How do you guys deal with moving down in stakes?

Long story short Jan was my worst poker month ever and I lost more than 10k between running bad, playing bad, and taking shots at 5/10nl while in Vegas and 5/5plo at home. Roll is pretty short and I don't want to play 1/2 because of the ego hit. Dealers/players saying "no 2/5 tonight?" would drive me nuts. I know the right thing to do at this point (2k roll) is to move down until I have about 4 or 5k but i'm really unhappy about doing so.

Thoughts? Comments? Advise?

man and deal with it

also you were playing way way under rolled, this was inevitable. learn from your mistakes.

you probably just don't play or post well!

I would definitely move down if I was in your situation. Say that you have a propbet going with a fish that says 1-2 is unbeatable if they ask why you're playing 1-2.

Yes it sucks and ego is a hell of a thing, but you know what you need to do and 4 buyins is destined to end badly.

The peer pressure to stay high is what keeps the games so good. Regs who do not want to play in game that they might beat since they'd look foolish sitting at the kiddy table kept me alive from '03--08.

Being proud with no bankroll < playing a game below your perceived skill level. Fortunately, the regs from the paragraph above could replenish at will.

Holy ****. Playing 2/5 regularly with 2k would be a disaster.

Well, maybe you guys are right about playing nit with a 100 stack at 1/2.

I had a 650 dollar upswing, then a 750 dollar downswing. Though buying in for 300 that's a miniscule swing, for me it's horrible. I probably shouldn't play until I earn enough at my job to set 2k aside for poker.

Though I don't think I hit a single set in the last 60 hours of playing, and have had the chance lots of times. Since that's a huge part of the nit strategy, I could just be running bad, or run-bad mixed with tilt.

Do you guys like Ed Miller's cash games book? I have NLTaP by Sklansky, but I've read that that's really more for middle stakes. I remember the first time I read it, it felt a bit too in depth.

Btw, I'm mostly a nit because I'm used to playing PLO8 where donkeys will literally GIVE you their money, and all you have to do is wait.

I'm wondering how to properly exercise a stop-loss. Say my stop-loss at 1/2 is going to be 2 BI. So I go to the casino with $400, buy in for $200. Say after a few missed cbets, etc, my stack gets close to $100, so I top off to $200. Then we get felted KK vs. AA or something. Now we have only $100 left.

Do we call it a day, down 1.5 bi's? Do we play shortstacked? Or do we have an extra hundo in our pocket for situations like this?

I call it a day once I can no longer keep a full stack

If you pull out an extra hundred, then your potential loss is now $500, not $400, so that is not adhering to your stop loss.

Your options are either move into short stack mode with the last $100 or call it a day. Very little good can come from playing the last $100. More often than not, you bleed down to $80, then $60, and then you are that guy who is obviously just going to stick around until you run out of money. Don't be that guy.

Cliffs...call it a day.

At 1/2 I use a 2 buy in stop loss, but it's really a $500 stop loss because I always do make sure my chips are topped up at 1/2.

However, if I hit the felt twice, $200 and then $200, I leave.

I just can't stand sitting with a stack lower than $170 at 1/2 ever.

Thanks guys

what does this even mean

If I do not have enough money left to keep my stack at 100bbs then I leave

how would that happen? like you dont bring your full bankroll with you to the game?

If you are bringing your entire bankroll to a game you are either really under rolled or a security hazard.

atm?

Lol you serious?
Who the **** takes their whole BR to the casino...? Unless your BR is like 3BI.
Also putting your BR in a checkings account is not the best idea for a ton of people...
Also paying $4 for atm fees is dumb lol

most atms only let you get $500 and you end up paying large fees at a casino.

Bad habit to use them imo. Bring an appropriate amount for the game you plan on playing. If you lose that its probably a good idea to call it a night.

yea you guys are right

wasnt thinking

I usually bring 6 buyins
Backer has different ideas about that so I bring what I am allotted and I leave when I can no longer maintain the table max or a 100bb stack, whichever is smaller

how often do you go -5.5 BIs or whatever?

Five full 100bb buyins?

Close to never. I usually give up after the third one. I've been stuck 6 buyins in a 1/3 game though. Those game are so monotonous and easy that staying and playing is almost always plus ev unless u tilt alot. The "bad image" thing is a joke. If people call you down lighter than usual just tighten up and value bet wider and bigger post. Ez game. I like it when people call me down with junk tbh.

interesting. cool, thanks for sharing man i always value your advice

I think it's -ev for most to play past the 2nd felting at 1/2 or 1/3...

Playing past a third felting, you're moving into a potential "catastrophic session" that can crush your bankroll or win rate.

It seems just so much easier to "play with the lead" than "play from behind" during a session.