Bankroll strategy
One strategy that might seem obvious but is often overlooked is "Money Management" or what we call "Bankroll". It’s strongly advisable that you set personal limits as to how much cash you are prepared to put down before you start playing a game. Deciding before the game, rather than during play, will give you a clearer idea of how much you can afford to lose and when to quit playing.
Following are two suggestions on how much to invest in a game.
- Should you be playing "just for fun", then you shouldn't invest any more than you are prepared to lose. If $100 is what you are prepared to loose, throw it in and enjoy the game. There's a fair chance that you'll end up with more money than what you have started playing with, maybe even a lot more than the original $100 you started with. Should things not go to plan, know when to quit playing and call it a day. To continue play after reaching your limit will only spoil your fun!
- On the other hand, if you are out there playing poker because you want to make money, well, that is a different league. You should at least be able to finance about 200 big bets at the limit you play. So if you're at a $2-$4 table, you should have $800 to invest in the game ($4 big bet x 200). If it's a $5-$10 table, your target range should be $2,000, etc. Keeping this in mind, should prevent you from betting too much in one round.
Betting 200 big bets are moderate whereas other experts or websites might claim that 200 big bets is too low. Do not invest more, than you have decided hold off until you've had several successes at the lower limit first. A more cautious attitude is less likely to lead to regrets later!
