sport psychology

robinlacey · 31-05-2007 7:37am #1

i was wondering does anyone know much about the field of sport psychology?

i was thinking of going to see a sport psychologist to see if s/he could help me with my concentration while playing poker.

i feel at this stage while obviously there's always room for improvement in my game,if i could just improve my concentration so that i was better at applying what i already know it would improve my game hugely.

i was hoping that maybe someone here might have played sport at a high level and would be able to recommend someone,or if anyone knows anything about this sort of thing they might be able to suggest how i would go about finding out more.

bops · 31-05-2007 8:16am

Try Dr Aidan Moran in the UCD Psychology Dept.

I know that in the past he has helped the Irish Olympic Team & Ken Doherty (I think the year he won the World Title!)

He's a very nice fella too, that's who I'd try and see if I was you

If you do see him/anyone let us know how you get on

bops · 31-05-2007 8:19am

Prof. Aidan Moran now - it's been a while!

brianmc · 31-05-2007 8:29am

I've often wondered about this myself but I don't play seriously enough to warrant it. I also reckon that some sort of meditation or hypnotherapy could prove useful - particularly to internet players.

robinlacey · 31-05-2007 8:31am

cheers bobs,sounds like he could be the man for the job alright.

robinlacey · 31-05-2007 8:33am

is he a practising psychologist do you know?
looks like's more involved in the research side of things...

bops · 31-05-2007 8:43am

He would be a senior lecturer in UCD - specializing is cognitive psych.

I don't know how accessable he is (he used to be very laid back) but since he's worked with Ken etc in the past, I definately give his office a bell and see.

Trust me though, he's the man for the job! It may be hard getting a hold of him but definately worth the effort

bops · 31-05-2007 8:47am

pm sent

TrueDub · 31-05-2007 9:08am

bops wrote:

Try Dr Aidan Moran in the UCD Psychology Dept.

I know that in the past he has helped the Irish Olympic Team & Ken Doherty (I think the year he won the World Title!)

He's a very nice fella too, that's who I'd try and see if I was you

If you do see him/anyone let us know how you get on

I attended a presentation of his at the annual Cricket Umpires' conference. He's an excellent speaker and was extremely helpful to us, despite the fact that he knew practically nothing about cricket. He gave several general points about concentration and achieving excellence that would be just as relevant to poker as to cricket.

BarrierReef · 31-05-2007 10:14am

I would be very interested in hearing how you get on with this. I have thought about it before in the past also. I would imagine that a session(s) with a UCD prof would not be cheap, perhaps it may be possible to have a group session ?

I did come accross a practicing hypnotherporist who though she could help with concentration and disipline techniques, I haven't tried yet but it is in the back of my mind.

Daithio · 31-05-2007 10:31am

Andy Black sees a sports psychologist AFAIK and he swears by him. I think he's the same guy that Ken Doherty uses so could be this Aidan Moran bloke. It's not cheap though, a couple of hundred an hour I think.

BigCityBanker · 31-05-2007 10:41am

Daithio wrote:

It's not cheap though, a couple of hundred an hour I think.

A continuation bet for Robin.

ocallagh · 31-05-2007 11:15am

maybe we could persuade him to do a talk or seminar in UCD or something? we all give 50 or something

Bandana boy · 31-05-2007 11:37am

ocallagh wrote:

maybe we could persuade him to do a talk or seminar in UCD or something? we all give 50 or something

i would be up for that

Now to go find a standard psychologist to deal with all my other issues

BigCityBanker · 31-05-2007 11:40am

Bandana boy wrote:

i would be up for that

Now to go find a standard psychologist to deal with all my other issues

Where are you gonna find a psychologist that can look a your PT stats and tell you about all the leaks in your game? There psychologists not statisticians!!

LuckyLloyd · 31-05-2007 11:47am

This post has been deleted.

RoundTower · 31-05-2007 11:57am

ocallagh wrote:

maybe we could persuade him to do a talk or seminar in UCD or something? we all give 50 or something

tbh I don't think you would get nearly as much from this. Sitting down and talking to him is going to be way better than a prepared lecture followed by Q&A; if you are considering the latter it's probably better just to find a good book.

Daithio · 31-05-2007 12:02pm

RoundTower wrote:

tbh I don't think you would get nearly as much from this. Sitting down and talking to him is going to be way better than a prepared lecture followed by Q&A; if you are considering the latter it's probably better just to find a good book.

Yeah I'd imagine a really good one would need to find out quite a bit about you personally and focus on the individual quite alot. A group seminar wouldn't work nearly as well.

robinlacey · 31-05-2007 1:24pm

i just rang the guy bops recommended,he seemed very helpful but unfortunately was too busy with college related stuff to take on anyone new.

he said to email him and he'll recommend some people to me,sounds good.

that's interesting about andy black,does anyone here know him well enough to put me in contact with him,i'd be curious to ask him how he finds it,who the guy is,that sort of thing...

valor · 31-05-2007 1:35pm

this is a really good idea.

Brayruit · 31-05-2007 1:54pm

I would also be interested.

I heard him speak a few years ago about learning in general and found him interesting.

It might be worth putting to Aidan (or whoever he recommends contacting as an alternative) that a group of poker players of mixed experience and ability might present the opportunity to carry out some useful academic research. For example a PhD student might be interested in providing access to different types of coaching to different groups (and nothing to a control group) and then measuring outcomes. The reason this might be of interest to cognitive psychologists is that (a) poker players are incentivised to take part in an activity that may improve their play / enjoyment / income and (b) outcomes are readily measurable in real terms.

CelticPhantom · 31-05-2007 3:10pm

robinlacey wrote:

i was wondering does anyone know much about the field of sport psychology?

i was thinking of going to see a sport psychologist to see if s/he could help me with my concentration while playing poker.

Hi all,

Didn't Stephen Collins get Tony Quinn for this sort of stuff before he beat Chris Eubanks for the world title? It seemed to psych out Eubanks.

As long as he doesn't make me do yoga :eek: I don't mind;)

Bandana boy · 31-05-2007 3:36pm

BigCityBanker wrote:

Where are you gonna find a psychologist that can look a your PT stats and tell you about all the leaks in your game? There psychologists not statisticians!!

I was thinking of the second psychologist more for dealing with my other 20 vices my fear of winged insects and mayo women and my irrational hatred of belgian cyclists :eek:

Xander82 · 20-11-2008 3:08pm

You guys still looking for a Sport Psychologist?

SpencerJames · 20-11-2008 5:24pm

just saw this thread.

Sports Psychology is the area I'm currently studying in UCD.

I have gone to sports psychologists in the past. I have worked with Dr. Bob Rotella at times. If there is anything I can help you with or advise you on please PM me.

You might find my blog I wrote of interest. Its very brief and not too detailed but its poker based and I could talk in more detail bout it if you like.

DeadMoney · 20-11-2008 7:23pm

A good friend of mine used to play very competative golf when he was in school and was on the junior Irish team. The coach of the team would have him sent to a sports psychologist quite often to build his mind set. I had a discussion with him before about this and he said that this is a huge part of a pro golfer's training. If you look at the example of Tiger woods who can consistantly perform to the absolute best of his ability under such high pressure, it makes a lot of sense. Apparantely Andy Black meditates for a few hours before sitting down to play a live event. He's definietly a player who has a tendency to blow up on occasion but clearly works very hard on preventing this. 'The poker mindset' by Matthew Hilger, and Ian Taylor is supposed to be a really good book to read on the subject. However, a personal sports psychologist would prob be hugely benefitial to your game. Let us know how it went if you decide to see one.

H8GHOTI · 20-11-2008 11:33pm

Anyone read that Poker Mindset book?
http://www.amazon.com/reader/0974150231?%5Fencoding=UTF8&ref%5F=sib%5Faps%5Fsup&qid=1227222752&page=random

Any good?

shoutman · 20-11-2008 11:40pm

If memory serves me correctly didn't Valor go to a sports psychologist for a short while?

GKidd · 20-11-2008 11:59pm

I went to one for a while in London. Was pretty cheap at £60 per session.
The way I look at it, its like spending money on a good poker book or training site.

I used to Uber-Monkey-Tilt when things didn't go my way and was intimidated by mouthy players.I used to have the attention span of a goldfish and didn't pick up on table dynamics. I still don't but now I'm aware of it!

If all else fails try Ratilin.
This has the added bonus of causing insomnia

DeadMoney · 21-11-2008 12:36am

H8GHOTI wrote: »

Anyone read that Poker Mindset book?
http://www.amazon.com/reader/0974150231?%5Fencoding=UTF8&ref%5F=sib%5Faps%5Fsup&qid=1227222752&page=random

Any good?

Its supposed to be very good. I've been meaning to order a copy. It's published by the same guy's that put out Pearljammer, apestyles and Rizen's tournament book. Another excellent read btw.

semibluff · 21-11-2008 12:26pm

this is something that id also be very interested in for a number of points - is there anyone in particular who is a stand out in their field? and are there any who can relate directly to poker, or can any competent lecturer relate it to poker with a little background?

The C Kid · 21-11-2008 12:30pm

semibluff wrote: »

this is something that id also be very interested in for a number of points - is there anyone in particular who is a stand out in their field? and are there any who can relate directly to poker, or can any competent lecturer relate it to poker with a little background?

Well for one of your points, Stox did this about a year ago. Got some pretty good responses from a number of people.

Might watch his video later.

http://forumserver.twoplustwo.com/101/coaching-advice/mental-game-coaching-trained-professional-186797/

semibluff · 21-11-2008 12:34pm

yeh, as did CR afaik. Def something that would show alot of value from a monthly sign up compared to how much a personal viewing would cost (obv not as beneficial as seeing them yourself)

hotspur · 22-11-2008 12:52am

The C Kid wrote: »

Well for one of your points, Stox did this about a year ago. Got some pretty good responses from a number of people.
Might watch his video later.
http://forumserver.twoplustwo.com/101/coaching-advice/mental-game-coaching-trained-professional-186797/

Are Jared Tendler's videos any good does anyone know? He seems like a nice guy and understands psychology, but I felt he didn't really understand the true nature of tilt when himself, myself, and Malmuth were debating it some time ago because he hadn't really played much poker.

carrigeen · 22-11-2008 1:17am

robinlacey wrote: »

i just rang the guy bops recommended,he seemed very helpful but unfortunately was too busy with college related stuff to take on anyone new.

he said to email him and he'll recommend some people to me,sounds good.

that's interesting about andy black,does anyone here know him well enough to put me in contact with him,i'd be curious to ask him how he finds it,who the guy is,that sort of thing...

robin

donal macaonaghasa is a good buddy of andys i dont have his mobile on my phone for some reason if i see him him during the week ill get it and pm it on , if not hes td in cork next w/e if your playing

p

a147pro · 22-11-2008 8:35pm

DeadMoney wrote: »

It's published by the same guy's that put out Pearljammer, apestyles and Rizen's tournament book. Another excellent read btw.

whats that one called?

a147pro · 22-11-2008 8:38pm

CelticPhantom wrote: »

Didn't Stephen Collins get Tony Quinn for this sort of stuff before he beat Chris Eubanks for the world title? It seemed to psych out Eubanks.

As long as he doesn't make me do yoga :eek: I don't mind;)

nah he'd just make you give him 14 grand and go to Egypt or something

DeadMoney · 23-11-2008 1:39pm

a147pro wrote: »

whats that one called?

Its called Winning Poker Tournaments, One hand at a time Vol.1 You can only buy it online as far as I know. Its a very good read and takes the same structure as the Harrington books. Lots of hand histories from online tounaments. However, the content in the book is pretty much the same as their videos on pokerxfactor. If you are a subscriber, you won't really get much more out of the book as they are just addressing the same concepts they talk about in the videos.

sport psychology

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