Minimising Poker Losses
The old adage that money saved is the same as money earned holds true in poker as well. The simple fact is that even the best players in the world lose hands, but the difference between them and lesser skilled players is that they are able to minimise their losses by being able to get rid of a losing hand or walking away from the game when the cards are not falling their way. While this is easier said than done, it is an essential part of bankroll management and stopping massive losses before they start. A player that wants to see incredible gains in their total monthly profit will need to start paying attention to how to minimise their losses while at the tables.
If you are unsure of how to play poker, this situation can be extremely common. A player buys into a game for a normal buy-in, but then loses half of it in a big pot. Now, with half of a normal buy-in, they are shortstacked and trying to play catch up to get even. The problem is that with each small pot they enter and lose, their stack continues to dwindle and eventually they will probably be faced with a situation where they will be committed to a pot based on the amount of chips in front of them. Even worse, they may pick up a big hand, but not have the chips needed to protect the hand against larger stacks. There is one tip that most professional players use for this situation and helps to prevent either situation. Instead of sitting at the table with only half a buy-in or less, they make a decision.
The question being asked is whether it will be better to get up and cash out their remaining chips or rebuy into the game and get back to a normal and competitive size stack. The problem is that the vast majority of players fail to ask this question and play into the same situation as illustrated above. This breeds frustration and the players will most commonly lose the rest of their stack instead of putting it in their pocket. However, answering the question is often more difficult than it appears. The criteria to consider involve many things, such as how the player feels they are playing at the table, whether their competition is profitable, and the average stack of the opponents. To get a better objective view of what is going on, many pro players, like those at PokerStars, choose to take a break by simply taking a short walk to clear their head and think about the situation.
If a player knows that they are playing well in a good game and just ran into a wave of bad luck, then the clear answer is to buy more chips and stay at the game as long as it remains good and their play is still at a high level. If the player feels that they are not playing their best game or that the table is filled with highly skilled players, it may be a better decision to cash in their remaining chips and wait for a better day to do battle on the felt. When looked at from a long term view, taking these minimum losses will add up substantially and put a considerable amount of money back into the player's bankroll, the same as if they had won the money.
