Bankroll Management

One of the biggest mistakes I see over and over, whether it be from a beginner or an experienced player, is not knowing how to properly manage their bankroll. I cannot tell you how many times I have seen someone go bust either because they are playing limits to high for the amount of money they have, or they move up in limits before they are ready, so they can make more money. Both of these "strategies" are a receipe for disaster.

Let's look a little closer at the first example. Although poker is a game of skill, even the best of players are going to have a run of bad cards. You are not going to win every hand you play. You need to make sure that your bankroll can handle the ups and downs that is a part of the game.

Let's say you sit down at a table of $1/$2 Hold'Em with your entire bankroll of $50. That's 25 big bets. If you have an off night or run into a string of bad cards, bye bye bankroll. You have no chance. You are going to be so worried about losing your money, that you will go into defensive mode and not play your "A" game. Once again, bye bye bankroll.

So what is the proper bankroll size for your limit? This question is debated often, but I find that the 300 big bet rule works best. So if you are playing $1/$2 your bankroll should be $600, at $2/$4 it should be $1200, etc. If you apply this rule to a limit you can beat, you will have years of poker in front of you. Conversely, if you can lose 300 big bets, you might want to consider moving down a couple of limits.

Which coincidentally brings me to my next topic, playing over your head. When you are consistently beating a certain limit it's real easy to say "well if I can make this much playing $1/$2, I can make THIS much playing $10/$20". But remember you can also lose THAT much! Not to mention the competition is alot better up there.

Now I am not saying to never move up in limits, especially if you are beating one consistently. Just do it smart. Use the same 300 big bet rule we talked about earlier and you can't go wrong. If you started at $1/$2 with a $600 bankroll, move up to $2/$4 when you turn it into $1200. Then move up to $3/$6 when you make it $1800. You get my point. Be smart and play on that initial bankroll for years to come.

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