Your 7 Step Guide to Bankroll Management

Gambling is designed to slowly draw your money away while keeping you entertained. Usually, the entertainment comes through small wins that keep you engaged.

You may never consider how the games are working against you, and you’re not alone. Recreational gamblers regularly run out of cash in the casino faster than anticipated.

That can lead to a terrible experience. Your 7-step guide to bankroll management will assist you in maximizing your money and the entertainment experience you get in return.

Start focusing on where and how your money is being used concerning casino gambling for the most value. When you start treating your gambling activities as a business, you’ll see your results drastically improve.

1 – Money Management Is Paramount

Money management should drive all of your gambling activities. If you’re not adequately utilizing bankroll management fundamentals, you’re in grave danger of going bankrupt.

When this happens, you’re sidelined until you can replenish the funds. Depending on a few factors, this can be a minor inconvenience or incredibly frustrating.

Suppose you’re on the second day of a three-day casino trip when you burn through your bankroll. You’ll then have a critical choice to make in regard to how you’ll spend the rest of your vacation.

Many gamblers would merely hit up the ATM, grab another $500, and press on. That’s one option, but it’s never a good idea to start increasing your predetermined gambling budget in a casino.

Furthermore, if you haven’t set up a dedicated gambling bankroll, you could be dipping into funds needed for more essential expenses. That might have an impact that lasts long after you get back home.

So, everything you do in the casino, poker room, racetrack, or sportsbook needs to fall within the parameters of your bankroll.

When you exercise bankroll discipline, you are in the driver’s seat. You’ll never have to stress over losing your money before it’s time to leave the casino.

2 – The House Edge Constantly Works Against You

You could be the Albert Einstein of bankroll management and still lose all the money you take to the casino. Casino games come with a house edge, so you can’t help but lose in most cases.

Luckily, you can determine how far your bankroll will last long before you ever head to the casino. By determining the house edge and how many hands you expect to see an hour, you’ll know roughly what your expected hourly loss will be.

If you want to get the most from your gambling bankroll, focus on the games that have the lowest house edge. The slower the casino siphons your money away, the longer you’ll be able to enjoy the casino games.

Finding games with a lower house edge will also make it easier to walk out a winner. You are more likely to profit from hot streaks because you aren’t losing money hand over fist.

Understanding how the house edge is working against you is a vital part of managing your money. For the ultimate opportunity to cash in, learn advantage gambling techniques and flip the edge on the casino.

3 – Establish a Gambling Bankroll

One of the critical factors in determining your bankroll will be how much money you’re comfortable losing. That’s different for everyone, which makes this a personal process.

It’s imperative that you assess your financial situation honestly. If you live paycheck to paycheck, there’s likely not a ton of extra money lying around.

That’s fine; you’ll just need to spend some extra time building the nest egg. Never, under any circumstances, take money that you need to pay other expenses and use that money gambling.

If gambling is a high priority but funds are limited. You can always look for ways to supplement your income.

I’ve known poker players that would pick up extra shifts or take part-time jobs to build up a respectable bankroll.

Once you’ve established a number, it’s time to look at how you prefer to break that down into increments.

Sports bettors may elect to place small bets on a weekly basis. So, it’s crucial that you’re never leveraging too much of your bankroll on a single wager.

If you only visit the casino twice a year, you may be able to use your whole sum to fund the trip. Provided that you are able to replenish the funds before your next trip, there’s little harm in this approach.

Whatever direction you choose to take, you should have a plan to manage your money. Remember, when your bankroll reaches $0, you’re done.

4 – Stick to a Flat Betting Approach

Now that you have your bankroll secured, life in the casino will be much easier. But there’s still plenty of work to do to ensure that your gambling bankroll doesn’t burn up during your first session.

I prefer to break my bankroll down as far as possible. When I take a 3-day hiatus to Las Vegas, I break my bankroll into three sections.

From there, I look at how many hours I plan to play each day and break my money down further.

Let’s assume I’m gambling for 6 hours each day. I can afford to lose about $80 per hour, which is well above my personal threshold.

The casino average is probably 35 hands per hour for blackjack on an average night. I can combine that number with the house edge to see my average bet amount.

I expect a house edge of 0.5% using basic strategy. So even if I bet $100 per hand, I’ll average under $120 in losses per day.

Unfortunately, you can’t predict cold spells, and the number could go higher in short periods. Still, I’m over 3x my expected losses from bankrupting.

It’s absolutely critical that you stick to a flat wager. If I began doubling my bet size to recoup losses, I have no way of predicting how my bankroll will be affected.

The goal of gambling is to get the maximum entertainment value for your dollar.

5 – Set Rock-Solid Money Limits

I cringe every time I see some poor sap standing at the casino’s ATM. Usually, the gambler has burned through their money faster than expected and looks to right the ship.

Throwing fuel on fire will not extinguish it. Plus, that casino ATM will take you to the cleaners with fees.

I know because I used to be that same poor sap.

What about the casino gambler that is up to $500 on their favorite game but chases the dragon until their wins are entirely depleted?

In my eyes, one is as bad as the other. That’s why you must set strict win/loss limits before you ever get to the casino.

Once you’re inside gambling, the games will suck you in, and your “limits” will soar.

Have a loss limit that leaves you enough for the remainder of your trip or doesn’t dip into your bank account. My expected losses on blackjack are low because of the house edge and strategy.

The losses incurred on slot machines or craps may be exponentially higher. That’s why you need to know the house edge on the games you play.

Having a solid win limit can make your entire casino experience much more pleasant. It’s a rare instance when fortune falls in your favor.

Staying at the games any longer will typically drain the wins and more. You should have a realistic win limit that will satiate your desire to beat the casino and bolster your bankroll.

Whenever you reach your limit one way or another, it’s time to walk away from the casino. You can get back to it another day with a new set of limits.

6 – Make Strict Time Limits on Your Gambling

In the same way that you have boundaries on your wins and losses, you should set time limits on your gambling sessions.

As we gamble, fatigue begins to take a toll, and mistakes become more frequent. So, you must keep track of your time in the casino.

Casinos won’t make this easy for you. There are noticeably no clocks on casino walls, so you’re left to fend for yourself.

I suggest setting time limits on your session by putting a timer or alarm on your smartphone. You’ll then be able to assess your session at regular intervals.

7 – Have a Plan for Replenishing Your Bankroll

Finally, it’s crucial to have a plan for replenishing your bankroll. You’re almost guaranteed to lose over the long term, so you’ll need to continue adding money to your bankroll.

Having a regular routine where you add a little cash to the bankroll on a weekly, bi-weekly, or monthly basis will be a key component of your bankroll’s health.

As your bankroll grows, you may decide to increase your average bet amount, or you could increase the frequency of your gambling activities.

Conclusion

Bankroll management will determine your overall success in gambling. Protect your money, and you will enjoy a long and much less stressful gambling career.

Your 7 step guide to bankroll management will get you pointed in the right direction, but you should never stop improving your gambling skills.