It’s sometimes easy to forget about basic blackjack bankroll management when at the table, trying to beat the dealer and stick to a strategy and a plan. However, like all casino games, money management plays a huge part in playing successfully and must never be overlooked. Protecting your bankroll means that on bad days, and every single player will have them, you’ll have some put aside and enough money to begin again on another occasion, and hopefully on that next occasion things will go a little better for you.
The Basics of Bankroll Management
Blackjack strategy is one thing, and managing your money is another, and although to a certain extent the two are linked, you should never overlook the importance of your bankroll management skills as they will play a big part in your success, or ultimate failure. Very importantly, you must be playing at the stakes level that your bankroll allows you to, and spending the correct amount of time at the table. In a long online blackjack session, you’ll want to stay as long as possible without busting your bankroll, as this will help you meet any wagering requirements that you may have on a bonus, and it will also build up those valuable comp points, that may be turned into real cash. You will of course need to take enough money to the table to cover your session, and this depends on what stake you wish to play at, for example, if you intend on playing $1.00 per hand, then $20.00 may last a while, but should you be playing $5.00 a hand, then $20.00 could be gone in a matter of minutes, giving you no chance to turn things around.
Set Your Loss and Your Win Limits
That’s right...set a win limit as well as a loss limit. Many blackjack players will login to their online casino with an amount in mind that they are prepared to lose. It is always better to begin with both a loss and a win amount, and there is nothing at all wrong with walking away somewhere in the middle of those two amounts. Set a realistic win amount, something that you can actually achieve, for example, should you be taking $100 to the table then $200 is an achievable amount to end with. Once you hit that amount, walk away. This may be hard to do if you feel that you are on a roll, but you will be thanking yourself for it later, as the house edge means that you will inevitably hit a losing streak, and there is nothing like the feeling of not hitting that streak and closing the blackjack table with a nice win.
Finally, blackjack is supposed to be fun, and should you hit a few bad days, then take a break and come back another time. Never bet with more than you can afford to lose, and remember that even the best gamblers in the world take breaks, look at their last sessions of play and return at a later date.