Struggling at Microstakes

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Dokhion

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Hi guys, i'm a new poker player. I started playing poker 6 months ago. I mainly play 2nl cash game and freeroll tournament. I started with 10 euro deposit on dafabet poker and my bankroll now has grown to 80 euro. However, i'm struggling at moving up stakes. If i'm on tilt, i might lose 5 or more buy-ins. When i'm losing, i play longer to recoup my loss and when i'm up i tend to end the session short. Nowadays, i try to limit my session to one and a half hour, no matter the result i will quit if i have reached that time. Do you guys think this is a good move?

Another thing, do you guys think it is necessary to table select? I never do that because i think it is a good thing to learn to adapt to any kind of player at the table. But, i always have losing sessions if the table is full of multitablig regs and winning sessions if there is a fish on the table. So what should i do here?

Lastly, how much bankroll i need to move up to 4nl? Btw, i don't use HUD. Is it necessary to beat this stakes?

Any help will be very appreciated, thanks.
 
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Oli3579

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HUD definitely not necessary and can even distract you from the basics.

Try using a stop loss - if you lose more than 3 stacks don't play at all the rest of the day or at least for some hours
 
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padman400

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Hi, I am like you new to the game. I play for 2-3 hours max a day. If I lose 4 buy ins I stop for the day. I find that is the best way for me.

I do check the tables before I play to see if I have any colored coded notes. ie red nit. Green fish/loose.

I then try and sit on the tables with the most green.

Good luck.
 
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eetenor

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Hi guys, i'm a new poker player. I started playing poker 6 months ago. I mainly play 2nl cash game and freeroll tournament. I started with 10 euro deposit on dafabet poker and my bankroll now has grown to 80 euro. However, i'm struggling at moving up stakes. If i'm on tilt, i might lose 5 or more buy-ins. When i'm losing, i play longer to recoup my loss and when i'm up i tend to end the session short. Nowadays, i try to limit my session to one and a half hour, no matter the result i will quit if i have reached that time. Do you guys think this is a good move?

Another thing, do you guys think it is necessary to table select? I never do that because i think it is a good thing to learn to adapt to any kind of player at the table. But, i always have losing sessions if the table is full of multitablig regs and winning sessions if there is a fish on the table. So what should i do here?

Lastly, how much bankroll i need to move up to 4nl? Btw, i don't use HUD. Is it necessary to beat this stakes?

Any help will be very appreciated, thanks.

Thank you for posting

Tilt is a bankroll killer you need to work on that before all else.
“The Mental Game of Poker”. By Jared Tendler is a great resource

There is more money in game selection than there is in skill growth by a factor of 20
When starting poker, bankroll building is key. Findy the easiest games to do that in is just smart.

Hope this helps
 
hugh blair

hugh blair

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Quote,Lastly, how much bankroll i need to move up to 4nl? Btw, i don't use HUD. Is it necessary to beat this stakes?
Would wait personally until $200 overall bankroll minimum to move up to 4nl everybody is different though.
Hud is not necessary to beat 2nl but learning as much as possible about the game is necessary.
Yes limiting your time is a good move if tired,tilted or losing focus and interest would leave it completely next day start fresh.
 
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63burner

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2 biggest mistakes to make..

The biggest mistake is thinking of moving up in stakes, without proving you can increase your bankroll. The other mistake you're making is "chasing your losses", buying back in.
Perhaps you should play mainly tournaments, where your biggest loss is the buy-in. That way, no chasing your losses, especially when on tilt. Good question, hope it all works out for you.
 
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BamaRaised

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The biggest mistake is thinking of moving up in stakes, without proving you can increase your bankroll. The other mistake you're making is "chasing your losses", buying back in.
Perhaps you should play mainly tournaments, where your biggest loss is the buy-in. That way, no chasing your losses, especially when on tilt. Good question, hope it all works out for you.
I think this is good advice. As a novice poker player I have found that I tend to do much better playing tournaments. It prevents me from losing so much of my bankroll when tilted.
 
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ROYALROAD

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When loss continued by a cash game, please also think a place is moved to the tournament.
 
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Kaleiduo

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Highly recommend reading "Crushing The Microstakes" when you can, or watching blackrain79's YouTube videos if money is an issue. If you want to move up and you don't play zoom, you will need to table select for sure. Luckily, at pokerstars anyway, you can sort tables by high VPIP (30% or more is prime fish tables).

You don't need a HUD but you should get one if you are planning on moving up in stakes anyway! HUD will help you make better decisions and find the fish, even at NL2, and there's no reason not to get one now rather than later. Yes, it might seem like a big investment at first (60 USD for small stakes tracker) but the stats it tracks will be invaluable to you.

Tilt is going to be your worst enemy. The micros have lots of bad beats and the sooner you learn to manage your emotions, the more money you will save. For now, if you lose more than 3 buy-ins in one session, STOP IMMEDIATELY! Take a break and don't play until the next day. You need to be at your mental best when playing the micros, because the players here are absolutely crazy and illogical and it will drive you crazy if you are not disciplined. Having the tracker in the background showing your overall winrate can help mentally with seeing the big picture, so another reason to get a HUD.

Anyways, buy a HUD, read/watch some strategy, and remember to have fun!
 
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tayday79

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Hi guys, i'm a new poker player. I started playing poker 6 months ago. I mainly play 2nl cash game and freeroll tournament. I started with 10 euro deposit on dafabet poker and my bankroll now has grown to 80 euro. However, i'm struggling at moving up stakes. If i'm on tilt, i might lose 5 or more buy-ins. When i'm losing, i play longer to recoup my loss and when i'm up i tend to end the session short. Nowadays, i try to limit my session to one and a half hour, no matter the result i will quit if i have reached that time. Do you guys think this is a good move?

Another thing, do you guys think it is necessary to table select? I never do that because i think it is a good thing to learn to adapt to any kind of player at the table. But, i always have losing sessions if the table is full of multitablig regs and winning sessions if there is a fish on the table. So what should i do here?

Lastly, how much bankroll i need to move up to 4nl? Btw, i don't use HUD. Is it necessary to beat this stakes?

Any help will be very appreciated, thanks.
hello there i think limiting your playing time wil help whether winning or losing. cause if your tired u will most likely lose it all
 
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Dokhion

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Highly recommend reading "Crushing The Microstakes" when you can, or watching blackrain79's YouTube videos if money is an issue. If you want to move up and you don't play zoom, you will need to table select for sure. Luckily, at Pokerstars anyway, you can sort tables by high VPIP (30% or more is prime fish tables).

You don't need a HUD but you should get one if you are planning on moving up in stakes anyway! HUD will help you make better decisions and find the fish, even at NL2, and there's no reason not to get one now rather than later. Yes, it might seem like a big investment at first (60 USD for small stakes tracker) but the stats it tracks will be invaluable to you.

Tilt is going to be your worst enemy. The micros have lots of bad beats and the sooner you learn to manage your emotions, the more money you will save. For now, if you lose more than 3 buy-ins in one session, STOP IMMEDIATELY! Take a break and don't play until the next day. You need to be at your mental best when playing the micros, because the players here are absolutely crazy and illogical and it will drive you crazy if you are not disciplined. Having the tracker in the background showing your overall winrate can help mentally with seeing the big picture, so another reason to get a HUD.

Anyways, buy a HUD, read/watch some strategy, and remember to have fun!


Hi guys, sorry for late reply

thanks for all the replies,really appreciate all the advices. Now I manage my tilt problem by limiting my play time and not chasing losses anymore, it's a great step for me. However, i'm still a payoff wizard and honestly it is hurting my winrate. When i make a bad call, i would feel so stupid afterwards.

I still play at 2nl, my bankroll right now is 100 euro, last month i took a shot at 4nl when bankroll reached 120 euro, didn't last that long because i'm down again to 100 euro, so i move down to 2nl. It's been a roller coaster ride last month, hopefully i can be a regular at 4nl by the end of the year.

I'm playing one table only at the moment and trying to pay attention to every single action at the table, sometimes it is boring and makes me play trash hands like j5s or even 10 2s. I'm thinking about multitabling but i'm afraid it's going to affect my decision making (well, sometimes i overthink in certain situations and end up making bad calls). Any idea how to leaarn multitabling?

Anyway, thanks again for all the replies. Although i don't reply very often, i read all your replies and really appreciate it.
 
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Kaleiduo

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Boredom can lead to bad decisions too, but luckily, micro strategy is relatively simple. After reading CTM, I think you can start multi tabling comfortably, and your decisions will become quicker. Micro play can be quite simple and boring, so you might as well play more hands! Start with two, if it starts getting boring, you can add another table. Start with full ring NL2, the games there are somewhat easier to start.
 
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freeisfun

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Hud def not needed to beat microstakes but having a database with your hands play will help you find leaks in your game and show you population tendencies. You shouldn't chase your loses or quit early when you're Up either. You should make a schedule like 2hours session no matter you winning or losing, just try playing your best. Good luck 👍
 
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Bhzrd588

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I think this is good advice. As a novice poker player I have found that I tend to do much better playing tournaments. It prevents me from losing so much of my bankroll when tilted.

Even if you manage to raise a good bankroll after sometimes, continue to play where you feel comfortable, where you understand other players moves and where even if you loose you won't risk much. If you make the same mistake as most of us have done, when you will be in bigger buy in games you will be eaten by sharks very fast and you have more probability to loose vs wins. After maybe one year or two, when you will have built a very good bankroll and you beaten game variances you should start working your way up. Good luck!
 
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