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Money Management in
Poker
The bankroll is a poker player’s
life line:
If you want to make a living playing online
poker you have to be able to manage your
money. The first step is to realize that
the money you make in poker should be viewed
as operating capital. The bankroll is the
lifeline of a poker player
and it should not be used for anything other
than playing poker. If you win enough money
at a certain level, you should either pocket
the winnings or move on to higher levels.
Hobby players:
Hobby players have think about how much
they’re willing to risk and then be
prepared to lose. It will be difficult for
a hobby player to win in the long run, but
if you get lucky and play
poker well, you might be able to
build up a decent bankroll from a modest
investment.
Money management tips:
- Always have balance between your motivation
to play and the risk you’re taking.
Never play at levels you can’t afford
to lose, or borrowed money.
- In Limit games your bankroll should be
about 300 times the big bet.
- In No Limit games your bankroll should
be 1,000-2,000 times the big bet.
- If you lose too much at a certain level
you should step down a level or two until
you can afford to play at the higher level
again.
- If the game is good but you’re
losing at the moment, you should keep playing.
That kind of patience will pay off in the
long run.
- If the game is bad but you’re winning
at the moment, you should stop playing.
That kind of discipline will pay off in
the long run.
- Control your temper and emotions. If
you can’t, you should stop playing
right away. Going on “tilt” will
prove very costly.
- Keep a gambling log book in which you
put your winnings, losses, number of hours
played and games you play in. This will
help you keep track of how your game is
actually going.
- You should only play when you feel like
it and when you are mentally prepared.
Hourly earning rate:
A solid Limit Texas
Holdem player in a full-ring game
normally makes about one big bet per hour
(it’s
harder to predict how much you can expect
to win in No Limit games). This means $20
an hour in a $10-$20 game. However, the money
swings in poker are big and statistically
a player like this will have to play for
1,400 hours to be sure of at least breaking
even.
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