Bankroll Management.
 

To preface this post, I have never managed my bankroll efficiently.

I do however, run tight/aggressive and review almost every session with Poker Tracker.

My play has improved exponentially over the last few months and I credit most of the improvement to the Harrington on Hold 'em series. I've turned into a solid tournament player.

I have played at limits and tournaments that I have considered profitable at the skill level I perceive myself to have, know that I can deposit more if I fail, but haven't shied away from taking shots in the dark in large prize pools, and have entered many tournaments that were far too expensive for my bankroll. For example, I've lost 1/3 of my entire roll in Bodog's $109 100k Sunday on three separate occasions in the last couple months.

I have lost a handful of $75-$100 deposits over time, but recently started to turn the corner. I had flipped a $75 deposit into $650 through $260 in MTT profits, $190 in sit & go's and $105 in 6 max cash games on Bodog playing well over my head, all in about three weeks.

I treated my recent winnings and solid bankroll to a trip to Bodog's Blackjack table.
$100 on the table. Lost.
$100 more on the table.
$200........
$100......
$100.

The dealer rarely had what it was supposed to have, hit magical low cards with 13-16 often and managed to nail blackjack an incredibly disproportionate amount whenever I upped my bets.

This sitting should have been a disastrous losing session, but it's completely INEXCUSABLE to lose almost entire bankroll.

I have a gambling problem at 19. Gambling is only a problem if you're losing, and great poker players are not gambling when they sit down at the table for the long run. I need to stop fooling around and treat this with as much attention as it deserves. Becoming a winning poker player is important to me, and I know one of the skills I'm lacking that will do wonders for me is managing my bankroll correctly. I'm depositing $150 and treating it like the last $150 in my bank account. How do I do this?

Oh, and I'm not ever playing Blackjack online again.

This is the key to the post for me. If you said you had lost it all in one hand of 5/10 NL or something, it would be about bankroll. With blackjack it is about learning that even if the dealer did "have what they were supposed to have" you were still losing money every hand by playing in the long run.

If you have turned the corner into a profitable poker player, you should also lose the interest in playing games where you have no inherent profit and are therefore always hoping to get lucky in the short term.

This assumes you are playing to make money or increase your bankroll and not solely for entertainment.

Are you asking for specific bankroll recommendations? It sounds like you are just admitting you have some control issues to yourself and it sounds like that is something you should give some thought to before you continue to deposit.

One key part of managing a bankroll (or having one in the first place) is that it has some meaning to you to maintain it. If you don't really care and can redeposit another $100+ tommorrow, then you will always have this problem of winning and then blowing it because you are not really TRYING TO WIN (know around here as SWA-ing away your winnings).

I would suggest that you post specific problems you continue to have and you can search the forum for bankroll management and you should find some good threads about setting up some basic structure to your POKER play.

Good Luck.

You say you have a gambling problem... Then you should probably stop playing poker as well. Some may argue, but this is probably the smartest course of action.

BUT...I assume you're not going to quit so here is my advice.

You lost a lot of money playing blackjack.

Step one: Withdraw all money from bodog
Step two: Remove Bodog software
Step three: deposit on a site where there are no other casino games

Good luck

QFT

Gambling can be a problem even for winning players. It can be time consuming and require you to keep moving up in stakes in order to get the same adrenline rush you once had before. I think most winning players don't treat poker like gambling at all, at least not in the long run.

Frankly, it doesn't matter how good you are at poker if you don't manage your bankroll properly. No one can win every hand they play in poker, and even if you put the money in good everytime, you still can lose.

As far as your situation. First if you're going to play larger events, satellite your way into them instead of directly buying in. It's time consuming, but I don't think very many ppl can put in a third of their bankroll in a larger buy in tourney and honestly expect to profit big before they go bust. Second if you play cash games, buy into the games where even if you bust out, it doesn't affect your bankroll that much. Third, there should be no reason to ever play a negative EV game unless you're ok to lose the entire amount you put on the table. Black jack and other casino table games are good for entertainment purposes. Just like a night out, so the amount you can lose should not affect you at all. The only reason you should ever play BJ online is if you're casino whoring or such...and that well has started going dry for a while now.

Bold.

Admitting you have a problem is a great first step. I also think you should probably quit, but also think you probably won't. But it is IMPERITIVE, especially for people with "problems," that you stick to strict bankroll management guidelines. Playing above your bankroll IS gambling, and you're not allowed to do that any more. Ever. By grinding it out within your limits, you're not really gambling, and assuming you are a winning player and continue to play well, you won't ever bust again. And that's a nice thought, isn't it?

P.S. +Rep for OP.

I'm learning to be a better poker player too, and trying to improve from a break even / steadily declining (when I'm drunk) player. I have three things to say:

1. Pick a game type a stick with it. SNG's are not Cash Games, and neither of them are MTTs. All three are played very differently as you go up in levels, and I think it's important to pick ONE and know how to play it (Assuming you want to play No Limit Holdem, of course)

2. Have an adequete bankroll. You say you're depositing $150. If you're going to go cash game, I would recommend grinding out at the NL .05/.10 level. You don't have quite enough for the .10/.25 game (you would only have 6 buy-ins there). If you're going SNG route, don't play anything higher than the $5 buy-ins. MTT tournaments you might want to go even less than $5, but I don't have any experience here

3. Set a goal and follow it through. This goal cannot be monetary, because then you might never get there. For example I'm currently playing 10,000 hands of .10/.25, and then evaluating all of my play with pokertracker. Regardless of how much money I win in those 10,000 (Or lose), I'm going to complete those 10,000 without changing blinds, or playing other types of games. When I originally formulated a plan to improve at poker, I wanted to play SNGs, and I planned on doing 100 $1 SNGs at stars, and then evaluating my play, so I think this is a good idea for SNG players. I think this is important because it will keep you focused on a goal which you are always nearing, rather than keep you focused on obtaining a certain amount of money to "move up in blinds", which you may fall away from and get frustrated.

Finally, If you do bust out, take a minimum of 1 month break from PLAYING poker, but not from studying it. That way when you go back you should know what to do in the situations you are running into.

PS: Post in the hand history section of this forum, and take anything the great players here say as gold. Even if they think you're stupid or a poor player (note: I'm a :donkey), "wisdom is wisdom, even from the devil's mouth"

Good luck!

This is very good advice.

+rep

This is the sacriest part of the post to me. Windbreaker was on the right track; gambling can be a problem even for the winning player. It can consume time that a mature and emotionally healthy person should be spending on work, family, friends, exercise, etc.

A gambling problem is at its base, a lack of self-control (for whatever reason). For this reason, outside support from friends, family, and even professionals is very important. If you could set things right all by yourself, you would not have a problem.

GL

Well I've gotten some great responses. Each tidbit of advice is valued too- ranging from the suggestions to quit poker to setting specific goals. They all help.

I've decided to take two weeks off from poker to make sure I have a clear mind and a better perspective on this before playing another hand. I'm leaning towards aiming to play 100 $5 full table sit-n-go's to improve my final table play, and to build up a solid bankroll to eventually drift into MTTs full time.

Thanks again- I'm sure to be around adding to discussion and asking for specific hand advice when they inevitably come up. GL to everyone.