Teri Savage Blog

Dec 2011

Poker Life like real Life is full of Risks


Over the past two years as I continue to chat with my poker friends at the table I kept hearing about not only bad beats in poker but also bad beats in life. The economy has hit more and more harder and harder. Those players I know that typically would arrive at the poker room with $500 to $1,000 are now only bringing and risking $200 - $400. They are playing tighter and tighter and have the look of fear most of the time on their faces. Their poker faces have turned into sad faces full of stress and unhappiness. It’s a bizarre transformation, however, can’t most odd behaviors be linked to the fear factor?

The stories are very similar. “I’ve been running bad and until this black cloud is lifted I just can’t afford to lose much.” “My husband just got laid off and we don’t know what tomorrow will bring.” “I’m praying for a big night so I can pay my electric bill.” “I’m thinking of quitting this game even though I love it so much and overall has been profitable for me.”

With every decision we make we carry with it some kind of risk. Some are today and some can take years to evolve. The good news is so many will eventually and do reward us.

Our lives must have an abundance of success, joyfulness, and pleasure. To champion life we must take on risks. Haven’t we all chosen a job or career for the first time? Wasn’t that a risk?

What about where we were going to live? It’s always risky not knowing if tomorrow will leave you unable to pay the rent or make the mortgage. Wasn’t it risky to go out on that first date with him or her? When you leave your home everyday and drive down the road is getting where you want to go worth the risk?

And then there’s our guilty pleasures of drinking alcohol and/or smoking cigarettes or cigars.

How many of us have had a relationship go bad and test the waters with several other partners before finding the one that will last an extended amount of time?

Yes, there are millions of examples of risks over a lifetime. The outcome of the risk factor depends on you. How you prepare, how you use your knowledge to your favor, inner fortitude, and determination will make the difference between victory or defeat.

So what defines “Risk in Poker?” The chance of something going wrong. A hazardous challenge.

So what defines “Risk in Life?” The chance of something going wrong. A hazardous challenge.

If poker is a big part of your fulfillment in life I say hang in there and get your real Poker Face back on. Live your Poker Face Life,….it’s worth the risk!

WIN IF YOU CAN, LOSE IF YOU MUST, BUT ALWAYS SURVIVE THE BUST.

Teri “The Trapper” Savage

JUNE 2011

Psyching Up for the WSOP


My friends and family know that I have always had a strong interest in psychology in general. As I get closer to returning to Las Vegas to play at The World Series of Poker I already feel the adrenaline of my future experience. Though I cashed last year I didn’t win. So today I reflected on the psychology of winning that motivates poker players to continue to try and be #1 at tournament events.

There, of course, is the rush – the same rush that athletes get prior to and during a sporting competition. After all we are addicted to the game. Addiction occurs when we continue to lose and then win. The continued desire for the pleasure of the win is why we’re addicted.

I realized recently that it’s the same rush I get often during my work week. I am an Account Executive at the local ABC affiliate in Panama City, Florida. I help businesses with their marketing and advertising objectives on television. Everyday can either be a losing day or a winning day and sometimes I experience both in the same day. But what keeps me motivated while on such a roller coaster of emotions? It’s simple. Losing isn’t bad only how you take it. A lose only means that I need to take another shot at it. When I lose it simply means that everything is not done – I’m not done. If I was done I would hate it because I would be bored. Doesn’t it just feel good to be in the game and have another game to go to? And doesn’t it just feel good to know that if you’re willing to go on with your game you’re growing and not declining which is a form of losing?

For everyone out there who continues to play you are already a winner because winning for us is a way of life and we love it.

Before heading to the Rio this year play to win, give it all you got, and you will be a winner no matter the outcome.

WIN IF YOU CAN, LOSE IF YOU MUST, BUT ALWAYS “Try” TO SURVIVE THE BUST.

NEW POST  March 2011

POKER is a Journey Not a DestinationNEW POST DEC. 2010



With every tournament a poker player enters there are intentions to win.


But we all know that reaching that destination is a difficult climb to the top.


Our success is measured by making those decisions that allow us to last longer by over coming obstacles along the way. Moving forward only happens when we profitably accumulate more chips while being able to out play our opponents. As fate has it, we do not reach our ultimate destination every time. I don’t know of one poker player who has been in the money more often than not.

In the past when my children did not meet their goals I softened the blow with the phrase, “Life is a Journey and Not a Destination.” I explained that in the game of life you will have highs and lows, ups and downs, wins and loses. Pick yourself up, dust yourself off and take a positive attitude on the road to your dreams. You have a long journey ahead of you.

This same philosophy continues to help me move forward after each tournament knock-out year after year. As I take the walk of shame I focus on the accumulated wins in my poker resume and leave with a big ‘ole smile on my face on my “Journey” to the next game.


You can do it too!
WIN IF YOU CAN, LOSE IF YOU MUST, BUT ALWAYS “Try” TO SURVIVE THE BUST.


Event #22 Ladies No-Limit Hold’em Championship


I arrived in Las Vegas for my 2nd attempt at a World Series of Poker Championship early in the week. My husband, parents, and I were actually on a week long vacation to Sin City. Memories of my first fatality flooded my thoughts. I recalled every moment as Vanessa Rousso’s Queen’s devoured my All-In AK suited several years prior. I took my seat in Pavilion Green/189/3 as Linda Johnson came out for the welcome speech. She spoke with confidence and sincerity that seemed to set most of us at ease. Then the first “sign”…call me superstitious. But the empty seat position one at my table was Linda’s. She greeted the table and I saw the look of concern on most of the player’s faces. She actually inspired me and I felt a sense of I do belong here this time. Then a few visits from those that obviously knew her well including TJ Cloutier. As he approached I voiced, “Another Superstar, don’t we feel special.”

I focused on my goal. Was it to Win - No.? To make the Final Table - No. To Cash - oh yeah!

I had gone over the keys to prior successes in my mind to decide my strategy. When I made the final table at my first LIPS Tournament in Biloxi, MS at the IP, (I had been playing less than 7 months at the time), it was all about what the other person had. When I came in 2nd two years in a row at the Emerald Coast Poker Championship at Ebro in the Florida Panhandle it was all about a table image of no fear against the best lady players. When I made another LIPS final table at the Beau Rivage in Biloxi it was about survival. Three keys to success: Focus on Great Reads, No Fear against Any Competition, and the Patience to Wait for the best situations to pull the trigger.

I went into the 2nd day, however, short-stacked with a little over $11,000; should I say severely short. I told myself I had to double-up to cash and to do so I had to make great reads first and foremost. I increased my stack just enough to keep my chips threatening with my all-ins. I moved to my 2nd table watching the hand by hand and barely looking at my cards until we were in the money. (It was hard to throw away those two small pairs I did get). Then it came,.the 2nd sign. When I moved to my 3rd table of the day to take my seat, there she was, Ms. Linda Johnson to my right once again. Even though she had me severely out chipped I was happy for her. I thought about how I would like to get into one of those Poker Academy’s with her as an instructor. Just wished I had her stack.

With that I knew I had two choices: Stay focused on going up the cash ladder or go for it with aggression and hope for luck along the way. I stuck to my plan. Focus, no fear, and patience. To come in no worse than 40th was my final goal for this event.

My last table was filled with what I call heavy hitters. These ladies were super focused and over-the-top confident. And most with super stacks. I needed a no fear pep talk even though I knew the end was near. My mini-goal at this point was to survive this particular table. The eventual winner, Vanessa Hellebuyck of France was across from me and to my left the eventual final table bubble girl, Ronit Chamani of South Africa. The two of them played most of the hands like a heads-up battle. At one point I bet half my stack on pocket threes and when Ronit counter measured with all-in I came very close to stating, “Well, Joe Cada did it so can I.” But I didn’t. My biggest regret and I will forever feel it was a bad bet and bad lay down. I should have gone all-in or mucked it from the get go. Surely the whole table thought, “What a bad decision.” One more table move and my pocket sixes all-in later I lost my last few thousand in chips. So even though being near blinded off is a less than dignified way to go there’s a lot to be said for goals. I made it. I came in exactly 40th. Thanks for the signs Linda. See you next year. I will have a different set of goals – oh yeah.


NEW POST OCT. 2010

Teri’s Tips on Playing Pocket Pairs


We all want them - the wired pairs. It doesn’t matter if you pick up a couple “ducks” or all the way up to Aces. We love to see any of these playable hands. I call them part of my bread n’ butter hands of poker.

What I’d like to share is a few quick segments of my Savage Guidelines for Playing Pocket Pairs that I have found, for the most part, quite successful. You see I have my own formula I use in tournaments. It builds confidence prior to a tournament and helps me get very focused on playing each hand the absolute best I can. Then if I do out I go out with just a bit more dignity.

Low Pocket Pairs 2-2 to 6-6: My first thoughts after “happy to see you” is if I’ll be coming up against a hand like A-K suited. I only have a 1-5 chance to win heads-up with 2s having only a 20% chance of beating the infamous suited A-K. With 2s I always think, “I need to flop trips”.

In a tournament if I’m in late position and there are folds and only one call before me I figure 4-4 to 6-6 to be winners so far and go for it with an all-in when I’m short-stacked. Hey, pocket 5’s are ahead of Ace/Rag by nearly 71%. You know how many players will play Ace/Anything.

Middle Pocket Pairs 7-7 to T-T: I’m pretty confident with these for one basic reason. I’m a 4:1 favorite over any pair below mine. So picking up 9-9 or T-T puts a tiger in my tank and I play pretty aggressively. My caution light and eventually my brakes go on when any of the tight-aggressive players at the table call my raise. When they’re in the hand and even one paint hit’s the flop be very concerned. But again, you can be aggressive when you sense weakness. You’ve got a very good hand.

Premium Pocket Pairs J-J to A-A: Many players have told me that they actually get scared with these monster hands. They have lost huge cash pots as well as knocked out of tournament after tournament with these home-run hitters. I always say, “don’t slow play them”. Why risk a bad beat with an aggressive hot-shot opponent that will chase with hast to the river every time you allow it.

I say you beat yourself up and out too many times to try and trap someone else. However, my most noted caution would be this - don’t get married to pocket Jacks, pocket Queens, or even pocket Kings. Heads-up Preflop A-A has almost an 82% advantage over K-K. Hey, that rarely happens so remember that with K-K you should raise for value and they usually play extremely well against most cards your opponents’ will play. An opponent may raise with Q-J and you get a bit guarded. Keep in mind how often players do raise with a hand like that only for isolation. It’s a smart and common play. You’re K-K is super dominant here.

WIN IF YOU CAN, LOSE IF YOU MUST, BUT ALWAYS SURVIVE THE BUST.

Teri “The Trapper” Savage

 
OLD POST AUG 2010
Who Really has the Emotional Advantage at the Poker Table?


We’ve heard it all our lives, “Girls are more emotional than boys.” Is this a bad or good thing?

One of my last visits where I play live poker I felt an overwhelming contradiction to this myth. I was the only female at this $1/$2 NLH table. I started catching playable hands in position and won a few nice pots. But it didn’t stop there. I continued to take out two of the guys shortly after that. I found myself in one more battle heads-up faced with some aggressive betting as two eights were on the board. He bet big to get me off my hand but I called all the way. Why? I wasn’t proud of my kicker but my instincts told me he was weak. When my 9 kicker beat his 6 kicker as we both showed 8’s in our hands he exploded yelling to the floor, “This girl needs to be banned!”

Here’s a psychological fact: Aggression is a form of energy that will continue to exist until its goal is reached, an ultimate end-result must occur. Following the theory that all things are matter and matter cannot be destroyed but rather only transferred; the aggressive behavior will continue to gain momentum until it finds a way to be released.

The night continued with every man trying to take me out with some trash talk along the way. But their fears and disgusts coupled with their overly aggressive plays worked against them. I had one of my best cash sessions for 2010. Their tilt became my advantage over and over again.

As poker players we know that there’s a lot of emotional stuff going on while we play. We’ve all read about the importance of identifying “tells” to be successful at the tables. Emotional responses such as heavy breathing or shaky hands alert us to a strong hand. Or a chest that stops moving after a bet has been made is likely a reaction to the fear of getting called. Continue to observe as good players are in tuned to these tells.

Here’s some positive news for the ladies. According to a new study published in the journal Neuropsychologia an article in Science Daily headlines, Women Outperform Men When Identifying Emotions. Why? The study demonstrated that women are better than men at processing auditory, visual and audiovisual emotions.

While females are usually considered the more emotional gender, believe it or not infant boys are more emotionally reactive and expressive than infant girls, researchers have found. Interestingly, adult men have slightly stronger reactions too - but only before they are aware of their feelings, found a study published in the Scandinavian Journal of Psychology that closely monitored facial expressions. In men once the emotion reaches consciousness, then and only then do men adopt a poker face.

Evolutionary psychologists have suggested that females, because of their role as primary caretakers, are wired to quickly and accurately detect distress in infants or threatening signals from other adults to enhance their chances of survival.

WIN IF YOU CAN, LOSE IF YOU MUST, BUT ALWAYS SURVIVE THE BUST.

Teri “The Trapper” Savage