Building my bankroll from $100 to a little over $4,000 has been a lot of fun, but there were frustrating moments too. My aggressive growth goals meant that I had to play a range of different games and play buy-ins that violated traditional bankroll management rules. Through it all I learned a lot about what games were good for bankroll building and which ones were a little too risky. Here’s what I’d do if I had to do it all over again.
Start With Low Buy-in SNGs
Playing low buy-in Sit ‘N Goes is like printing money – very, very small amounts of money. The players in these games have no idea what the Independent Chip Model is or what it means to adjust to rising blind levels. Come to think of it, I’m not even sure they know they’re playing poker.
All you have to do in low buy-in SNGs is play super tight. You only play JJ+ and AK in the early stages and when you’re stack is about 10 to 13 blinds deep, you use the ICM to make +EV shoves. That’s all there is to it.
Move to Low and Mid Buy-in Turbos
These turbos are similar to the regular SNGs except there’s even less post-flop play involved. In fact, if you’re playing post-flop poker after the early stages of a turbo Sit ‘N Go, you’re probably making a mistake.
Turbos are all about knowing when to shove.
Add Some Multi-Table Tournaments
Once your bankroll can handle the swings, some multi-table tournaments will give your bankroll a serious boost. Multi-table tournaments offer winning players an excellent return on invest and going deep in a few tournaments will make your bankroll soar.
I prefer tournaments with less than 300 players. You’ll usually have to go to fringe sites like Bodog or Cake to get decent tournaments without a field of several thousand players, but it’s worth moving your money. Moreover, the skills you learned while playing SNGs will help you crush final tables.
Bum Hunt in Cash
Start low at first. Maybe $50 NL or so. Go to PokerTableRatings.com and find the worst players on your site and set up email alerts (it helps if you have an iPhone or Blackberry so you can be instantly notified). When your fish are playing, just grab a seat in position.
This method can be a little high variance, but it’s profitable in the long run.
Get Rakeback
I’ve earned hundreds of dollars in rakeback over the course of my bankroll building challenge. I’d have a lot less money if I didn’t sign up for rakeback right away. If you’re playing without rakeback, go here. All you have to do is enter your info in the ‘Existing Account’ field and these guys can get you set up. It doesn’t work with Full Tilt, but it usually works with everything else.
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I truly believe that anyone can make money playing poker. There’s too much information out there (and on this site) for lack of knowledge to be an issue. Good luck and let me know if you have any question. I’d love to help!
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