Could really use some advice . . .

Ok I need help, hopefully from a veteran poker player that makes a CONSISTENT buck.

I'm having trouble getting by financially. I do usually win, just not consistently. I track all my poker finances w/ Excel, and I'm up slightly since i started keeping track, but on a familiar downswing currently. The problem is that I can't handle the swings and bad beats. I dont have the money.

Also, I genuinely think the competition at 1-2 NL is terrible and will call anything so betting on the come just doesn't work for me. I also find myself getting reraised on my draws a lot. Could I be that easy to read? Am I just not intimidating? Can people see through my small bankroll and scare me out of pots? These problems are hurting me financially and as of now I am just waiting for my break it feels, and slowly giving away my money to bad beats.

I am a senior Math Major specializing in statistics and probability. (Looking to become an Actuary after graduation). I love poker and genuinely wish it to be my profession someday, but I dont want to be a "gambler", I want to use my math skills and reading skills and make a decent living from them and not at a desk as an actuary. Basically I dont want to give up, though I feel I should because of financial reasons associated w/ the luck. I'm at a threshold and want to know if anyone else has ever been here?

Has anyone been here, kept pushin on and in the end came out on top??? Thanks alot guys.

This is my first post here, I've been reading for weeks and love the site.

[blackize]

No offense, but I get the feeling that you just aren't a very good player. Maybe you are overly timid because the money is meaningful and your opponents can pick up on that. One of the biggest things about poker is you must play at limits you are comfortable with.

Frankly if you can't afford to play, you shouldn't be playing. If it is that you arent comfortable playing those limits and you can afford it, move down in limits and move up gradually.

[Jorge10]

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Also, I genuinely think the competition at 1-2 NL is terrible and will call anything so betting on the come just doesn't work for me.

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That the first problem I see with this post, first of all if you cant afford to play poker why are you not playing at the lowest level? The lowest level has 25 cent blinds. No matter how terrible you think the 1-2 players are you obviously cant beat them. There is no shame in that, took me a while before I could beat the 25 cent tables believe it or not.

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The problem is that I can't handle the swings and bad beats. I dont have the money.


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If you cant afford it then create a bankroll by beating the 25 cent tables consistently.

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Has anyone been here, kept pushin on and in the end came out on top???

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I did, but I tried the 100 level and got crushed so I went down to the 25 level again before finally consistently beating the 100 level.


A lot of players let their ego get the best of them, seems to me that this is exactly what is happening to you. You dont have any money, but you refuse to play the lowest limits? After reading that, do you realize how insane that sounds? You should go to the lowest limits and consistently beat them and work your way up, you cant start at the 1-2 because you see them make bad plays and you think they suck. I see certain 1000 and 2000 pot limit players make terrible plays, but I dont have the bankroll for those games so I dont play them.

[Wally Weeks]

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I love poker and genuinely wish it to be my profession someday, but I dont want to be a "gambler", I want to use my math skills and reading skills and make a decent living from them and not at a desk as an actuary.

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Don't take offense by this response, I'm just trying to be honest.

What do you think you are doing when you are playing poker? Are you not gambling? Do you think that you deserve to win simply by jumping through the standard poker learning hoops (e.g. studing/reading, experience, etc.)?

This type of "I don't want to be a gambler" attitude does not make a good poker personality. Sure, I come from a college educated analytical background (i.e. math, computer science, etc.), but there's more to playing poker for a living than simply the math and reading skills...albeit reading skills are clearly important.

Poker would be a helluva lot easier if we could just concentrate on developing a couple of skills.

If you don't have any gamble in you, you will be afraid to take some potentially profitable risks. It might be best to consider it a good hobby or second job until you prove to yourself that can fully sustain yourself on poker earnings.

Wally

The best advice I can give is to play at limits you can easily afford. You should be playing to slowly build a bankrole, not risking too large a percentage of your bankrole on one game. At tables where players will call down with anything but raise infrequently, you should raise with your biggest hands all the time, call with more hands then normal, and bet aggressively when the flop hits you. As you win, don't immediately move up. Wait until you have the bankrole to afford it.

For a 1/2 limit game your bankroll should be about $1,000 to account for the swings you will experience at that level. If you don't have that much move to a lower level. I would also suggest if you did have $1,000 that you try a .50/$1 no limit game where the buyin is $100. I find this game very easy to beat. While I am up alot from online play I stay at this level it is a game I am very comfortable with and it allows me to take money out on a regular basis without hurting my bankroll.

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For a 1/2 limit game your bankroll should be about $1,000 to account for the swings you will experience at that level. If you don't have that much move to a lower level. I would also suggest if you did have $1,000 that you try a .50/$1 no limit game where the buyin is $100. I find this game very easy to beat. While I am up alot from online play I stay at this level it is a game I am very comfortable with and it allows me to take money out on a regular basis without hurting my bankroll.

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Do you really think you need a $1000 bankroll for a $1-2 game? That seems awfully high. To put it in perspective, that is enough to cover 42 hands where betting is completely capped out, without winning one.

It would seem to me that if you were to burn through a $1000 bankroll at $1-2, then that might be a sign to study for that Actuary exam!!

If you have never went thru $200 in a 1/2 game then you are not playing aggresively enough to be a long term winning player. If having 5 times as much as you are willing to lose in anyone session assures you are not scared money which in the long term never wins. Better to have a nice bankroll so bad beats which happen alot on low limit games don't affect you.

I don't know that I agree with that.

The fact is that I wouldn't usually budget more than $100 for a 1-2 session - and if I lose all that, then so be it - but I can honestly say that has never happened to me.

My point though, I think, still stands - that if you manage to go through a $1000 bankroll at 1-2, then you should probably get out of the game - because that is not just luck.

Also, the size of your bankroll should never affect your play - if you are "scared money" at any time, then you are toast - and I would argue that such a situation is purely psychological and would exist regardless of the size of your bankroll.

I go by the axiom "never play poker with the rent money" - so if you can't afford a $1000 bankroll, then play with what you have - and if you lose it, then rebuild the bankroll when you can afford to.

To be a good player, I believe that you have to play exactly the same way whether you have a $20 bankroll or a $20,000 bankroll.

I don't think you understand the reason to have a $1,000 bankroll at 1/2 is so you never lose it. I agree if someone lost $1,000 at 1/2 limit they should find something else to do with their money.

I play 1/2 NL with $1,000 bankroll and have had a couple losing sessions in a row and never lost it all. Whenever I get to $2,000 I take $1,000 out. Managing your bankroll is almost as important as being a good player.

As for playing the same if you have $20 or $20,000, that is crazy. You must not understand human nature if you believe that.