Does it ever feel
like some guys have
an advantage on you
no matter what you
do? Sometimes it's
true.
That
may sound blunt.
And it might even
sound discouraging.
The funny thing is
though, it's not
always for the
reasons you may
think. Many times,
players put
themselves at a
mental
disadvantage. It's
tough enough that
you have to outplay
your opponents as it
is. Don't make
things harder on
yourself.
The Game
Before The Game
It may sound silly,
but you need to do
whatever you can to
make yourself feel
more comfortable
coming into a
match. You need to
be ready to play.
You need to be
distracted by as few
things as possible.
Mistakes are what
make or break
games. So, put your
mind at ease, to
lessen the number of
mistakes you make.
Some people have
been known to bring
good luck charms to
the table. It may
help them get better
draws. It might
just take up space.
But, if you makes
you feel
comfortable, that's
all that matters.
It's very unlikely
that these trinkets
possess any real
power. I mean, I
guess they could if
you went to some
witch doctor or
something. However,
I, nor most players,
would know where to
find one.
There are a ton of
other things that
you can do to get
your mind right
though. The first
is know your deck
better. If you play
a lot of games with
a deck, you will at
least be familiar
with the potential
sequences of cards
runs that can
happen. You will be
aware of what all is
in the deck. And in
general, you will
have a feel for
what's going on come
game time. That's
very important to
winning. It takes
some of the thinking
out of the process.
There's a point
where it becomes
more feeling than
thought.
OK, So He's
Won a Lot of
Tournaments
Yeah, it can be
tough sitting across
from a guy that has
a strong
reputation. They
don't get those
reputations be
losing a bunch of
games. If they did,
you wouldn't fear
them, right? Face
facts. If you enter
a tournament,
there's a good
chance that will
have to play a solid
player.
Most tournaments are
run using Swiss
format pairings.
This is all fine and
good. However, it
does mean that if
you are winning, you
will face other
players that have
been winning. If
the good players win
a lot, logic
dictates that you
will be playing some
of those players.
Don't let it stop
you. Just roll with
it. It's going to
happen, be prepared
for it.
It's easy for
players to get
recognition these
days. I remember
entering a
tournament a while
back where I ended
up sitting across
from the player that
created the deck I
was choosing to
play. It was a
little odd.
Fortunately, I'd
updated the deck and
made some changes.
But I knew it was
still going to be
tough.
Players can use
recognition to their
advantage. It
rattles their
opponents. I know
of one player that
would make it a
point to high five
and chit chat with
some other big names
right before a match
with an "unknown"
player. Then I
realized that this
pro was using his
rep to his
advantage. He was
trying to show his
opponent the crowd
that he ran with.
It was an
interesting
strategy. And I'm
sure that many
times, it worked.
However, you can use
it against them as
well. With all the
coverage of events
that are out there,
you can get a lot of
information. When
coverage is up, read
beyond what deck
someone played.
Look at how their
games are paced
out. Get a feel for
what type of decks
each player likes to
play. Make note of
how they reacted
when things went bad
during a match.
There's a lot of
information to be
had.
Don't Think
to Hard
There is a lot to be
said for instinct.
Is your instinct
going to be wrong
sometimes? Sure it
will. Don't worry
about that. If you
get a feel for
something, sometimes
you may need to
follow that
feeling. And over
time you'll get a
feel for what's
right and what's
wrong. At first,
it's going to be
tough to figure out.
I'm not sure what
percentage you
readers out there
have played sports.
But in sports,
there's a term
that's often
referred to called
"The Zone." The best
place to be is in
the zone. When
you're in the zone,
you can do no
wrong. A good
example is Kobe
Bryant's 81 point
game. No matter how
well they had him
covered, he was
still going to make
the shot.
Everything was going
in. And Kobe rolled
with it.
Sometimes, during a
game, you have to
keep yourself from
over thinking a
play. It's already
hard enough to get
the pace of the game
and momentum onto
your side. Don't
throw it right
back to the
opponent. I
recently caught
myself making this
mistake. I was
rolling right along
at 5-1 in the
tournament. I was
making every right
choice. I was
making several great
plays. But as I
starting getting
through my seventh
round, I caught
myself thinking a
lot. I'd played
probably a fifty or
sixty games with my
deck. I knew what
the best plays were
already. I don't
know if it was
fatigue or what.
But after that
match, I took note
of the situation and
shook it off to
recover nicely
through the day.
The problem is that
some players love to
over think. Over
thinking is general
caused by fear. But
it's fear of the
unwarranted,
unsubstantiated, or
the irrelevant that
causes problems. I
often question my
local players on why
they made a
particular play and
they don't even
realized that the
cards they were
worried about would
have been pointless
anyway. Other times
they are just
speculating on the
worst case scenario
and that can keep
them from making the
only play that can
lead to a game win.
Really, the thing to
remember is that
everyone is one
equal footing
entering a
tournament. Yeah,
some guys have more
skill. Yeah, some
have better testing
partners. Yeah,
some have a long
list of
credentials. Yeah,
some will hold a
string of
consecutive wins
over you. But, at
the start of the
next event, everyone
shares the same
record: 0 wins - 0
losses.
You need to keep
that in mind.
You've got a chance
to win a lot of the
tournaments that you
enter. But you have
to be aware of your
own mistakes and
shortcomings. But,
don't give up before
you start. The
mental aspect of
gaming gets
overlooked a lot.
The mental side of
things goes way
beyond simple
intelligence. Just
don't let it get to
you. Relax. Keep
things under
control. Don't
think yourself out
of a game.
Once you've
prepared, the hard
part is out of the
way. It's then time
to win the games.
That's going to take
a little luck and a
little thought.
Just try not to make
it too much thought.
Until next time,
DeQuan Watson
a.k.a. PowrDragn
PowrDragn at Pojo
dot com
