Simple Poker Bankroll Management
If there is one thing that most new players really struggle with it is proper poker bankroll management. They get on a hot streak or want to "run it up" and before they know it, they are re-depositing. Now, poker sites love this, but this is no way to become a great poker player. Learning the basics of Hold'em is fairly easy and most players who put in some time to study strategy can beat micro-stakes in a short time. However, most of these same players completely underestimate variance. One horrible session can decimate your bankroll if you are not practicing proper bankroll management.
Since it can be a struggle, I'll try to lay it out as simply as possible. Remember this is just a guide. You may decide you want to be a little more aggressive with your poker bankroll (not recommended) or maybe a little tighter with your roll (good choice). Also, depending on your game choice, full ring versus six-max for instance, and your style of play, you may adjust the rules accordingly.
Cash Game Poker Bankroll Management:
- At stakes up to $10 no-limit you should have a minimum of 20 buy-ins for your level. If you have $50 bankroll, you should be playing $2 NL with 25 buy-ins until you get to $100 in your roll. Then you can move to $5 NL.
- At stakes from $10 NL through $100 NL you should have a minimum of 30 buy-ins. So to start playing at $10 no-limit you should have a $300 bankroll. You can move up to $25 NL at $750, $50 NL at $1,500 and $100 NL at $3,000.
- You should play $100 NL until you get $8,000 in your bankroll. This is 40 buy-ins, which should be sufficient for levels above $200 NL.
- Six-max players should use at least these buy-in rules as a guide. Some would argue this is not enough for six-max games, as they are more "swingy" than full-ring games. Heads-up players should definitely have much more in their roll, possibly even double the rules laid out here.
Sit and Go Poker Bankroll Management
- Sit and Go's are more volatile than cash games in general. 50 buy-ins should be plenty at most buy-in levels. If you start with a $50 bankroll, plan on playing $1 Sit and Go's until you get to $100, then move up to $2 buy-ins and so forth.
Multi-table Tournaments Poker Bankroll Management
- Grinding multi-table tournaments is a hard way to build a bankroll indeed. However, some people love the thrill of the huge field of players and large prizes relative to the buy-in. If you plan to play MTT's, you should have 100 buy-ins for the level you want to play. If you are fortunate enough to land a big score, don't simply jump up to the level that your bankroll supports. Move up slowly to make sure you can beat each level in turn.
Again, this is a guide, you can adjust it according to what you feel comfortable with. The biggest key is to have rules, so that when a downswing comes, and it comes for everyone, you have a plan. Speaking of that, you should move down when necessary.
For example, say you have a $100 bankroll and you play cash games. You would probably be playing $5 NL with a 20 buy-in bankroll. If you have a run of bad cards and lose 5 buy-ins or more, don't be ashamed to move back down and build it back up. There are very, very few people who have never had to move down after trying to move up. The ones who never move down are the ones who are constantly making deposits.
If you follow these rules strictly, you will never go broke and likely never have to make a deposit again!
If there is one thing that most new players really struggle with it is proper poker bankroll management. They get on a hot streak or want to "run it up" and before they know it, they are re-depositing. Now, poker sites love this, but this is no way to become a great poker player. Learning the basics of Hold'em is fairly easy and most players who put in some time to study strategy can beat micro-stakes in a short time. However, most of these same players completely underestimate variance. One horrible session can decimate your bankroll if you are not practicing proper bankroll management.
Since it can be a struggle, I'll try to lay it out as simply as possible. Remember this is just a guide. You may decide you want to be a little more aggressive with your poker bankroll (not recommended) or maybe a little tighter with your roll (good choice). Also, depending on your game choice, full ring versus six-max for instance, and your style of play, you may adjust the rules accordingly.
Cash Game Poker Bankroll Management:
- At stakes up to $10 no-limit you should have a minimum of 20 buy-ins for your level. If you have $50 bankroll, you should be playing $2 NL with 25 buy-ins until you get to $100 in your roll. Then you can move to $5 NL.
- At stakes from $10 NL through $100 NL you should have a minimum of 30 buy-ins. So to start playing at $10 no-limit you should have a $300 bankroll. You can move up to $25 NL at $750, $50 NL at $1,500 and $100 NL at $3,000.
- You should play $100 NL until you get $8,000 in your bankroll. This is 40 buy-ins, which should be sufficient for levels above $200 NL.
- Six-max players should use at least these buy-in rules as a guide. Some would argue this is not enough for six-max games, as they are more "swingy" than full-ring games. Heads-up players should definitely have much more in their roll, possibly even double the rules laid out here.
Sit and Go Poker Bankroll Management
- Sit and Go's are more volatile than cash games in general. 50 buy-ins should be plenty at most buy-in levels. If you start with a $50 bankroll, plan on playing $1 Sit and Go's until you get to $100, then move up to $2 buy-ins and so forth.
Multi-table Tournaments Poker Bankroll Management
- Grinding multi-table tournaments is a hard way to build a bankroll indeed. However, some people love the thrill of the huge field of players and large prizes relative to the buy-in. If you plan to play MTT's, you should have 100 buy-ins for the level you want to play. If you are fortunate enough to land a big score, don't simply jump up to the level that your bankroll supports. Move up slowly to make sure you can beat each level in turn.
Again, this is a guide, you can adjust it according to what you feel comfortable with. The biggest key is to have rules, so that when a downswing comes, and it comes for everyone, you have a plan. Speaking of that, you should move down when necessary.
For example, say you have a $100 bankroll and you play cash games. You would probably be playing $5 NL with a 20 buy-in bankroll. If you have a run of bad cards and lose 5 buy-ins or more, don't be ashamed to move back down and build it back up. There are very, very few people who have never had to move down after trying to move up. The ones who never move down are the ones who are constantly making deposits.
If you follow these rules strictly, you will never go broke and likely never have to make a deposit again!
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