From Freeroll to Bankroll

O

OwnedbyCow

Enthusiast
Silver Level
Joined
Aug 26, 2018
Total posts
25
Chips
0
Has anyone ever managed to start off with freerolls and work their way up to at least a small bankroll of a few hundred dollars or more?

Would you move to ring games once you have at least $5? Or do you think putting that $5 into more tournaments would be better? I usually prefer tournaments over ring games myself.

If I stay tournament route, should I drop that full $5 into one tournament or would it be better to go with the $0.25 buy-ins? It seems like putting it all into one tournament will be the most risky, but you can win more than that from just one freeroll. So not really a huge loss.

I just pulled up a $4k gtd which has a buy-in of $4 + $0.40 and first place pays $559.The lowest paid position is 180 at $8.

Losses would be inevitable using this method, but 2 perfect tournaments would put you at a decent bankroll. I know that is highly improbable, but I think it is worth trying since it isn't really costing me any money, just my time.
 
G

goodsaint

Rock Star
Silver Level
Joined
May 26, 2017
Total posts
125
Awards
1
Chips
0
I had 17 cents on ACR and have built it up to $57.11 playing freerolls and tournaments up to $1. Patience is the key. Staying within your bankroll allows to make all the plays you should and not be fearful of being KO'ed from a tournament due to a shakey bankroll.
 
M

madmandown

Rock Star
Bronze Level
Joined
Aug 23, 2015
Total posts
386
Awards
1
Chips
1
I had 17 cents on ACR and have built it up to $57.11 playing freerolls and tournaments up to $1. Patience is the key. Staying within your bankroll allows to make all the plays you should and not be fearful of being KO'ed from a tournament due to a shakey bankroll.
Damn good man, good luck.
 
O

OwnedbyCow

Enthusiast
Silver Level
Joined
Aug 26, 2018
Total posts
25
Chips
0
I had 17 cents on ACR and have built it up to $57.11 playing freerolls and tournaments up to $1. Patience is the key. Staying within your bankroll allows to make all the plays you should and not be fearful of being KO'ed from a tournament due to a shakey bankroll.



Yeah that's the type of stuff I am talking about. So you stayed below $1 on your tournament buy-ins. It will definitely take patience. No rushing or tilting when things don't go well.

From 17 cent to $57.11 is a really good result. Do you know how long it took you to build up that much? Do you multi-table or stick to just one tournament at a time?

Something that I worry about is that when I get that much or more is blowing my entire bankroll when I am in a losing streak.
 
G

goodsaint

Rock Star
Silver Level
Joined
May 26, 2017
Total posts
125
Awards
1
Chips
0
Yeah that's the type of stuff I am talking about. So you stayed below $1 on your tournament buy-ins. It will definitely take patience. No rushing or tilting when things don't go well.

From 17 cent to $57.11 is a really good result. Do you know how long it took you to build up that much? Do you multi-table or stick to just one tournament at a time?

Something that I worry about is that when I get that much or more is blowing my entire bankroll when I am in a losing streak.
I believe that I won 2 Cardschat freerolls for $14.00 each and cashed in a few more. Then several top 3 finishes in tournaments helped a great deal. I can't stress enough that patience is the key. Along with good bankroll management. Losing streaks will happen. Don't increase your limits. If anything, drop down. No need to impose more pressure. That has caused me in the past not to take chances or make plays that were indicated due to fear of being KO'ed. I don't multi-table and probably built this up over an 8 week period. And when I run bad, I lay low for several days. Good luck.
 
C

Cinhos_2000

Rock Star
Bronze Level
Joined
Jun 11, 2020
Total posts
320
Awards
1
Chips
5
I've never put any money on pokerstars, my maximum Bankroll was 25 bucks and currently I have $10. My recommendation for you is playing Cardshats freerolls and trying the $0,55 tournaments first. If you're focused and fell like winning some money try the $0,01 Cash games.
 
theRaven68

theRaven68

Legend
Bronze Level
Joined
Nov 16, 2013
Total posts
2,336
Awards
2
Chips
1
I did it at the beginning and made bankroll from freerolls but in present there are much less freerolls available
 
antonis32123

antonis32123

Legend
Loyaler
Joined
Dec 25, 2014
Total posts
6,362
Awards
20
GR
Chips
249
on888poker you can someone can easily built a small bankroll , the matter is later what he does , what games is he going to play , is he ready for these if they are MTTs or is he going to ruin the bankroll , I couldn't trust my poker capabilities to play MTTs 50 or 100 , cou;ldn't or didn't want to put a schedule , even strt from 10c , I just withdrew some hundreds of $$$. But now I want to try this and I will try again .
 
C

CSLysander

Rock Star
Silver Level
Joined
Nov 12, 2020
Total posts
303
Chips
0
I have been building a little bit on NLOP. It is not those sites, but I am seeing what I can do on there, as I figure the competition is about the same on any site when it comes to free games. I have gotten about 25 dollars so far, with having won or moneyed in a few of their offerings. That said, it is slow, especially as I am at a disadvantage most are not. I am not whining, just saying this. I have a condition with my brain that almost killed me. Poker allows me to see where my personal discipline levels are and how my brain is handling logic and stress together. My doctor actually has me doing this. So, if I can start building a bankroll from nothing, you can. Patience, discipline, and following your game plan will help you each time. That said, be aware of tilt, as this will throw you way off, lol.
 
C

Cooking

Legend
Platinum Level
Joined
May 19, 2011
Total posts
2,710
Awards
2
Chips
246
I think a lot of players here in CC builded their bankroll from freerolls, specially from CC freerolls, they are very nice to build a initial bankroll. With only $5 I would probably play micro buy in sit go’s, cash games is too risky to lose it all very fast.
 
G

greenman

Rock Star
Silver Level
Joined
Oct 2, 2020
Total posts
330
Chips
0
I think a lot of players here in CC builded their bankroll from freerolls, specially from CC freerolls, they are very nice to build a initial bankroll. With only $5 I would probably play micro buy in sit go’s, cash games is too risky to lose it all very fast.
If you do go cash only play tight and in position. Micros cant fold .
 
Maxmustdie

Maxmustdie

Legend
Bronze Level
Joined
Jun 7, 2016
Total posts
1,157
Awards
1
Chips
38
a few days ago i raised + $ 50 for ACR from 0
but now again 0
i played tournaments for $ 1-3
4 hours late registration, 6 hours before ITM each tournament lol
i am a loser
 
K

kristersb123

Visionary
Bronze Level
Joined
Nov 5, 2018
Total posts
841
Awards
3
Chips
50
Yes I have, in cardschat if you make top 5 then you can make pretty decent starting BR and juat go up from there. Even if you min-cash you can try some satellites and get to tournaments but its more luck based strategy with no BRM.
 
Q

Quarkwest

Rising Star
Bronze Level
Joined
Oct 8, 2020
Total posts
18
Chips
0
You could play spin and go's for 25 cents and build out a 5 dollar bankroll or play micro stakes tournaments. I wouldnt put it all on one tournament. Even with 5 bucks you could spread out your bets a bit to reduce variance.

I have played up my bankroll once from 0 to 2000 playing freerolls in the beginning but lost a significant chunk of it because i thought i could do some 100 and 250 spin and gos.
 
milka1605

milka1605

Legend
Loyaler
Joined
Jun 1, 2014
Total posts
2,183
Awards
2
Chips
104
The bankroll is yours and you decide what to do with it. But I would prefer to play in small entry tournaments of $ 1 or $ 2. More likely to win something.
 
O

OwnedbyCow

Enthusiast
Silver Level
Joined
Aug 26, 2018
Total posts
25
Chips
0
Thanks for all of the messages. I will take the advice and play micros, so that when I do lose, it won't be back to square one. The past week has been a bit crazy, so I didn't get to play as much as I originally intended.

Someone mentioned getting to $250 and then losing it all. That is usually my luck. It is why I am trying to not make anymore deposits for now. At least until I can make sure that I am playing consistently. Some days I will play really well and make good decisions; other days I will end up losing way more than I have gained.
 
mandachuva

mandachuva

Enthusiast
Silver Level
Joined
Nov 1, 2018
Total posts
90
Awards
1
Chips
0
Patience

I believe that I won 2 Cardschat freerolls for $14.00 each and cashed in a few more. Then several top 3 finishes in tournaments helped a great deal. I can't stress enough that patience is the key. Along with good bankroll management. Losing streaks will happen. Don't increase your limits. If anything, drop down. No need to impose more pressure. That has caused me in the past not to take chances or make plays that were indicated due to fear of being KO'ed. I don't multi-table and probably built this up over an 8 week period. And when I run bad, I lay low for several days. Good luck.


That's it my brother patience and the Key
 
D

dregan

Legend
Platinum Level
Joined
Nov 12, 2018
Total posts
1,254
Awards
2
Chips
97
To be honest, it's hard to use a $ 5 bankroll to go up to several hundred dollars. But if you lose this money received from the freeroll, you can get it again on freerolls. You only need to play where you can play best. Everyone has their own abilities and skills. I've tried to raise my bankroll in cash games and small entry tournaments. Cash games for me are not suitable for raising a bankroll.
 
R

redsfan

Rock Star
Silver Level
Joined
Oct 29, 2020
Total posts
202
Chips
0
Free rolls are by far the best way to start.Its the best way to build a bankroll.Some free rolls are very hectic,hard to play poker when everyone keeps going allin.Just be patient,and you will get some cashes,so you can play some micro multi tourneys.
 
G

goodsaint

Rock Star
Silver Level
Joined
May 26, 2017
Total posts
125
Awards
1
Chips
0
To be honest, it's hard to use a $ 5 bankroll to go up to several hundred dollars. But if you lose this money received from the freeroll, you can get it again on freerolls. You only need to play where you can play best. Everyone has their own abilities and skills. I've tried to raise my bankroll in cash games and small entry tournaments. Cash games for me are not suitable for raising a bankroll.
I actually rebuilt a bankroll on PS 10 years ago playing 15 cents tournaments and cashed out multiple times. Patience to take advantage of the mistakes inexperienced and lack of patience, players would make. And patience means accepting bad beats, variance, and bumps in the road that one encounters on their poker journey without reacting with consistent tilting. When I left PS due to Black Friday, I went to Carbon poker and for 3 years running was in the top 5 for $1-$5 tournaments. To manage my frustrations, due to the bad beats, variance, and bad plays by opponents being rewarded, two times a month I would play a dollar tournament and just fish and donk my way through it to my hearts content. That was my reward for the patience I had to show during trying times. Plus, those that made notes on me during those two tournaments paid a price many times in future encounters expecting a loose, donkey fish, and getting the opposite. Again, patience and bankroll management are the keys to building a bankroll from next to nothing.
 
K

korbal29

Visionary
Bronze Level
Joined
Mar 10, 2012
Total posts
864
Awards
2
Chips
7
Actually, if I recall FERGUSON the fulltilt pro , went from freeroll to 10.000$ which was the goal. He showed that with a lot of patience you can fullfill your Goal
 
O

OwnedbyCow

Enthusiast
Silver Level
Joined
Aug 26, 2018
Total posts
25
Chips
0
I didn't realize that some of the pros had try to do this.

I'm not getting to play as much as I want, but I am up to about $3.50. I put into an 11 cent tournament and I am currently sitting in 4th place. The only problem is that it has 4 hours of late registration. So there's a lot more hands to play. I think there is just an hour left of LR.

Hopefully, I can keep myself from making any bad plays and make it to the final table.

A lot of people talk about being a lot better before Black Friday, but I know a lot has changed since then. I used to play for play money on Full Tilt for a few years. Then that happened and I stopped playing for almost a decade.
 
7

77ecos

Visionary
Bronze Level
Joined
Aug 2, 2015
Total posts
856
Awards
2
Chips
66
You can achieve a good bankroll based on freerolls and especially with these cardschat, have a good management of funds and you will go very far, I agree that the key is patience and always advance without fear:jd4::jd4::jd4::jd4:
 
elizeuof

elizeuof

Visionary
Silver Level
Joined
May 26, 2015
Total posts
656
Awards
1
Chips
1
Using money from freeroll to make a amount to use as bankroll are good for who are trying to learning poker and don't have conditions to use the own money, I tried this some times, but using a low bank and playing tournament or cashgame with almost the bank are more difficult to archive good results, generally the variance will be cruel, we can't manage the downswing without at least 50 buyins.
 
Bankroll Building - Bankroll Management
Top