Hello everyone. I have been reading topics on here for several months and respect a lot of your opinions. There seems to be a wide range of players and strategies. The one thing that seems consistant is Bankroll management. Im 33 years old and have been playing poker since It was legal to enter the B&Ms at 18. That is to say I have been playing badly for 15 years. Not losing mind you just bad Bankroll management. Bieng married with kids my only means to support my love of the game was to take the occasional "extra" $200 up to the local casinos and play $4-8. I would have good nights and bad and feel confident that I am even for my lifetime. I have played in 34 B&M tournaments and have cashed in 9 of them. Buy ins were $25 or less. On to my question. I realize I can't manage a bankroll continuing to play the way I have in the past and have decided to enter the online play. I have played on pokerstars (free) the last several months and enjoy their interface the best. I have tried Paradise, Partypoker. The next time I have that "extra" $200 I will make a deposit on to pokerstars and start following a set bankroll management program. Only moving up or down when My bankroll permits it. I plan to start at a .50/1. Is this correct using a 300bb structure? And what bankroll should I have to move up to 1/2? Also at what point do you move down? I think these questions will help me understand some of the Bankroll management areas I was confused about. If you have any other suggestions I would appreciate it. If you know of any links discussing bankroll management I would like that as well...Thank-you all for the time and good luck in your future play.

Honestly, if you're just starting online play or just starting limit (either one) I'd reccommend you start with 400 BB. My reasoning is that it takes a huge adjustment to not being able to read your players anymore.

Also, don't move up in limits until you double what you started with.

Thanks for the response. Does 400bb mean $400 for a .50/1 or $200?

$400

BB refers to big bet, not big blind. So in a .50/1.00 game 400BB is $400.

And there's nothing wrong with playing below your bankroll for the 1st few weeks.


Keep stats. I have my starting bankroll and up/down $ for each session to the penny along with stakes and time of day and day of the week. I think that's important.

If you're serious about on line play then I recommend Pokertracker. It does not help so much with bankroll management but will help you in a lot of other areas, which will help you manage your bankroll.

Also, if your going to try to keep a 400BB bankroll you can move up whnever the math works out. If you want t o play 3/6 you'll need 2400.

Lasly, when and if you do move up a level or 2, do not be afraid to move back down if things are going bad. If for any reason you are psychologically uncomforrtable at a level ($$ bet feels like a lot, more aggressive players, etc.) you will not be able to play your best. Move back to a lower limit where your confident and comfortable.

my .02

$4-8 is the highest I have ever played at a b&m so I am sure I will be ok when I get to that level. The thought of someday being able to afford a seat at a 10-20 or 20-40 is what gets me excited. I hope this bankroll thing works for me.....as always thanks for th .02.

Here is a question, At our casinos they only play KILL on thier limit games. Is this true about online games?

I've yet to see a kill game online, but I'm sure there are a few
Mostly not though

UltimateBet offers some Kill games.

One thing to consider is that the skill level at a particular limit is often not comparable between online and B&M. In a casino, the lowest limits offered, depending on where you live, is usually in the neighborhood of $2/$4 or $3/$6, so very often your "bad" players and new players will play there. Online, those same bad/new players can play much smaller limits so the skill level at $3/$6, for example, may be a lot better online than live. Not to say that there aren't bad players at all limits, but in some instances you might find $3/$6 or $4/$8 online comparable to $5/$10 or $10/$20 live.

Just some more things to consider. Best of luck to you in your endeavor.