Poker On The Mind

Welcome to Episode 58! MTT Coach Gareth James and Peak Performance Strategist Dr. Tricia Cardner open the show by celebrating the fact that Gareth just shipped the $55 Clasico on Party for almost $5k! In addition, he also made the final table of a Monster Series event on Party. He also was a guest on an episode of The Chip Race Podcast where he talked about an interesting hand he played recently. After a bit more catching up, where the ...

They’re back with Episode 57! MTT Coach Gareth James and Peak Performance Strategist Dr. Tricia Cardner open the show by celebrating the fact that their new book Purposeful Practice for Poker is done and turned into the publisher!!You can preorder Purposeful Practice for Poker at D&B Poker (https://www.dandbpoker.com/book/purposeful-practice-for-poker) or from Amazon (https://www.amazon.com/Purposeful-Practice-Poker-Approach-Studying/dp/1912862042)Tricia then turned the conversation to a question from John about dealing with making mistakes due to feeling pressure. She and Gareth discussed where pressure comes from and how ...

In Episode 56, MTT Coach Gareth James and Peak Performance Strategist Dr. Tricia talk about the proper play with KTs and a 9bb stack at the end of day1 in a multiday tournament. Jamie wanted to know if his shove was correct or if he should min-raise and fold to a shove so as to ensure he makes it to day 2. Tricia then turned the conversation to dealing with new year’s goals and resolutions and explained the myriad of ...

In Episode 55, MTT Coach Gareth James and Peak Performance Strategist Dr. Tricia discussed the reasons why our stack size can lead us to play sub-optimally. There is a certain psychology behind either having heaps of chips or not very many. In both spots, we may take unwise risks and not play each hand to the best of our ability. Then, they answered a question about how to overcome variance when you play live. Specific tips were given regarding considering ...

In Episode 54, MTT Coach Gareth James and Peak Performance Strategist Dr. Tricia discussed a few tips on how to put poker study into practice. Specifically, we looked at how to understand what is “normal” in poker and how it is hard to tell how well you are playing when you have small sample sizes. The key is to invest in a process and to be process oriented instead of outcome driven. Then we turned our attention to a question ...

In Episode 53, MTT Coach Gareth James and Peak Performance Strategist Dr. Tricia discussed a hand history that was sent in by one of Gareth’s students as well as several psychological topics including: temptation bundling, seasonal affective disorder and sleep hygiene. The hand history review featured a nasty spot where hero gets to the river with middle set and gets jammed on by the cut-off. We analyzed the various the bluff hands and value hands that villain can have in ...

In Episode 52, MTT Coach Gareth James and Peak Performance Strategist Dr. Tricia chatted about Gareth’s recent trip to King’s Casino Rozvadov for WSOP Europe where he spent his time commentating both NLHE & PLO!Then, Tricia answered a query regarding how to stop procrastinating and get started studying in order to move up in stakes.She explained:• Why clarity is a key ingredient• How to go small in order to get results• How to use commitment devices to ensure better performance• ...

In the 51st Episode, MTT Coach Gareth James and Peak Performance Strategist Dr. Tricia discussed the biggest pot that Gareth played at the recent Party Poker Millions Event. The hand includes his response to a 3 bet pre-flop, his decision making on the flop, turn, and river and a discussion of factors that can encourage (or discourage) an all-in river bet.Then, Tricia turned the attention to EQ (emotional intelligence) which Matt Berkey brought up at some length in Episode 50. ...

To celebrate reaching their 50th, MTT Coach Gareth James and Peak Performance Strategist Dr. Tricia interviewed Super High Roller Matt Berkey! He spent almost 2 hours answering listener questions. This is is Part 2/2.Topics covered included:•How far Berkey gets out of line•How ranges change when there's a straddle•What Berkey thinks of Doug Polk's strategy•Understanding and accepting variance•And much, much moreAs a reminder, Gareth has also started a new youtube channel specifically for chronicling both his poker adventures & behind the ...

To celebrate reaching their 50th episode, MTT Coach Gareth James and Peak Performance Strategist Dr. Tricia interviewed Super High Roller Matt Berkey! He spent almost 2 hours answering listener questions. Topics covered included:• How to improve your MTT game• Why the mental game is so critical to poker performance• Variance• The importance of emotional intelligence• How to deal with tilt• How to play your A-game more often• And, much moreBecause Matt gave such thorough and thought-provoking answers, this episode will ...

In Episode 49, MTT Coach Gareth James and Peak Performance Engineer Dr. Tricia talk about several topics including:•The best ways to study for an upcoming live MTT with only limited time•Why pre-flop range construction is so important•Not having a min-cash mindset•The importance of volume•The recent cyber-attacks on PokerStarsThen, they devoted the majority of the episode to talking about a listener question on pulling the trigger on certain plays and why that can be so challenging. Fear of failure, perfectionism, and ...

In Episode 48, MTT Coach Gareth James and Peak Performance Engineer Dr. Tricia Cardner are back to discuss Gareth’s recent poker trip to Romania for the Unibet Open. They covered a couple of hand histories as well as some of the psychological components that go into playing live tournaments with opponents of varying skill levels. Then, they addressed listener question related to the frustration when playing with lesser skilled players. Yes, it can feel frustrating when they, “don’t respect your ...

MTT Coach Gareth James and Peak Performance Engineer Dr. Tricia Cardner are back to answering listener questions in Episode 47 after starting out the episode by talking about the book they are working on that will teach readers how to develop their poker expertise more easily and efficiently. The plan is to have the book available during next summer’s WSOP, so stay tuned!Then, they addressed two listener questions; one on how to make sure you keep your mental fortitude at ...

MTT Coach Gareth James and Peak Performance Consultant Dr. Tricia Cardner spend Episode 46 reviewing their respective trips to the 2018 WSOP. Gareth had many adventures including hot air ballooning, golfing, and he even got paddled! Both Tricia and Gareth got in plenty of poker and various hands and situations were discussed. We covered a variety of events including the WSOP Tag Team, the WSOP Monster Stack, PH 6-max and the Wynn Classic. We chatted about some plays we saw ...

MTT Coach Gareth James and Peak Performance Consultant Dr. Tricia Cardner spend Episode 45 talking about all things Vegas and WSOP. Tricia has just arrived in Vegas and is setting up shop in preparation for a poker marathon. Gareth is following behind in just a couple of weeks and he, too, is planning and strategizing!We also tackled a twitter question from Sandra who asked about setting up daily habits in order to enhance performance at the table. Tricia discussed the ...

MTT Coach Gareth James and Peak Performance Consultant Dr. Tricia Cardner spend Episode 44 discussing Gareth’s recent runs in SCOOP (and other assorted online poker festivals) while he was in residence at a grind house with a few other players. They also discussed the recent Super High Roll Bowl where Daniel Negreanu started out with a strong focus, even as Doug Polk attempted to troll him (and Gareth explained the backstory of the feud which led to said trolling). Sadly, ...

MTT Coach Gareth James and Peak Performance Consultant Dr. Tricia Cardner spend Episode 43 live podcasting as Gareth plays a Powerfest event as well as the $55 Daily Marathon. We discuss several hands and the various lines that Gareth plays in real time. In addition, Tricia received a question from “Doug” regarding how to stop blowing up after playing well for 1-2 hours. Tricia explained how distractions are the main cause of lost focus. There are 2 types of distractions: ...

MTT Coach Gareth James and Peak Performance Consultant Dr. Tricia Cardner devote Episode 42 to discussing how to keep yourself focused and centered so that you can play more effectively. This is especially important if you find yourself getting nervous or anxious before you play. Before we dove into our main topic, we discussed the various online events that are coming up (SCOOP, Power Fest. etc.) and Gareth shared that he is getting a grind house for SCOOP! We will ...

MTT Coach Gareth James and Peak Performance Consultant Dr. Tricia Cardner devote Episode 41 to discussing a recent slight ICM mistake that Gareth made as well as a deep run that he posted up in the Big $55. Gareth took us through some ICM calculations in a spot where 3 players are left and the two short stacks are close in size to each other and the deep stack has an overwhelming percentage of the chips. It turns out that ...

MTT Coach Gareth James and Peak Performance Consultant Dr. Tricia Cardner devote Episode 40 to Tricia and Gareth discussing the roller-coaster tide that is poker. We discussed how the swings of the game can play tricks on your mind and Tricia gave several tips for keeping a positive mindset. With the summer coming up quickly and many of you going to the WSOP and other summer festivals, it is crucial that you not put yourself in a positon to have ...