Moving Too Slowly?

[Dave H.]

I started holdem online in mid August with $2 donated by the site I play on (Paradise). I read HEFAP and SSH and am nearly done with TOP. From mid August through mid September, I experimented a lot, taking myself up to about $13, and then down to 88 cents on the .02/.04 tables. I was about to give up, but then I really started applying what I had learned from SSH, playing extremely tightly for a couple of weeks until I got back to about $5. Then, I loosened up and followed the charts and started applying pot odds, etc. and right now I'm sitting at about $38. I play about 3 hours a day. I figure I've played "correctly" (as correctly as a begginer can) for about 180 hours and have made about $37, which is about 5 big bets an hour. My downswings have not been significant, except for one time, where I dropped about 75 big bets before it turned back up.

Question: Based on this small amount of playing time, any opinions on whether I should move up to .05/.10 (or higher)? I tend to move very slowly and persistently. Am I being too cautious?

[AngryCola]

The limits between where you are at and .5/1 play just about the same, believe it or not. It depends on the site you play at, but not to a great degree. So long as you have 300 BBs, you can play higher.

If you have about $37, then I suggest playing at the .05/.10 limit, until you reach $60. Move up to .10/.20 at that point. Pacific has the limits you are looking for.

Good luck building your roll, and make sure to start taking advantage of bonus deals, which can help build a small roll much more quickly than playing alone. /images/graemlins/spade.gif

[CNoyes]

Clarification question:
By BBs do you mean big blinds, or big bets?

[AngryCola]

Big bets, as this player was referring to a limit game. /images/graemlins/smile.gif

[slavic]

Nice job, yes it's time to move up to the nickel/dime game. It takes a while but building a bankroll is the best way to learn poker. If you want to see others who have done it before you do a search under the user "bernie". He started on a .01/.02 game at UB. This year he's banking 100K+.

[Reef]

building a bankroll (http://forumserver.twoplustwo.com/showthreaded.php?Cat=&Board=inet&Number=1060198&fp art=&PHPSESSID=)

[scott1]

Move on up.

As stated above. The difference in play should be almost nothing. Set an amount at which you'll move back down if you hit it - maybe $20 or $25 dollars. But I doubt that will happen.

[Dave H.]

Hey Reef, thanks a bunch! Had no idea!

[Dave H.]

I did the search. He has a mountain of posts. I couldn't locate the one you were speaking about, apparently. Rats!

[stigmata]

I would argue that you are good enought for Party 0.5/1 easily. Give up the silly limits. Invest $100 dollars if you can afford it, do some bonus whoring, start building a decent bankroll.

You are wasting your time at those limits.

[AngryCola]

[ QUOTE ]
I would argue that you are good enought for Party 0.5/1 easily.

[/ QUOTE ]

No need to argue. /images/graemlins/grin.gif I would say he is easily ready for that limit as well. I'm not sure if you meant $100 and bonus it up to $300, however. If thats what you meant, that's cool.

If not, $100 isn't nearly enough. /images/graemlins/spade.gif

[Mangatang]

I second Cola's recomendation for Pacific. It has .05/.10, .10/.20, .25/.50, and .5/1, which allows you to move up the limits as you progress.

The plan I followed to build my bankroll was to move up limits at 300 big bets of the next level, and if ever I fell to 200 big bets, I would move back down a level until I recuporated the 300 big bets of the next level again. This will make sure that always have plenty of cushion.

Here is a trend of my bankroll on Pacific as I worked my way up the micro-limits about 1 1/2 years ago.

http://www.kingscascade.com/Poker_Log.jpg

You can see more details about my bankroll building plan under "Mangatang's step-by-step" plan on my site.

Just remember that building a bankroll from scratch is slow, but it's not your goal to make a profit at the micros. Your goal should be to build a bankroll while you're gaining experience and practice.

By the way, the 3 circled areas on the trend are times when my bankroll took a 80+ big bet down swing. So, you're 75 bb down swing is pretty normal. Just be prepared to stay disciplined and patient through those times.

Good luck.

[AngryCola]

I usually don't post short little blurbs like this, but-

Good work Mangatang, very nice. /images/graemlins/smile.gif

[RED_RAIN]

JetSetPoker doesn't rake it's limit games till at $5 pot and only then $0.25. I've looked and it looks very good.