Bankroll Management

When playing online poker for real money your bankroll management is absolutely critical. Far too many players go broke unnecessarily due to poor bankroll management. Even the best players in the world lose games of online poker. It is foolish to think that you can win every game that you play and is also impossible. Due to the fact that there is an element of chance to poker with regards to the drawing of random cards your wins will come in streaks, maybe five or six cash finishes in a row but just as you wins come in streaks so do your losses. This is why it is critical that you manage your bankroll correctly.

Many online poker players make the fatal mistake of upping their stakes when they lose in an attempt to recoup their previously losses. This will end in one result every time which is you going broke. However if you manage your bankroll correctly you can survive long losing streaks and come out the other side a winning poker player again. Correct online poker bankroll management cannot make you a better poker player but even the best poker players go broke through poor bankroll management so it is a necessary skill required to succeed playing online poker at all levels.

Bankroll Management for Cash Tables

When buying into online poker cash tables there are two simple but very effective rules to follow. Never buy-in to a cash table for more than 5% of your bankroll and leave the table if you have over 10% of your entire bankroll in play at that table.

Bankroll Management for Sit n Go's and Tournaments:

When buying into single table sit n go's online you must never stake more than 5% of your bankroll in doing so. When buying into multi-table sit n go’s or tournaments you must never buy-in for more than 2% of your bankroll.

Here's an example of how good bankroll management practices will help you to avoid going broke. Say your bankroll is a little over $200 and you usually play $6 + $0.60 9 player single table sit n go’s but you hit a big losing streak, which does happen to the best poker players in the world then you would only have 30 buy-ins before you went broke but if you use good bank roll management once your bankroll dropped to $132 you would have to move down in stakes, maybe $5 + $0.50? If you continued to lose even further you would have to drop stakes again but this will do two things. First it will give you more time to get out of your losing streak but secondly it will have you playing against weaker opposition, further assisting you to start winning again. Once you have started to increase your bankroll you can start upping your stakes again but you must ensure that you follow the guidelines for buy-ins. It’s equally important for winning poker players to observe these rules too.

If you follow these rules you will be able to have much more confidence when playing online poker knowing that you can afford to lose the tournament without going broke. Put them into practice and see how these bankroll management techniques help your game.