Zero to Hero: How to Build Your Poker Bankroll from Scratch
3 minutes
Last Updated: August 18, 2024
From time to time, motivational poker stories of players who made it to the top after starting from scratch come to light. While these are great to hear, achieving such success requires massive effort, discipline, and dedication.
That said, if you want to give yourself the best chances of succeeding when playing online poker for real money, building a poker bankroll from scratch, is one of the most important things you need to ensure. In this article, we’ll share the most important aspects to help you create a big poker bankroll with little to no starting funds.
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Bonus £40 Freeor £600 bonus - Trigger the bonus: You need to deposit at least £10 and generate £10 in rake to trigger the FREE training bonus. | 18+ | BeGambleAware T&Cs Apply
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Bonus $600or $100 tickets
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18+ | BeGambleAware T&Cs Apply | Read full T&Cs
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Use Freeroll Tournaments
Many players who try to build their poker bankrolls from scratch turn to freeroll poker tournaments as one of the best ways to do so. A freeroll poker tournament is a competition you can enter without putting any cash into it. This makes it a perfect option for poker players strapped for cash and looking to increase their bankroll.
Of course, since players compete without paying entry fees, the prizes are often fairly small, so you shouldn’t look for life-changing amounts in these competitions. Still, these tournaments are an excellent way to practice against other players and play in a pressure-free environment, as you have nothing to lose.
Take Advantage of Online Bonuses and Promotions
Even if you’re starting entirely from zero and don’t have any money to deposit into the poker site, you can find no deposit bonus offers you can use to get some funds and create a bankroll. These bonuses will often be a couple of dozen dollars at most, but it’s still free money that gives you a running start.
Moreover, if you’ve already formed a bankroll, you can use deposit bonuses and boost your bankroll with free bonus money. All of these bonuses come with playthrough requirements. But, as you’re aiming to build your bankroll, you will gamble with the bonus funds anyway, so the requirements won’t limit your experience in any way.
Set Realistic Expectations
When building a bankroll from scratch, it’s essential to be patient and set realistic expectations. Sure, you might win thousands with the bonus you claim or score a big win in a freeroll tournament. But, these are outliers that many poker players don't experience.
If you really want to go from Zero to Hero, consistency is the name of the game. While this might not sound as exciting and glamorous as an instant big win, it’s undoubtedly the most effective way to constantly increase your poker bankroll.
The best way to do this is to set realistic goals for every session. For example, if you have a $100 bankroll, aim to add 10% to it in your session. Then, repeat the process the next day.
Once you get into the thousands, this 10% will be more and more substantial. This compounding effect will help you grow your poker bankroll quicker and quicker without risking losing a sizable amount in any given session.
Don’t Risk Too Much Of Your Bankroll
When building your poker bankroll from scratch, every dollar matters. Again, the way to go from zero to a big bankroll is to be consistent in the long run. Ideally, never risk more than 3% to 5% of your bankroll. This might seem like too little, but it’s the only way to build your bankroll from nothing without experiencing massive oscillations.
Remember, if you lose 50% of your bankroll, you’ll need to increase your bankroll by 100% just to get to the same point. This will set you back and require you to lose even more time grinding back to get even.
To avoid experiencing such situations, keep tight bankroll management and never risk a substantial chunk of your bankroll during a single session.
Don’t Withdraw Money As You Increase Your Bankroll
A common mistake many players make is withdrawing a portion of their bankroll once it reaches a certain value. Doing this will only prolong the process and make it more challenging for you to build a more substantial bankroll.
With that in mind, you should avoid withdrawing money from your bankroll. Instead, look at your bankroll as an investment you constantly want to increase.
With hard work and discipline, you will give yourself the best chance of building a big bankroll. Then, you can start withdrawing and enjoying the perks of your dedication.
