This is an old post. For better advice on how to determine your poker bankroll, please see my newer post on how to define your poker bankroll.
Since Full Tilt Poker has seen fit to crash while I was at one of the final two tables of a 350+ person tournament, I thought I would write about my poker bankroll management strategy to keep from killing innocent bystanders.
I’d venture a guess that most poker players know that they should manage their bankrolls, but I’d also guess that few do. Poker players are gamblers at heart. Unfortunately, that works against them in the long run. Sure it’s fun to create your own Step Tournament by moving up in Sit N’ Goes as you win, but it’s not going to make you more money in the long run. If you’re serious about profiting from poker, you need an effective poker bankroll management strategy.
My strategy is no secret. It was pioneered by Chris Ferguson when he did his $10k challenge on Full Tilt Poker. Here it is in all its glory.
My Poker Bankroll Management Strategy
Cash Games and Sit ‘N Goes: Must use 5% of my bankroll or less. Must leave a cash game when the money on the table exceeds 10% of my bankroll.
Multi-Table Tournaments: Must use 2% of my bankroll or less.
There are, of course, other strategies. I hear that Daniel Negreanu is doing his own Ferguson Challenge at Poker Stars and Negreanu’s rules are waaay more relaxed. Negreanu is okay with buying in for up to 1/5th of his bankroll. I like Ferguson’s approach personally – especially since I turn into a major tilt monkey when I’m on a downswing. But if you can stomach the big swings, go ahead and give the Negreanu ‘s system a try and drop me a line if you do. I’d be interested to see how it goes.
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Poker bankroll management may not be the most exciting facet of poker, but it’s necessary if you want to make money. It’s a risk tolerance thing. The more you can stomach, the more you can risk. The point is to have rules to keep you from taking shots at higher limits when you’re not ready (or on tilt). What’s your strategy?
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