Tilt is a poker term for a state of mental or emotional confusion or frustration in which a player adopts a less than optimal strategy, usually resulting in the player becoming over-aggressive. – Wikipedia

Tilting usually occurs when you get an outcome that you did not want or expect – for instance, losing an all-in with AA, the best pre-flop hand in No-Limit Texas Hold’Em. Statistically, you win that about 80% of the time, so the 20% of times that you do end up losing the hand can become emotionally frustrating.

One of my favorite quotes about tilt comes from Gigabet, an old poster on an old poker forum that I used to frequent:

“Everyone will eventually run worse [have worse luck] than they thought was possible. The difference between a winner and a loser is the latter thinks he doesn’t deserve it.”

Read the full article here.