x BB downswing is a useless term for describing cold streaks

[Anders_G]

Basically, I think that using the expression "I'm in an x bb downswing" isn't all that informative a statement, especially considered that your swings varies by many factors such as your playing style, your opponents playing style, rake, winrate etc.

Isn't it better to say that "I'm break-even after x hands"? This probably isn't a new idea, but it does take into account the fact that it is much worse to be break even after 30,000 hands than it is to loose 300bb in 10k hands and then win them back in 10k hands.

I realise this is just two aspects of the same problem - even though we are winning players we do have periods when we don't "make" money but I suggest that describing it as an amount of hands (or time, because hands and table-hours are proportional) instead of an amount of BB is more informative.

[poker-penguin]

I think the X BB downswings are more about how much money people have lost rather than how long it's been since they won.

[UATrewqaz]

I think most people use a very simply formula for determining a "downswing"

highest point - current level = downswing

aka my roll was 850 BB at my highest point and it's currently 700, thus I'm in a 150 downswing.


Rather simplistic but I think that's how most people view it.

[Sasnak]

[ QUOTE ]
I think most people use a very simply formula for determining a "downswing"

highest point - current level = downswing

aka my roll was 850 BB at my highest point and it's currently 700, thus I'm in a 150 downswing.


Rather simplistic but I think that's how most people view it.

[/ QUOTE ]

My downswings aren't measured from my "highest point". When I say a XXBB Downswing it's simply a measure from where a continuous losing session began from. There might be a few wins along the way but nothing significant. Just a s-l-o-w s-l-i-d-e.

[Brainwalter]

I don't get it. Say you're break-even after 30k hands if you're actually breaking even, duh. But what should we say when we're losing a couple hundred BB? Breaking even and downswing are two different things.