[lork]

ok, here is my deal. Been playing poker for about a 1 1/2 yrs. Play mainly NL, in a tourny setting. Usually do pretty good in multi and SNG for play and freerolls but never wanted to put money down in fear of becoming addicted.
When I first started I played 20 bucks and lost it in a week (played mostly $5 SNG's). Then about a yr later I turned .66 I earned from a free roll into $50 and took the money.
Here is where I need help: about a week ago I put $25 +$5 bonus and fell to $22 playing SNG's. I tried some low limit .25/.50 tables and quickly brought it up to $80. Now in the last 2-3 days I havent been able to win anything, seems every good hand gets rivered by some crap hand or I fold to a crap bet and then see my cards fall. I tried playing as tight as possible and as loose as these people at low limits and still lost. Right now I am at $67. Im not really a gambler and don't feel too comfortable moving to higher limits. Is this a swing? Was I just lucky or do I need to step away??? Tell me what you think....Also I wont be able to answer any questions till sunday...thanks in advanced...Also I tried playing dimes and .02 and still lost or broke even.....

[pritz]

So you put in $30 a week ago, you've run it up to $67, and you're now getting nervous about maybe losing it, right?

Sounds like you're playing with scared money. If your circumstances are such that the $30 you originally put in should have been used for food, rent or a piece of the car payment, you've got no business playing games for money. Stick to the freerolls and have a no-stress good time.

But, if your $30 was a reasonable investment in personal entertainment that you've budgeted for... well hell, you've better than doubled your money! What's the problem? Keep playing--maybe you can run it up to $120 next week. Or maybe you'll lose it all. Two weeks of fun for $30 sounds like a bargain to me.

Hope that seems sensible. Good luck!

[razor]

if you were able to double your money playing in the low-limit ring games, and lost alot of money playing in the pay tournaments, I would suggest you only play for money at the ring games, and play only the freeroll touraments. In the ring games, you don't need to be the best or luckiest player to make money, and the expirience you get in the ring games will help you to do better in the tourneys you do play.

[johnf]

and I forgot, don't let relatively small swings in your bankroll discourage you, and don't get too upset about getting drawn out on. It seems to me that extremes of luck or unluck run in streaks, and just because somebody catches a lucky river card doesn't mean you should quit the game. take solace in the fact that their loose play will catch up with them, and so will your solid, tight play, and they will pay you off much more often than they will end up drawing out on you. Remember, the idea is to win money IN THE LONG RUN, not nesicarily on any particular night of playing. Whatever you do, don't start playing like the loose players who beat you with miracle draws. One of the most important skills of a sucessful poker player is discipline.

[chris]

here's my advice... but beware... it's very specific... and you need to by the type of person that can stomach playing pretty aggressively...

Buy Doyle Brunson's Super System... read his section on No-Limit... go to the no-limit tables at your on-line poker room... the very small buy in rooms... (my poker room of choice has 4 dollar buy in... .10/.20 blind tables...) and even .05/.10 blind - 2 dollar max buy in tables...

go to the VERY VERY VERY small blind... small buy in tables... and play ALMOST exactly like Doyle Brunson recommends... I've heard people say his style doesn't work at these smaller limit tables... but my experience is VERY different...

try it... if you have 3 or 4 losing sessions in a row... wwhere you bust out... you've only lost 6-10 bucks... but I've grown my bankroll by about 150 dollars in the last week... not exactly professional poker player levels... but for a guy who originally bought in for the 50 dollar minimum... and never plays higher limits... I'm growing pretty well...

I've modified the Super System style a little... I raise less pre-flop and call with more hands... that way I can get away from even good hand that miss completely (A-Q, A-K) (they can lose you a lot of money if you try to back up a raise with them...)

but if you follow is advice strictly about how to play certain hands AFTER the flop... it is a system designed to minimize your losses after the flop, but maximize you chances to bust someone out of a huge pot...

some people mistakenly think it's a system built around bluffing, which they say doesn't work at the lower limits... I agree that bluffing doesn't work for the most part at the tiny limit, or low buy-in no limit tables... but the system isn't really about bluffing... it's about playing hands that other don't think of playing for their potential, and high disguise potential...

[BigAl]

Sounds like you're the kind of guy that should pull out some cash once in a while. Take the $30 that you put in out, and there - you've made $37 and you'e got gambling rights on it. Sure, it would be crap to lose $37, but you won't be any further down than when you started.

I find it a necessity to have a "gambling" fund - I play whats in there, and I don't play what should be going on everyday living. It means I can be out of a game for a week or two till I get another paycheck, but it also means I don't get scared about losing money. I put a little in, I double it up, take some out and play the rest.