Poker: the Risk of Loss Part 2

Let’s look at the risk of loss more objectively for a moment.  Though we all talk about it the risk is not really the issue.  The real issue is the pain that accompanies the possible loss.  If you are going to loose your family’s grocery money, that is real pain.  If it is going to cramp you until your next payday then that is another level of pain.  Think about it, there are people who can go to the table and not worry a heartbeat if they loose thousands or even millions of dollars.  It will not affect their lifestyle and it will not affect their livelihoods they will barely notice.  Many of these people lose or win that much daily in the stock market.  It is a risk they are totally comfortable with.

That brings us to the game breaking question, and I am talking about your game here.  What are you comfortable loosing tonight when you go to that game?  What will make you feel like you have been kicked in the stomach if you loose it?  I am really talking to the serious student of poker, pro or amateur.  If you are a player and you intend to continue, then you must know what you can loose before you walk out the door to go to that game.  If you have a spouse talk it over with them or you won’t keep them long. 

I have been there, not in poker but in business.  I placed that bet with our entire net worth and the economy took the bet off the table without me even having a chance to fold.  Do not let the excitement of the game cause you to make stupid mistakes.  When you go to a game and you can’t identify the biggest patsy there then you are the biggest patsy there.  If money is on the table, you better be there to win. 

So, think it thru and decide what you can afford to loose comfortably while you are learning before you get good.  Create some basic financial rules on how you will handle certain kinds of situations in the game and then stick by those rules no matter what.  This commitment is where you grow the money handling skill and control that the master player must have.

Maybe you don’t know how to set up those standard personal money handling policies.  I would suggest that unless you are really an expert that 1% of your net worth is plenty to loose in a single night.  Ok, this might seem low.  Say you are worth $100,000 because of your house and a few stocks.  Does that give you a grand to loose tonight?  Nope, I don’t think so.  Set aside the grand in your poker account like an investment.  Exactly like an investment because it is.  Then take a hundred or two to your poker game and do your very best to bring home at least half of it.

If you handle your poker fund exactly like an investment fund; if you keep records of your wins and losses and all your secondary expenses then you will know exactly what you will allow yourself to loose on any night’s tuition.  If you go to small games and gradually work your way up as your skill and bankroll grows then you can play the game without the off table worries that handicap so many excellent players.