Ten Basics for Building and Protecting Your Bankroll
Any player entering the competitive world of poker needs to decide a few things before starting regular play. One of the most important parts of your over all poker strategy is bankroll management. Learning to pace and protect your money early on will benefit you greatly later. The way you play your money is a personal choice, but good money management can be achieved simply and without cramping your style.
First. You must determine your end goal. Why and what are you playing for? Is it more about ranking or is it purely for money? Do you want to become a professional, or are you just playing for entertainment?
Second. You must devise a strategy for meeting your goal. At this stage you are determining the size of your initial bankroll, which will depend largely on how big you want to get into the game. Obviously high stakes play is going to require a greater initial investment than low stakes play.
Third. Open a new bank account to be used only for playing poker. This helps you to track what you spend and what you make. It also helps to view your earnings and your losses as a separate income.
Fourth. Your bank account is your bankroll. Don’t borrow from it for anything else, and always play with your bankroll in mind. Your bankroll should increase to meet your goals.
Fifth. Determine how your earnings will be divided in advance. What percentage goes into the bankroll, and what percentage are you taking as a profit to place in your personal account? Again, keep your goals in mind; if you want to play higher stakes then a larger percentage of your initial profits should go toward building your bankroll.
Sixth. Stay organized. Record all of your wins and losses, deposits and withdraws as if you were balancing your checkbook. This will show you how successful you have been thus far at moving toward your goals.
Seventh. Give yourself a budget and stick to it. It sounds rudimentary and many players find it limiting, but it’s easy to get excited and lose more than you planned. You will never do that if you determine what to bring to the table in advance and leave when it’s gone. It also makes figuring winnings easier if you know exactly what you started with.
Eighth. This is really just the second part of the last step. As you improve and get closer to your goal, you may want to increase your limits. You may also choose to divide your money differently at this point; once your bankroll is built up, you can take more of the profits for non-poker use.
Ninth. Update and upgrade your goals as you reach them, and likewise devise new strategies to keep you on track.
Tenth. Now that you have developed your strategy, it is time to put it to the test. It is important that you use self-restraint when playing. Many players get loose when they are both up and down, but you should play each hand with the same level of focus and consideration, regardless of your position at the table. Never stray from your bankroll strategy, and you’ll never lose your bankroll.
