♠️🧠 Mental Game Monday: The Myth of "My Turn"

Your mind is your edge - sharpen it here

Author

Mike Deckard
May 12, 2025

♠️🧠 Mental Game Monday: The Myth of “My Turn”

🧩 Narrative Buster

“It’s my turn to win.”

❌ That thought has cost players more money than bad beats ever have.

❌ The Problem with Entitlement

You get dealt A♠️K♠️ after a long cold stretch. Or you flop top pair after hours of folding garbage.

Finally — a real hand. You’ve watched others scoop pot after pot with hands like these.

So you stop thinking and start planning how much to bet, not if to bet.

This mindset hijacks your priorities. Suddenly:

  • ❌ “What’s my opponent’s range?” gets ignored.

  • ❌ “Where am I in my range?” doesn’t even cross your mind.

The result? You punt, and blame it on bad luck.

✅ A Better Mental Framework

The only time you're entitled to win is when you have the stone-cold nuts on the river.

Everything else? You’re just navigating probability and risk.

Strong hands don’t entitle you to a pot — they offer an opportunity to make good decisions. That’s it.

♠️ Real-World Example

$1/$3 No-Limit Hold’em — $500 effective


You’re dealt A♠️K♠️ in the Cutoff. You raise to $15. The Button calls.

Flop: K♦️ 9♣️ 6♥️ ($30)
You c-bet $20. Button calls.


Turn: T♥️ ($70)
You bet $50. Button raises to $150.

If your thought is, “I finally have a hand, I’m not folding,”
…you’ve already lost the plot.

Instead, ask:

  • 🧭 What hands does villain raise the turn with?

  • 📊 Where does A♠️K♠️ fall in my range here?

  • 🧱 Would I ever fold this hand if I didn’t feel snakebit?

Letting go of entitlement means being willing to fold strong hands when logic tells you to.

Does your range even want to bet this turn?

🎯 Mental Cue of the Week

Cue: Would I still play this hand this way if I had just won the last three pots?

This question cuts straight through tilt, fear, and ego.

🧪 Mental Drill or Check-In

Drill:

After your next session, pull up two hands where you made top pair or better and lost.

For each one, answer:

1. What was my mental state before the hand started?

2. Did I skip any key questions? (i.e. “What’s their range?” “Where am I in my range?”)

3. Was I focused on decision-making — or just on winning?

This reflection will help you spot entitlement (or lack of process) before it burns another buy-in.

Have a mindset leak or mental trap you’d like to see covered in a future Mental Game Monday?
Hit reply — I’d love to hear it.

Stay sharp and curious,

— Mike

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