Manage your Bankroll
Managing your bankroll in poker is a critical part of any player’s success. The goal is to always build your bankroll versus consistently having to add it to for poor decisions or mismanagement of your bankroll by getting carried away with your emotions or moving up to a level that your skill sets are not ready for yet.
So with that in mind we have put together some tips to use to better manage your bankroll and improve on your successes to date. Remember that your bankroll should be large enough to allow for downturns or losing streaks but small enough that you only risk what you can avoid. Ultimately poker is supposed to be fun and therefore if you are risking more than you should you need to take a break from the game and re-evaluate why you are playing.
Play the seriously!
This does not mean become a professional player but when you are playing you need to take the game seriously in order to manage the bankroll you have, increase it and reap the results. If you take the approach that the game is simply for entertainment you will be more inclined to make decisions that are incorrect. The only way to win at poker is to play seriously – that simple! In the end your bankroll will thank you for it.
Chasing down losses
First and foremost this is something that should never be done. If you take this approach you will often make mistakes based on emotions and fail to realize the mistakes that caused you to lose in the first place.
Do not micromanage your bankroll
If you are a player who tends to constantly monitor the balance in their poker account odds are it is due to mistakes you are making at the tables and worrying about the amount you may be spending. Focus on playing and not micromanaging. Invest more time in learning and this will become a non-issue as your build your bankroll into a healthy balance
Play the seriously!
This does not mean become a professional player but when you are playing you need to take the game seriously in order to manage the bankroll you have, increase it and reap the results. If you take the approach that the game is simply for entertainment you will be more inclined to make decisions that are incorrect. The only way to win at poker is to play seriously – that simple! In the end your bankroll will thank you for it.
Understand emotions and how they affect your play
We are all human and unfortunate our emotions can become flaws that will cause us to make errors in judgement based on how we let those emotions dictate the way we play. If you find you are playing with emotion versus logic it is time to call it a night, walk away and come back another day. Maybe get up, make a coffee, take the dog for a walk or anything that will get you away and allow you to clear your head before you return to the tables.
Know when you are on tilt!
When you are on tilt it can be a bankroll buster. Many players fail to understand this and will make the mistake of continuing to play and let their emotions come into the decision making process as they tend to be angry over perceived bad beats or poor decisions they feel other players have made.
When you see a pattern that tells you that you are on tilt you need to recognize it, respect it and stop playing. The best part of online poker is you can always find another game to get in on so taking a break when on tilt is key aspect of proper bankroll management.