Building a bankroll

[Smokey98]

What is the best way to build a high bankroll? Say $1000. Should I start out with a small BR like $50 and play the .05/.10 and build that up to a certain level and then go up to .50/1.00 or 1/2? Or should I just throw in $200 and start out in 1/2 or 2/4?

[TimM]

Throw in $200 and start at .50/1.

[Atropos]

Well if you deposit 200$ you should certainly not start in 1/2. You need 300BB at least!! Of course the more you deposit, the faster you can move up, but it seems that you are rather new to poker. That's why you should start with your 50$ at the 0.05/0.10 and get some experience. Work that up to 150$ then go to party and give 0.50/1 a shot if you like. There is some risk but the 0.50/1 players will be weak. Play 0.50/1 until you are at 650, then switch to 1/2 or 25$ Buy-in NL, or 20$ Sit&Go, whatever you like.
This at least is my plan, I started with 60$, built that up to 180$ in the 0.05/0.10 games at stars. Then I got 50$ at party two weaks ago, now I have 320$ at party, 180$ at stars and still on my way up.

[colgin]

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Or should I just throw in $200 and start out in 1/2 or 2/4?

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With $200 I would suggest starting at $.50/1.00 tables at Party Poker and clearing your initial deposit bonus for some extra money. That gives you 200BB which, while still less than the oft-quoted 300BB bankroll rule, is probably sufficient at the very easy microlimit level if you are a winning player. $200 is way too little for $2/4 and you would need to run very well right off the bat for it to be sufficient even at $1/2.

Best of luck.

Colgin

[Smokey98]

When you say, "switch to 1/2 or 25$ Buy-in NL", would that $25 come from my bankroll? Or do I just throw in an additional $25 so my bankroll stays what it is.

[Smokey98]

Also, which of the sites is the best to play at? I've played at stars, party and PP. Which is best?

[Leo Bello]

there is no BEST site. Party has more players, so generally more fish, but also has the worst software in my opinion.
Poker Stars have great software and tough games.
UB I love cause I love the mini-view to multi-tabling.
Paradise Poker is a good site in terms of software and people playing in it. Feel free to choose.

[Smokey98]

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Party has more players, so generally more fish, but also has the worst software in my opinion.

[/ QUOTE ]
Ok I'll open an account with them
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Poker Stars have great software and tough games.

[/ QUOTE ]
Funny that you say that cause I've been playing .50/1 at stars and I've played remarkably good

[matt hooley]

what's the best place to take that start with $50 at the .05/.1 limits?

[moondogg]

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Funny that you say that cause I've been playing .50/1 at stars and I've played remarkably good

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This is a common impression that people get playing tight games like Stars. This is not directed entirely to you, but this is something I have heard many times from people who start at tighter sites like Stars.

In those tight games, you win more pots, your hands hold up more often, people respect your raises, and so on. In these games, it starts to seem like you win the hands you are "supposed" to win. Hell, you can even pull off a bluff every now and then. You get the steady reassurance that you playing well, because pots keep getting pushed to you.

At Party, you will win less hands. There will be more people in the pot, many of whom should not be there, and they will not respect your raises. They will not fold, they will try desperately to draw out on you, they will never fall for a bluff, and they will confuse the hell out of you when they raise with a crappy hand (they actually think it's a good hand). Not only will you win fewer hands, you will lose more hands, which can be frustrating as hell. They seem like hands you were "supposed" to win.

Many people have jumped from Stars to Party, and then they jump right back. They just can't stand losing 5 or 10 hands in a row when they started out with premium hands. They know that, in the end, they "make money from their opponents mistakes", but it's kind of hard to accept when you keep losing. They don't want to wait around for the 1/5 or 1/10 of the time that they sweep a giant pot and make it all back; it seems like it should have happened already, the constant losses are nerve-racking.

In the end, the return to Stars for the reassurance. You win when you are supposed to win. Luck does not become as much of a factor. You get to sweep those tiny pots at a regular interval. It feels good, and it feels like you are getting somewhere. In the end, however, you are losing. You and the rocks are just trading the same money back and forth, coughing up some rake some of the time. Nobody is gambooling it up, letting there ass hang out, having a good time and throwing money around. Nobody wins big, and nobody loses big. Besides being nothing like it, it's like knitting a sweater, nice and safe.

If you can average more money per hour playing against weaker opponents, you are flushing money down the toilet if you don't do it.

Realize that you can not make as much money playing against those tight players. You can make some, but not much.

If you jump to Party, be ready. Expect the losses. You will lose a buyin or two some nights. You will be down 50 or even 100 sometimes. But, you WILL make more money if you are truly a winning player. It might not be as often, but it will definitely be more.

IMHO.

No, I am not a shill for Party. Feel free to replace the word "Party" with the name of any fish-drenched site on the 'net.