Here is the Most Important Texas Holdem Rule

Even if you already have spent time playing poker online, you may not realize this is the most important texas holdem rule:

Your goal is to win more money than you lose!

That’s why it is important for you to learn how to practice sound money management skills when you are playing online poker. It does not matter how good a player you are, or even how lucky a player you are; you are going to lose hands. You’re even going to lose hands that you should have won except luck stepped in and blessed your opponent at the last possible moment.

If you violate poker money management rules, you’re going to quickly discover that your bankroll didn’t get you as far as you had thought it would. This is especially true in no limit texas hold em where you can win or lose an amazing amount of money in just one hand. When you run out of money, you have no choice but to violate the prime texas holdem rule.

You need to adjust your playing style as your bankroll expands and contracts. Everyone’s money management strategy may be different, but there is one basic money management rule everyone can always safely follow: You can play more aggressively when you have a fat bankroll. When your bankroll is thin, play tighter.

Professional players also know that proper money management techniques dictate that they move down to games with smaller buy-in amounts when their bankroll is low and step up to games with higher buy-in levels when their bankroll is high. That way they can manage their money through the hard times, and create solid growth through the good times. Otherwise, there’s no way to follow the prime texas holdem rule of winning more money than you lose.

So, how much money should you keep in your bankroll at all times? That depends upon your playing style, risk tolerance, and the game you will be playing. Only you can make the final choice, but here is a rule of thumb:

Your initial bankroll should be at least 300 times the amount of the big bet. So if you’re sitting down at a $2 limit game, your bankroll needs to be at least $600 if you want to practice proper money management and stay in good favor with the biggest texas holdem rule.