even .... its was like FFFFFF so so many hours a day and i get donked repeatly!!!
anyway.. i think you should take a deep breathe and try not let it phase you .... like 1-25bin swing i feel is really standard,,.... so just to learn to accept it... i did the same time..... now.... 20bi sets dont even make me flinche. causae i know just as i play enough games i will sure to win that back GURANTEED!
wayne
I have been on FTP for about 5 years now. I honestly don't quite understand how you downswing without a cash for 100 SnGs. I have gone maybe 10....but then cash. I am running well now and since March 8th have made about $2500 in 33 and 22 Sngs Turbos 6 handed. I play alot everyday. If I ever felt a run longer than even 6-7 I would take a few days off and just regroup. I play 4 at a time every time I play and play those out till done, then start again. Very rare I don't cash in all 4, and often cash 2. Have cashed in all 4 more than have not cashed in all 4. So, I guess what I am saying is, if you run that long, it isn't considered running bad....I would honestly just have to look at the play. I just have a feeling that you aren't as good as you think you are. Sorry...but see it alot.
Just be honest with yourself. If you are playing for entertainment value then it doesn't matter. If you truely want to make money and you don't cash for that long, got to think you just aren't a good poker player.
manage your bankroll!!! you got to have a stop loss ie if you have a br of $100 and you play $2.50 sng's then set ourself a stop loss of say $50 then move down to the next lowest level if you manage to build up to say $80 then move back up the buy in. i've had not cashing swings of up to 15 but i always have over 100 buy ins in my br just looked at my stats and i've had losing streaks of 10 twice 11 twice 13 once and 15 once, i've played almost 3000 sit and goes
i find after a bad loosing streak comes a good winning streak so hang in there
I find that what gets me out of these downswings is, as you mentioned, a 1-2 day break, then take on some high-level play money sitngos of the same type. You should face a much weaker field in these, and will quickly get your confidence back after a nice win or two.
Consider that at a downswing of 80 tourneys, you are probably not playing as well as you need to play to win at that level, and should try a comeback at the $3 level of the same type for a while once you get back from your play-money experience.
Also, I find that my general level of 'keenness' to play affects downswings. Watch some WPT on Youtube or other tourneys on TV. If you find you have a strong itch to play after watching these, you're probably going to play better.
Hope this helps.
GoLeafs1982