Poker Dictionary
Saturday, February 15, 2025
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Threshold of Pain

  1. Noun

    The point after a player has lost a significant amount of chips or money at which that player loses sense of their value and begins to make reckless wagers; the point at which running bad or playing poorly sends a player on tilt or at which a player becomes numb to additional loss.

    ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: An inability to recognize one's threshold of pain or a pattern of surpassing it may be an indicator of problem gambling, and at the very least indicates a difficulty maintaining the discipline necessary to succeed in the game.

    EXAMPLE: "There were a few sessions that I lost much more than I understood at the time, but I always maintained some discipline by only bringing what I could afford to lose with me to the cardroom. When I began to realize how my betting was impacted by losses, I was really able to play much better. The hardest part for me in learning poker was getting to know my threshold of pain and building the discipline to stop playing before I reached that point."

    APPLIES TO: Online and Land-based Venues




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