One Continuous Game
A calculator that I made in Excel. It shows how to manage your stake and what kinds of games that you can afford to gamble.
I was recently reminded about an attitude that helps to put things into perspective. A player was having some bad luck and seemed to come in second best too often. A friend of his said, “Just remember, its one continuous game. Things will change; if not today, maybe tomorrow.”
A lot of playersapproach gambling based on how much money they can afford that day. Some, it’s sad to say, can’t even afford what they are gambling on that particular day. Most responsible players would never approach their stakes only based on what they have that day. Rather, they set aside a pool of money that they have labeled For Gambling Only. In order to avoid ruin, these players will determine how much money over time they want to invest in gambling. How much they want to have as a pool of their bankroll will determine what type of games they will play, what size games they will play, and how much their buy-ins will be.
So, how do you know how much to bring to the table? Most poker rooms suggest that you should have at least five times the big blind. That’s for fixed rates, but what about no-limit games? This formula doesn’t work since five times the big blind in a no-limit $1-$2 game would come to $10. It works for other limit games, like $3-$6, $4-$8, and $5-$10 when the buy-ins would be $30, $40, and $50 respectively. Even then, most players will start with more than the minimum.
So, I decided that I needed a more sophisticated formula to manage my bankroll. I created this calculator, which you are welcome to use and determine what games you should be playing.
What follows is a calculator that I made in Excel. It shows how to manage your stake and what kinds of games that you can afford to gamble. The examples are all for Texas hold’em games. Here’s how it works.
Suppose you are going to Las Vegas and only have a stake of $2,500 to spend on poker.
First of all you are limited by the kinds of limit and no-limit games you can afford-if you want to last. The chart in will guide you. For example, with a bankroll of $2,500, you can get into limit games with big blinds of up to $25. The minimum stake per game would be up to $300 if you are playing in a hold’em game with blinds of $10-$25.
Now let’s suppose that you prefer to play no-limit hold’em. In this case, you still have a bankroll of $2,500. You can get into nolimit hold’em games where the big blind is up to $10. In this case you would need a starting buy-in of at least $500. If you follow these guidelines, you will enjoy your trip without the worry of ruin. The important thing to remember is that you have an attitude that it is one continuous game. That means that when you are doing well, the odds are it won’t last. Similarly, when things are bad, the odds are that things will get better-if you play long enough. A lot of playerswill go on tilt and quit when they have some bad luck. Others will re-buy-knowing that it’s one game over time.
Put more simply, if you are thinking about going professional you need a bankroll of at least $15,000-20,000. If you can’t make it with this much, you don’t need to be playing poker professionally. Invest your money in the market instead.
Filed under: Poker News