stop loss??

i know that a big part of poker is letting your wins go big and cutting you losses short, but i was wondering where is a good point to cut losses, is it a mutliple of bb? or a percentage of your br? sometimes it's frustrating to go below the stop loss because of a particularly bad beat and i was wondering if it's better to quit anyway, or to buy in and keep playing because you know you're playing great...

Atlas

[stone_7]

I think the most important thing is not how much money but the conditions under which you are playing. The most important thing is that you are good enough to play in the given game. I would gladly play in a game where I was the best player in the game well after losing 100 or more bb. That being said after losing 100 bb in a single game I personally am most likely no longer the best player in the game because I am TILTED. Therefore I personnally set a limit of 50 bb per table as long as the game is good. I have no problems getting up and leaving even (especially) if I am up and the game is not good. Try to think in terms of the quality of the game and not on results.

[Zetack]

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i know that a big part of poker is letting your wins go big and cutting you losses short, but i was wondering where is a good point to cut losses, is it a mutliple of bb? or a percentage of your br? sometimes it's frustrating to go below the stop loss because of a particularly bad beat and i was wondering if it's better to quit anyway, or to buy in and keep playing because you know you're playing great...

Atlas

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You're going to get a lot of replies to the effect that stop losses are dumb. And they are to a point. But losing big tends to affect ones play in a negative way. A lot of players are probably in denial about this.

If the game is good and you are playing well then losing is no reason to stop. Its all one big session after all. But if your game starts to deteriorate when you're losing big, then stopping is a very good thing to do. A stop loss can be a good proxy for this. Often times its only after that you recognize that your play started to slip when you got down. If you know that tends to happen at a certain level of loss then it may be a good idea to set a stop loss at that point.

I know that somewhere around 40 BB's down I start to get frustrated. Does that mean I stop? No, but I do start to monitor my play very closely and think about why I'm making calls and bets to try and catch slippage in my play.

--Zetack

edit: I've also moved to having a certain number of hands played goal for my sessions. Since I'm going to play until I hit that number (and maybe longer if the games are really good when I get there) I find that it helps to alieviate the I'm down big pressure, since I'm not paying attention to my results, just my hands played.

thanks, that's a big help. case in point was last night, i suffered some really bad beats, the kind that makes you want to throw a hissy fit like hellmuth, and i had to stop because of my own rules. Looking back, and especially after what you guys have said, i should have taken a short break and cooled off and hit it again. I was playing really well and was fresh and ready to play. instead i just stopped and played again this morning. didn't make all of it back yet, but hopefully will soon. thanks again
Atlas

[UATrewqaz]

The results of previous hands should have no bearing at all on your future hands. If hte table is good stay.


THAT having been said, IF your game degrades due to your past results then you SHOULD stop and get your head straight.

This is true for any reason, at any point in time if your game is bad you should stop playing, no matter what the cause.

Obviously the best solution is to never let your game go bad.

I agree with the previous poster. As long as you are still playing your game, then everything should be fine and you will eventually bust the players continually outdrawing you because that can't happen for ever.

[QuickLearner]

I don't believe in stop-loss or stop-win. However, if my results at a particular table make me look like a target to my opponents, I'll leave that table regardless of how well I feel I'm playing. I resist the urge to get my money back from the one or two players who are holding it; perhaps it's how I keep it from getting personal.

[Zetack]

[ QUOTE ]
I don't believe in stop-loss or stop-win. However, if my results at a particular table make me look like a target to my opponents, I'll leave that table regardless of how well I feel I'm playing. I resist the urge to get my money back from the one or two players who are holding it; perhaps it's how I keep it from getting personal.

[/ QUOTE ]

I wouldn't leave because of that, if players are trying to bully me I can really take advantage if I catch a real hand and may be able to play back hard with marginal holdings as well.

--Zetack

[chesspain]

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i was wondering if it's better to quit anyway, or to buy in and keep playing because you know you're playing great...


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Why would you quit a good game if you know you're playing great?

[hockey1]

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i know that a big part of poker is letting your wins go big and cutting you losses short,

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Ummmm, no.