Poker Bankroll Management
Poker bankroll management is a key skill for any online poker player. Correctly managing your online poker bankroll will ensure that you maximize your potential for profits at the same time as minimizing your risk of going broke. While poker bankroll management may seem a little dull compared to learning new moves like the check-raise bluff, spending just a few minutes understanding the fundamentals is critical to your online poker success.
There are a few different aspects of poker bankroll management that will be covered here. Firstly an example of why this is required. Secondly some suggested bankroll levels for various types of poker games. Thirdly, how to use poker bankroll management as an indicator of when to move up levels.
The main reason that poker bankroll management is critical to your success is that there is a large element of chance involved in poker. Any winning poker player needs to be able to push an edge, even when this is relatively small. For example there are many situations where you are approximately 60% favorite to win a hand. In order to make a profit at the end of the week or month you should be happy to take these situations – they are what generate your profits over time.
Now imagine that your bankroll is limited, you have (for example) only 2 buy-ins for the cash game you are playing. Taking 60-40 chances here has the potential to completely wipe out your poker bankroll. By playing while under-bankrolled you have changed a profitable situation into one which carries a high risk of ruin!
Experienced poker players make sure that they are in a position to take any profitable situation which arises by practicing good poker bankroll management. This involves making sure that you only play with a small percentage of your overall bankroll at any one table. You are thus in a position to take profitable opportunities which involve risk and not be adversely affected by the times that you lose.
Suggested bankroll levels depend on which game you are playing and, to a lesser extent, the number of tables which you play at the same time. Here are some basic guidelines:
- Cash Games: 15 to 20 times the amount you buy-in for on any one table.
- Sit and Goes: 20 to 30 Times your buy-in level, more for 4+ tables at once
- Poker Tournaments: 30 to 50 Times your buy-in level
The reason that poker tournaments have higher bankroll criteria is that the variance of these games is higher. Though you may make the money a good percentage of the time the amount of games required compared to final-table appearances is actually fairly low. Having a solid bankroll will enable you to focus on making the big-money payouts rather than just playing to get into the money.
Finally the poker bankroll management levels should help give you an indication as to when to move up buy-in levels. For example if you are playing no-limit Holdem with 20 buy-ins for the $25 level you can set a target of moving to $50 no-limit games once you reach the required 20 buy-ins. This can further boost your profits by adding an extra incentive to your current game.
Conversely the same numbers provide an indicator of when to move down levels, for example after a bad run of cards. If you no longer have the required bankroll you are risking going broke – moving back down a level to rebuild can put you in a better position to maintain long-term poker profits.
To summarize, poker bankroll management can appear a little mundane compared to other poker skills. However, if you plan to make a long-term poker profit it is a critical aspect of your success. Ensure that you are in the best position to take money from the table by maintaining a good number of buy-ins for the games in which you play.