hi all , not sure if this has been covered, but I have noticed many regulars in both cash games and mtt , winning players to an extent, still playing at those levels and I'm curious as to the why? I mean if I win a few mtt and crushing the micro $2nl cahs games, I will most likely be moving upto the bigger games yes ?
any ideas or insights anyone ?

Some players play for the game and dont care about the money that much. Or maybe its their tactic to gradually raise their bankroll and not rush things

Hello, you need had winning about
~~ 7-10bb/100hands then crush Nl2 and 100k hands played
As for tournaments, you need to watch ROI and start from bankroll. And of course, in both cases, rely on your skill.

I can only tell myself why I did not go to higher limits. Because I was hoping for a miracle and tried to win a bankroll in a casino in order to move on to the next limit.
Starting this year, I tried to grow from scratch to the limit that I need only with poker and without a casino. True, for several days now I have dispersion, they have won me with the cards below on preflop allin.

Most players play to earn money, but it is not enough for them to rank up

there is no need to rush
you have to be sure that you are firmly breaking your limit
the transition to the limit above is the responsible step for which it is you who are responsible for your experience and confidence

The best answer I can give that attempts to cover that broad question is: Good players understand where they are most profitable, and a player beating the micros at a higher BB/100 than mid stakes will stick to the micros for the lower variance/risk.

As for me, I will be climbing the stakes as fast as possible this year! 5/10 PLO or bust!

Good question. Some reasons not to move up even if you're beating your current level:

• You want a consistent income from games you clearly beat;

• You don't have the bankroll to play higher due to life expenses;

• You're too focused on the possibility you'll lose playing against tougher opponents.

I think the first two reasons are most common, but the third definitely happens!

I like moving up. Like the song says. "Witchy Woman see how high she flies." However, some people know if they move up they probably will lose. The cash out at thier point. At what point could you cash and grind at.

hi all , very nice iput from everyone, and yes I too have not moved up manily to withdrawing from my BR to spend on life , lol , it's tough where I live, however the idea that players are tougher at higher levels, not sure about that so much as I have seen same players playing at various levels, maybe there just aren't enough games for them to play at the same time (8+ etc) ,
.
for myself I definitely want to move up, since with limited time, 4hrs or so, better to try earn $20 @ 5NL , than $4 @ 2NL , and yes , PLO does seem to earn better in cash games over NL , for mtt , the story is bigger, $5 buyin games can get you easy 2k for a win, so yeah that is very tempting

If the bankroll allows, move on! It's simple!

Hi mate.Maybe those players feel comfortable playing those levels and don´t want to take risks playing higher levels..

Perhaps at higher stakes they start to play not so well.

Originally Posted by valeski 28

Hi mate.Maybe those players feel comfortable playing those levels and don´t want to take risks playing higher levels..

Have to agree here. There is a comfort zone with being successful at the current level. If you are goal oriented, then moving up is inevitable.

I always do this, go from micro to macro. Starting with $10 in cash, I can end up with $400.

this is a very good idea
I want to go up the stairs too
dream of going to high levels

Hey
I do that every time I cash in free rolls.
Play with all the winnings till I reach ZERO.
And start fresh.

I was doing that because of lower risk and micro I play relax with no pressure, but I'm ready to try bigger games , hope my fear wont screw up everything I learned

2 questions I ask myself when moving up in stakes

1) Am I comfortable with my bankroll?
2) Can I effectively control the table with said bankroll without fear or emotion?

If the answer is no, than I'm pretty sure I'm going to play like a fish.

Moving up requires some efforts to improve your game enough so that you are winning to the new level. It also requires big enough bankroll. If you are playing for fun, earn some money which are enough for you and do not want to invest more time to improve further you can easily stay on the level where you are winning. Of course with the constant evolution of the game and general improvement of the skills of players even at low stakes games it is not good idea to stay still but in the end everything depends on your goals.

as long as someone is winning and profitable at a certain level why move up ? For many that is the mindset anyway. I like challenges. Some don't. some only make money bum hunting. Much easier to find bums in 1/2 than 2/4 or 5/10

The players do not have the same motivations or have the same ideas, some just want to have a good time, others want to improve, others are afraid of leveling up, others want to increase their bankroll… Ultimately, leveling up is an individual decision, no matter what they may recommend, if you are not comfortable with the idea of leveling up.

For some, investing so much time at low levels is a waste of time and money, for others it is a more convenient way to raise levels. Each player is a world, and in this case there are no absolute answers.

Very nice replies everyone, yes in part spending 4hrs+ on a small game could be spent on a bigger game with bigger bottom line, of course variance could be bigger too

Nice question!
I see many profitable players stick to limits from $2.20-$11 IMO moving to higher limits($55+) does require more work and time dedication off the table and maybe start playing with solvers?I think knowing the fundamentals of theory will only be a plus , I am not saying that apply those strategies in a $11 MTT is the most wise move. Applying GTO to who?the 5% of the field?Bad idea.So be a decent player you can surely beat those fields!

For cash games I don't know I am still new there but playing cash games only benefits me , I will move up stakes soon because I have nothing to lose and lucky me, for now, I don't need my bankroll money.But to be honest in micro limits you see so many more donations and punts from players who want just to gamble with any 2 cards where you won't see it in stakes like NL25 where is the threshold of playing for a living!

Why aren't players moving up? Well I was doing really well at low entry tourneys, $5 max buy in, in the money 86% of times I played, then decided I would go for bigger bucks. Started playing $11-$22 entry MTTs, after two weeks I was looking at less than 33% in the money. Either the competition got a lot better or I was just on a bad roll. Either way I reverted to low level buy ins and am staying afloat but can't recapture my previous level of wins. That old saying "the grass is always greener...."

Players can not go up because they are not comfortable to play there, plus the psychological aspects of money pressures. When you can play with Bain 15 and 60 have crushes on you.

I think, people have many different reasons for not moving up, but for me personally my cash game journey kind of ended at 25NL on PokerStars, because I found it to difficult to get on good tables. And I just don’t think, that I can beat the rake, if I have to mostly play against other regulars, many of whom are probably even professional players.

My attempt of a solution was to move to 888 Poker, where supposedly cash games should be softer. This however turned out to not really be the case, and moreover there were often not even tables running at 20NL or 30NL forcing me to play either 10NL or 50NL. It also seemed someone pointless to move up, when on 888 Poker I was not even able to show a significant profit at 10NL. So most of my cash game activity on 888 Poker ended up being at 10NL, even though my plan and hope was to move up.

After a while I moved to mostly playing tournaments, and I did so well in those, that I could now have a bankroll to move out of the micros for good. However I have withdrawn most of my winnings to pay for life expenses, which was not my intention or hope, but it happened none the less. And when you have family obligations, that is just the reality of life for many of us.

I am also not that experienced with tournaments yet, so to be able to actually beat for instance 22$ tournaments, I realistically need more practice and more off the table study. Its not enough to have a bankroll, and in many cases this might also be, why regulars don’t move up.

I view poker as moreso a hobby than a job. I'm not trying to get rich, and highly doubt I would be a good enough player to move into higher stakes. I'm a winning player at tournaments up to $10 and up to 10NL. I suspect I would be a losing player at stakes higher than that. As long as my bankroll is maintaining, or hopefully slowly increasing...I'm content.