Are Small Bankrolls Even Worth It??

[invulse]

Good post gutte, I just started looking into pokertracker a few days ago and tried it out. I had no idea people actually had all of these programs running at once to track opponents and get stats on everyone, so im going to try using it some more this week. I think the multitabling is what games me with online games. I usually only like to play 1 table at a time, but I get bored and start playing bad after awhile, so lately I've been trying to 2 and 3 table it, but its going to take some time to get used to.

[Troy92]

Bankroll management is the most important skill to have as a gambler. It can be frustratingly slow "grinding" at lower limits. But it is important to move up (and down) with a reasonable plan. Now is the time to establish the discipline.

It is easy to throw money at poker from your savings account, credit cards or borrowing. Those that do that are just setting themselves up for a likely financial disaster. Many can excel in the short run, but lack of discipline eventually leads to their downfall.

I'm not saying that you can't take risks. Just make sure that they are calculated risks. Take shots only with buy-ins that you can afford to lose and make sure to quickly drop down and continue to grind if they don't succeed.

[AlanBostick]

[ QUOTE ]
Bankroll management is the most important skill to have as a gambler.

[/ QUOTE ]

All the bankroll management skills in the world won't help you if you don't have a skill that is even more fundamental for gamblers: recognizing an overlay.

[kazana]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
Bankroll management is the most important skill to have as a gambler.

[/ QUOTE ]

All the bankroll management skills in the world won't help you if you don't have a skill that is even more fundamental for gamblers: recognizing an overlay.

[/ QUOTE ]
I think I get what you're pointing at. Taking out a loan for poker is no big deal if you can pay it back by disposable money. But if you're a losing player there's no overlay, you're just paying more to learn the game.

You need to be sure you're a winning player first and know your winrate fairly well to be able to figure out if there is an overlay.

Can't do that with 2k hands under your belt. Gotta grind away first. And this is where bankroll management has you in it's clutch again.

[BJK]

[ QUOTE ]
The main reason most bankroll requirements are so high is because of the possibility of an extended downswing.

[/ QUOTE ]

I have to disagree with this a great deal. The main reason most bankroll requirements are so high is because bankroll management is the most difficult aspect of being a gambler of any sort to master. When I talk with beginners who are learning bankroll management, I intentionally set my guidelines high. I have seen tons of very good poker players bust off of their bankrolls. Some quit. Some started from scratch. Most of the players who have started from scratch continue to make the same mistakes over and over.

[ QUOTE ]
It's probably over the top to take out a loan so you can play poker, but you definitely don't need as much as you would if you couldn't replace your poker money. I only need about 120BB to play a level in limit cash because if I hit a fluke downswing it's not a big deal for me to get it back through temporarily moving down + bolstering my bankroll with what little disposable income I have. Technically you could play with as little as 25BB if you single-table and don't mind being taken out of commission until "next paycheck".

[/ QUOTE ]

The goal for me is for my poker playing to be self sufficient. When I made my last online deposit into Neteller almost two years ago, I promised myself that my poker playing, no matter how much it actually profitted me long term, would never drain my paycheck again.

If my bankroll isn't sufficient to play a particular game, I won't play no matter how much money I have sitting in the bank.

The way I look at it, the people who have to consistantly withdraw money from their bank or who have to wait until payday to play are contributors...not winners.

[BenA]

[ QUOTE ]
if you can't borrow though, you simply need to exert some discipline and grind your way up.

[/ QUOTE ]

[Xhad]

[ QUOTE ]
I have to disagree with this a great deal. The main reason most bankroll requirements are so high is because bankroll management is the most difficult aspect of being a gambler of any sort to master.

[/ QUOTE ]

There are a lot of fallacies in your post, but this is the most glaring; bankroll management is only necessary to begin with because of the existence of large downswings. If the occasional 100BB downswing wasn't routine even for winning players, there would be no reason for people to keep 300 or 500 or even 1000BB bankrolls like the highest stakes players do.

[Bubble Bully]

why not get a job and save enough money to play the limits that you want???

I honestly dont believe that grinding at the micros will help your game in the long run...