Bankroll fluctations

[Songwind]

Everyone makes much of the idea of the 300BB bank roll. Seems reasonable to me.

What I'm wondering is this: at what point do you pack it in and go down a limit? Obviously, it's not under 300BB, or you could never start off with a losing session. So what is it? 150BB? 300BB at the next lower limit?

[IlliniRyRy]

The idea behind having 300BB for a bankroll is that even if you're a winning player (whether you've discovered it yet or not), over the long term you will eventually go through a 300BB downswing just due to bad luck. Your bankroll should be enough to sustain play at that limit when that does happen. You sound like you're not comfortable playing the limit you're playing now. If losing 300BB will affect your lifestyle or will be too emotionally burdensome, then you should move down.

[Songwind]

Actually, this was just a random point of curiosity that occured to me yesterday evening.

I myself have way more than 300BB, since I'm playing $.02/$.04 right now [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]

[Stefan Prodan]

I would personally move down in limits if my bankroll dropped to 150 BB and play for awhile until I got up to 200/250BB again.

[tech]

I am more risk averse than most I guess, but I always try to keep a 500BB bankroll. If I lose half of that (hasn't happened yet, fortunately), I would drop back down.

[Webster]

I don'tthink mocing down and bankroll have anything to do with each other AND I think the 300BB is ludicras.

The ONLY reason ther is a 300B thing is IF you are in a position where you can not put more money into a game.

I'm pretty sure that many people here IF they went ruin - could find $50 to put in and play again.

NOW - as for the question - You move down when you feel you are over matched AND the tricky thing is that you MUST be honest with yourself.

If you are playing and getting beat and no longer feel comfortable with you bank and the limit - MOVE DOWN - do NOT play with scared money.

You might be having a run of bad cards but if your head is not into that size of game, move down for a few hundred hands until you get your confidance back.

Playing poker with out the confidence factor will only get you in trouble and even if you win it will not be as much as you could have. and the thing that MANY people do not realize is that the diference between a winner and a loser is very small.

If you miss 2 BBs an hour in wins or call a couple BBs to many you are, BAM a loser. It's a fine line between winnign and losing and you need every weapon. If you are thinking you are up to high, you are not playing the perfect game.

[GuyOnTilt]

Hey Songwind,

I think the 300 big bet rule of thumb is was too low, and I'm not alone. For aggressive games, you need over 500 to play safely. For tough aggressive games, I'd want to start out with over 600. Fortunately, I keep much more because I just went through a 300 BB downswing a couple weeks ago. [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img] I would drop down in limits if I ever got down to 300 BB's. That being said, for microlimits you can get away with under 300 BB's, since your BR is very easily replenishible.

GoT

[dogmeat]

Finding $50 for micro-micro limits is fine, but the idea of the 300BB was to give a solid, winning player a base to feel comfortable at that was very unlikely to be lost. Even Greg Raymer knew he needed more cash to play in larger games and was willing to take some backers. When you are playing $15/$30 and want to feel comfortable, $9000 is a minimum. However, I agree with GOT and many others that will not play a limit that high without $20,000 or more.

Dogmeat [img]/images/graemlins/spade.gif[/img]

[Blarg]

I think having a short bankroll affects most people's play. That's one reason you see them blowing up sometimes when they get drawn out on instead of just letting it pass by, even though they know better. They NEED that money and/or it HURTS to lose it.

I've often played with a short bankroll too, like many. But I've taken enough gigantic swings that I'm not even comfortable with 300 or 350 BB, truly. Without at least 500 BB, I'm not playing my optimal game.

I'm playing in very loose games now, and a swing of 50 or 100 BB one way or the other in a day is fairly ordinary. You can't divide that into 300 too many times. For people in loose games especially, I think 300 may be way too little. Not only can they go through it, but they can cut deeply into it often enough to really fray their nerves.

[lefty rosen]

Yep that's why you need about 300BB or better just for this reason. I have played online with 100BB and even if the game is a Party monkey game it is still tough when you are stuck 50BB and having to play ultra-tight.......