Bankroll

Your Bankroll is the amount of money that you have set aside for your poker playing. How much that is will depend on whether you are a Professional trying to make a living by playing poker or a beginner just starting to play. If you are a fun player your Bankroll will be the most that you will have fun losing. If that is $50, then that is your Bankroll.

A Poker Pro will have a much larger Bankroll. A pro should have a Bankroll equal to about 200 big bets at the limit they normally play. If a player sits at the $2/$4 tables 4 x 200 = $800. If you have a sum that you want to commit to Poker work backwards to determine which tables you should be playing at. If you have $4000 you can play the $10/$20 tables. This will help prevent you from being cleaned out by a run of bad luck.

Arguably 200 big bets are too low for shorthand but until you have established yourself at a particular level it is better to stick to this guideline.

It is advisable to keep track of your Bankroll, how much you win, lose, add to it and take from it to enjoy your winnings. Tracking your stats accurately will give you a realistic view of how you are progressing at poker and help you to decide which game to play and at which level of betting.

Maintaining a record of your Bankroll will also help you with your Tax assessments.