In a live poker room or casino you will see many players indulging their passion for the other casino games like Blackjack or Roulette. As luck plays such a large part in these games it is there you see a large consideration for what makes players lucky. Some players will not play on a certain day or in a certain pit because they believe it is unlucky for them. It can never be proven that any of this is true; the mind has a wonderful way of trying to decipher random acts.

The actual superstitions used by poker players can sometimes be comical. But, as the old saying goes, it does not hurt to try these things. I know of a player who always unties his shoes and reties them tightly as he believes having loose laces is unlucky! Fortunately most superstitions are procedural, like wearing a lucky pair of pants or lucky shirt. You should avoid any superstitions that are unsanitary or unhygienic as this is not only unpleasant for you but unpleasant for those playing around you. Some superstitions are very bizarre.

As the casinos know that superstitions cannot guarantee success and in reality has little effect on their profits other than altering a players state of mind they go to considerable lengths to adhere to customers concerns regarding luck and superstition. The MGM Grand Hotel in Las Vegas underwent a major renovation in 1998 to remove the doorway that was in the design of a Lion’s mouth because the Asian gambling community said that was unlucky in their culture. Rather than risk the players going to a different casino en masse, they redecorated.

At the poker table you may see superstition in action. Some players believe that they have always had good results with pocket eights, so they always play that hand! They may even announce it to the table. This alteration because of a belief in luck leaves them vulnerable if a bad board texture for pocket eights hits and they continue to play their lucky hand. This may work for them or against them but over the long term the hand will perform as it should so it is best to ignore what they say about luck and just play in conjunction with what the situation merits. Each time they win with their lucky hand, this further reinforces their belief in the luck of that hand, often the hand is a lot weaker than 88 too.

If you do have superstitions and this helps you feel in a positive frame of mind for playing poker then I will never criticise you for that. I am a big believer in taking whatever tangible or perceived advantages you can get at the poker table and turning that into profits for yourself. Whatever works for you should be continued but I would draw the line at having every movement or thought dictated by a perceived notion of luck or superstition. You will always take bad beats unfortunately and luck itself is random. All we can do is simply cling on for the ride and hope it works with us more than it works against us.

Perhaps you are a lucky person by nature or you believe bad beats happens far too often to you and you consider yourself to be unlucky most of the time. Either way I will excuse you if you are holding a rabbit’s foot whilst reading this article.

By Malcolm Clarke