Hi, my name is Mark and I’m the owner and one of the writers of Poker Bankroll Blog. The people behind Why Do I play Poker have very kindly given me the opportunity to write a guest post for their site.
Before I start on the main topic for this article, I want to give a short introduction to my blog. My aim for Poker Bankroll Blog is for it to become the best online article database covering topics like poker bankroll management , poker mathematics, poker strategy and much more.
I have 6 years of online poker experience so there are plenty of topics to write about. But as it’s usually the case with hobby blogs, the challenge is to find the necessary time. I’ve realized that I don’t have time to write everything myself, and as a result, I have opened up my blog to fellow poker writers in order to build my article database and get different point of views on the many aspects of poker.
All poker players have bad beat stories to tell. That’s because poker is essentially a game of probabilities (some critics claim it’s a game of luck but that’s because they don’t know better). Even if you’re ahead of your opponent with a pair of kings on a K85 rainbow flop, there’s always the possibility she catches a J and Q on the turn and river for a straight. This element of chance is the source of all variance in poker.
Variance in combination with your poker skills at the tables is what makes your stack swing from hand to hand, and your bankroll vary on a daily, weekly, monthly and yearly basis. If you’re a poker beginner, your bankroll will most likely decrease due to lack of experience, but even poker pros have bad runs. Solid bankroll management is the best weapon against variance and the related risk of ruin.
Obviously you’re much more likely to lose a 100$ bankroll playing two 50$ SNGs compared to playing 2$ tournaments. With solid bankroll management you will always have enough SNG and tournament buyins in your bankroll to outlast bad runs. Most experts recommend a bankroll around 50 SNG or tournament buyins on the level you’re playing to minimize the risk of going broke in the long run. Serious/pro poker player usually have around 100 buyins in their roll. Before making your first deposit, make sure you are aware of the consequences of your bankroll management choice.
If you’re depositing looking for quick thrills and the chance of building a bankroll with lightning speed, by all means go ahead and risk your entire bankroll on one tournament. Just be aware that your chances of success are quite low. If you’re looking to sustain your bankroll over a long period of time then stick to the 50 buyin rule of thumb. However, following this plan means that you will be grinding it out in small buyin tournaments and SNGs for a long time in order to increase your bankroll enough to move up to the next level.
If you’re a poker novice your bankroll will benefit a great deal from learning all the poker rules. I’ve written a series of articles describing everything you’ll need to start playing poker. It might also be of interest to you to join the High Pulse Poker site where they have freerolls to increase your bankroll every 15 minutes.
