Stopping when I'm ahead.

[Jakesta]

Hello folks, this is my first post on the 2+2 forums.

I currently play Stars .25/.50 and have a bankroll of $125. I have been playing this game for about 2 weeks after moving up from 5c/10c, and before that I played .02/.04.

I experience huge fluctuations in my bankroll and first I wonder if this is to be expected. I figure that it is because there are like 6 or 7 people in pots frequently, so better hands(like straights and flushes) are required to survive.

Today, for example, I was down as low as 81.00, and as high as 140.00, and I finished the session up 5 dollars. I just want to make sure that this is normal. I currently 4 or 5-table this limit for a couple hours per day.

Secondly, I find myself stopping when I am up for the day. I know that Sklansky says that it is all one long session, but psychologically I just like the feeling of getting up when I am ahead. I get really sad when I am down for the day because I know I played good poker, and I attribute it to just variance. This Stars .25/.50 is the swingiest game I have ever played in, by far. This could be because I play the SSH tight-aggressive style. Sometimes I go on huge tears and win 15 out of 16 pots, and other times I lose 12 out of 14. Is that just the way it is at the micros?

Thanks for reading this folks.

[Little Fishy]

post this in the micro limit forum... the looser you play the more variance you'll have... a lot of people like quitting ahead, just don't let this turn into chasing losses on a session

[JohnnyHumongous]

That "it's all one big session" is kinda dangerous advice for some people I think. Poker is about psychological advantages and kind of about managing yourself. There's a Phil Ivey quote about how there are many great poker players, but Ivey's the best "gambler", meaning he knows when to play late into the night, and when to quit the table early on. He knows who to play, and when to play them. If quitting when you're ahead makes you feel better I say do it. The happiness you get by logging that 'victory' will keep your attitude towards poker better and more positive. We're not mindless EV-maximizing robots here after all.

Best of luck.

[Jakesta]

Thanks Johnny.

Yeah I just feel better to quit when I am ahead. I don't think that it can do any harm, can it?

[mlagoo]

As long as you aren't stopping playing a very profitable game when you are ahead, simply because you are ahead, it shouldn't hurt very much. The problem comes when you are winning big in a game, whether it is because you are on your "A" game or because it is such a soft game, and you stop simply because you are ahead at the time. But if you are a sort of "meh" table, and that's when it feels right to stop, that's perfectly fine.

[bighomage]

Welcome to the forums.

Ya, these fluctuations are normal, especially if your'e 4 or 5 tabling. If you just moved up to the limit, I might suggest only playing 1 or 2 tables at a time until you're sure you're comfortable, but that's a judgment call that's up to you. As far as stopping when you're ahead, I think that's all right psychologically. I try to end my nights after winning a big pot so I go to bed feeling good about my play. As somebody mentioned before, though, don't quit early if you're up at a very profitable table. As long as you realize that you aren't "due" for a downswing, there's no problem with ending a session because you're ahead.

Two pieces of advice as you head off into the poker wilderness:
1. Spend a lot of time in the microlimit forums. Post hands that confuse you, and respond to hands before looking at replies so you can compare how you would have played the hand to how the experienced players play it.
2. Buy PokerTracker if you haven't already. The $50 you will spend on it is well worth it if you're going to be playing a lot of poker in the future.

[blatz]

I've got to agree with this and take the minority opinion here. Staying at a table as long as you have the advantage is more of a Brick and Mortar mindset.

In todays internet era, with good table selection, you should always be able to find profitable tables. Yesterdy, now, tomorow....no biggie. It is all one big session, and therefore, it will always be there for you, so go with your gut, if you feel good where you're at, then stopping is fine. If for you, the pleasure of winning a little more does not outweigh the feeling you get when you are down at the end of the day, stop when your up, until you get more used to the fluctuations.

I settled down tonight for a decently long session, flukily won a whole lot in 40 something hands....loved the look of 133 BB/100 on pokertracker, and said, 'That there is some pretty numbers, I want to keep them'. The mental boost of quitting then, was worth much more than the money I'd gain (or not) from chugging on for 500 more hands at 2-3 BB/100.

Of course, I seem to have frittered away all the extra time I earned myself, but I'm a fool, thats besides the point.

[bernie]

The quicker you disassociate yourself with results of your session in terms of when to quit the better. Work on setting a time frame to play and play as well as you can during that time. Regardless of results, the object is to play well. Many times you will play spectacular and lose the session. Sometimes you will lose the session big.

b

[GoblinMason (Craig)]

I used to occasionally fall into this mindset as well.

I would highly reccomend reading Inside The Poker Mind by John Feeney. He explains why this makes no sense and will make you stop doing it.

-Craig

[krimson]

Read this article about the stop-while-ahead technique

http://www.twoplustwo.com/magazine/i...blade0505.html