Bankroll management.

Out of the hundreds of thousands online poker guides and strategy tips, few mention the importance of being adequately bankrolled in becoming a winning player. This probably happens because players who write such guides do not consider this issue worthy of mentioning because of how plain it is. The fact, however, is that rookie players will get into tons of trouble simply on account of the fact that they fail to comprehend the importance of online poker bankroll management.

To understand how important an adequate bankroll can be, all you need to do is play in one of them freeroll multi table tournaments, where you can conduct all the testing you want, without risking a single cent.

As you progress in the tourney, you'll notice that bigger bankrolls will dominate the game. The guy who has 10 times more chips than you, can take advantage of many more opportunities than you can. As you near elimination, and as the gap between your bankroll and his widens, you'll also see your options narrowing down fast too, up to the point when you have no options left. That is usually the last hand you play in the tourney. That is the power of the bankroll in action right there. That's why it is difficult to win a tournament. Staying in the game is not much of a challenge on its own, but you also constantly need to build you chipstack and that is where most of the guys get it wrong.

All right. I bet what you really want to know, though, is how much money you should bring to the table depending on the limit you intend to play, right?

Experts say, when you settle down to play, you should have the equivalent of 300 big bets on you. The same experts say that no losing streak should go over 100 big bets, ( assuming, of course, it's a reasonable player they're considering, and not one playing like a broken fruit machine) keeping you well within your comfort zone with 200 more left in your bankroll.

Staying in the comfort zone is extremely important. You want to play relaxed, and even though some pressure is welcome every now and then, you do not want to play scared.

An important aspect of online poker is to maximize the time one spends when playing well, and minimize it as much as possible when confronted with a streak of bad luck. When you're playing scared, this is very difficult to achieve. Nobody likes to be in a ditch, and players will most often do anything to get out of the ditch they're in. This will lead to them playing on a tilt, and that is a sure killer of any bankroll.

It sometimes happens that your bad luck spree will hold out for more than 100 big bets. This is exactly why you need to have 200 more big bets held in reserve. This way you can afford 100 more without being subjected to pressure.

The best piece of advice I came across on this matter ( at least I feel it is) is the following: whenever your bankroll drops down to 300 big bets on a lower limit than the one you're actually playing, it means you should move down to that limit too. Whenever it falls further down and reaches 300 big bets of an even lower limit, follow along. In case you hit a winning spree, only move up to a higher limit once you have 300 big bets for that limit in your bankroll. It is very important to play properly bankrolled all the time.

All of this is, of course, only valid for rookies and for people who play the game for the fun of it. People who support their families by playing poker most probably already know all of this, and they probably need no advice on the matter from me.

Again, if you're an avid sports bettor or online casino player, and you know your bankroll management to perfection, you might as well forget everything you knew. What you need to be on the lookout for, when it comes to poker bankroll management is that you commit a large-enough amount.