Update or Perpetual standstill

[ashmc2]

Damn I’m driving myself nuts. I made over $400 last days off, (Empire poker bonus accounted for $200) and now have $1600 online. But I’m still having confidence issues with moving up to $50 NL tables. First night off I surpassed my $1200 goal so I stepped it up to the $50 tables and won $100 in around 2hrs before I called it a night. I got on the next day and dropped $150 in an hour and a half. I then put my tail between my legs and went back to the $25 NL tables and played there the rest of my days off. When I dropped that $150 - 3 losses for a combined total of around $100 were from making bad calls. But the over $50 I lost was due to being out-drawn. So I know it wasn’t all lost due directly to skill issues. I was supposed to make the move up at a grand, but nooo, not me I said I’ll make myself a little cushion and do it at $1200. Now I’m at 1600 and still playing with $25 dollars on the table.

There’s the guys that I think on a more frequent basis try to step up stakes too quickly without a sustainable bankroll, then there’s me at the over end of the spectrum afraid too make the move even though all evidence points to making the transition to higher stakes. All logic points towards moving up, yet I’m finding it difficult to make myself make this jump. I keep thinking about all the potential profits that I am most likely loosing being a little bitch. You guys ever notice that I ask questions then try to answer them myself. I’m crazy like that.

I guess I’ll stop rambling on here and get to fucking point.
1 - Have any of you ever experienced this issue when moving up in stakes?
2 – Ever just been too afraid to do it so you find reasons to stay where your at and not grow?
3 - How would you or did you overcome this problem?
4 - How would you cope these feelings of being scared money because you just doubled every betting aspect? Not saying this is my issue necessarily.
Mel If you tell me to take some money out and buy my wife something nice I’m going to snap.
5 – And any general advice on this subject would also be much appreciated. Anything that will help me to make this and every other future transition easier. Must be some trick. Drop some knowledge on me people.

[eejit101]

1a - i love the bold bit.

1. I havent experienced it. I felt butterflies from moving up from 0.25/0.50 to 1/2, but that was it.

2- no, never. I just see it as more money on the table higher up, more money going to me after the session.

3- Id overcome it if it was me my making myself play the game. Get pokertracker. PLay 1,000 hands of $50NL, play tight agressive, play well, and see what PT says, if im up, id stay at that level.

4a - what or who does/is "mel" mean???

4 - I dont know, thats personal

5 - The genreal advice from me is do it, dont be a pussy ( no offense, just a good word for it), move up that one level, its no different, its not like your risking your whole bankroll is it?

The idea is you sit down at a cash game with 1/10th of your roll on average

You have $1,200

$1,200 divided by 10 = $120.

You should be playing $100 NL by now, and the way your roll is going, creaming it.


Good luck, buy pokertracker, and get moving on up.

[Boobie Lover]

I believe it's normal to go through these syndromes whenever a players moves up in stakes, at least for me it was. I don't really know if I have found any remedy to withstanding the natural variance once I have become used to a previous levels. The only thing that has stopped me from worrying about the potential downswings is just to grind out enough hands until seems to become a non-issue.

[ashmc2]

Mel is Melioris - I was just giving him a little shit. All in good fun mind you.
And I have $1600 in my online bankroll.
I thought the going standard was to have 20 times the max buyin at your particular stakes. Right?

[eejit101]

No, 20x a tourney buy in is i think what you are looking at, and 10x the bankroll for a MAX buy in at a cash game.

So say you now have $1,600.

max tourney buy in is $80, if you feel frisky, which i doubt
max cash game buy in is $160, so basically 0.50/1 is where you should be!

[Zybomb]

Have a minimum of 10 MAx Buy Ins in your bankroll -- 20 max buy in is a safer and better number (but I didn't follow it so I cant talk). The big thing is not having the stakes effect your game though. If they do, you are playing above your bankroll.

I remember the first time I played in a live card room. I sat down at the 1/2 NL Table, anmd expected it to be similiar to the 1/2 NL Table I played online....yea not quite. The average opening raise was never less than 12 dollars, usually $15- $18. I played extremely tight for the first hour, just because I wasn't used to this (and the max buy in was $250, online $50 more than online). The next time I returned, I just got used to the standard raise being bigger and played my game, adjusting accordingly.

The first time I moved up from the 1/2 to the 5/5 Game, it was a bit similiar. A standard open was no cheaper than $25, generally $30-$40. IF you raised $30 and received 2 callers, there was now $100 in the pot and A continuation bet would cost you $65 bucks or so (100 total)....This was a little uneasy at first but quickly i was able to do what you are supposed to do. THINK OF THE CHIPS AS CHIPS, NOT AS ACTUAL MONEY. Thusa making my raises and bets according to the pot size etc... Once you are able to do that, you should have no problem playing mentally at the stakes, and should play 'your game'

If you can't stay down in stakes... no matter WHAT your bankrolled for

[ashmc2]

Well I have 64 x the max buyin of $25.

I'll give $50 another shot and stick with it regardless these next 4 days off. I'll try to think of bets as percentages of the pot and not about monetary values. Chips as chips.

I think my problem is that a month and a half ago I had $180.

[melioris]

In your case, take some money out and get some coke and a hooker.

Keep bouncing back and forth until you feel comfortable at the 50NL tables. The only issue is in your head. I have had similar issues in the past. And stick to the 20 buyins for each NL level. If you are having troubling with feeling comfortable at a higher level even though you have the bankroll for it, it suggests that you would be playing wicked scared if you strayed into the 10-15 buyin range.

After the coke and hooker, I think you will be more relaxed at the higher levels.

[JDMcNugent7]

I've never been too scared to move up limits, ive always been wanting to move up too fast actually... but, i almost Always start out losing my first few tries movin up limits, but i stick with it, figure the game out and then start trying to master that limit until i have the BR to move up again, and as soon as i do i move up.
Also i always notice that if u say go back to 1/2 after playing at 2/4, 1/2 seems so much easier - so losing isnt even that big a deal b/c it makes it easier to beat ur initial game.

[Talking Poker]

Don't listen to eejit and his 10x crap. 20x (5%) is the real guideline, and for someone like you, I think you'd be more comfortable with 25x or more.

But...... here's what it comes down to. If you aren't comfortable moving up, then DON'T. BEcause if you move up and start playing with scared money, you will lose. If you are happy being a $25 NL player and grinding out however much money you can grind out per month, stick with it and be happy. Get your banroll up to 1000x your $25 buy in and still don't move up.

However, if you have ambitions of playing in bigger games, making more money, and so on and so forth, at some point you're going to have to just suck it up and move.

In my experience, I've found that that first little while (hour or so?) at a higher level really feels weird. But after time, it feels normal, and it actually feels weird when you move back DOWN.

[badblood44]

I think moving up is something that just has to be done. In fact, for most people, I'd guess we'll fail in our moving up efforts more often than not. But you have to keep trying. It's no crime to come back down and try again later.

As you make each new attempt, you'll desensitize yourself a little bit more to the new level. Soon enough, you'll get comfortable and play your game and hopefully win.

I usually fail 2 or 3 times I move up before I do so for good.

But also remember this; there is no rush to do so. Your schedule is your own schedule, nobody else's. Stay at your pace and try to remain as comfortable as possible.

But still, I maintain that moving up is a must if you ever want to get better and eventually make significant money playing poker.

[ashmc2]

Thanks for all the advice.

Especially you Mel.
I don't like to brag, but, I'm guessing that was the best 2 minutes of her life.
She was impressed with the size of my... umm... bankroll.
She said I was well-in-doubt.
She said the last time she saw something that looked like mine - it had an eraser on the end of it. OK, I'm done.

I'm going to stick with $50 NL for a while - wish me luck.