Conservation of capital should be the most important thing in any bankroll management system. Without capital, you cannot play online poker. It’s not just that you need money to bet on poker. If successful poker can be compared to chess, then consider bankroll management as the king. Succeeding in chess without the king is impossible. Conservation of capital is an important issue, as in the short term, poker threatens our money. This threat is what is known as a “downswing” or a losing streak. If things go wrong, a losing streak can cost you a large part of your bankroll in a short period of time. Every player, even the best, will experience days or even weeks when things don’t go well. They will lose in situations where they are favourites to win. To avoid bankruptcy, you have to have a good cushion to keep yourself within the limit where you are playing.
Sustainability
Before moving up to a higher level in any online casino poker room, you must be a consistent winner at your level. This way, it will be easier for you to reach your goals and you will avoid unpleasant surprises. Consistent success first confirms that you are ready to climb to a higher limit. And second, being successful against “inferior” opponents will give you confidence. In the psychological warfare that is poker, healthy self-confidence is one of the main requirements. Likewise, a strict discipline to follow the rules of bank management, attests that you have the patience characteristic of a solid Hold’em player. I’ll say it explicitly: No Limit Hold’em is a game of patience! That applies to both banking management and strategy.
Flexibility
Your ascent to the different limits should be flexible and based on your bankroll. If a losing streak causes your bank to accumulate too many losses, it will have to go down again to the lower level. This can be a clear psychological barrier since no one likes to go back. Despite that, it will be absolutely necessary in some cases. It is important to have a proper attitude towards this. Do not see it as a defeat, it is rather the result of a losing streak and luck is something that is beyond our control. Going down to a lower level does not mean that you are worse than the players of the level you drop. It simply means that for now, you don’t have enough capital to play sustainably at that level. Of course, it also means that you are smart and flexible enough to handle crisis situations.
Comfort zone
Choosing a level also has to do with your comfort zone. Money has a specific value for each individual. If you play at limits that are too low, you may not be paying enough attention to betting and might be playing in a sloppy way. On the other hand, if you play at a level that is beyond your comfort zone, it’s easy to get paralyzed. You can become too passive when the demands of the position require a certain level of aggressiveness. According to our bankroll management system, a beginner should start at the lower limits, where the blinds are a few cents. Now, it can happen that a newbie is rich and the pennies mean nothing to him. Does that mean that according to your comfort zone you should immediately go up to an upper limit? No way! That would be a big mistake! You might have a chance, but most likely you will be faced with frustration and defeat.
Discipline
Even the best banking management system will not protect you if you don’t follow it. Please stick firmly to the prescribed rules, no matter what happens. Just as you can go through a bad streak, you can also go through a good one that makes you win for many sessions in a row. This is very encouraging, but it is no reason to drop your basics. The losing streak is waiting for you around the corner.