How High is Too High?

I have received many queries lately asking about the proper limits to play. There is no cut-and-dry answer for that, at least not one of which I am aware. There are many things to figure out and many figures to figure! What may be the right amount of money to risk for one player may not even be in the ballpark for another. Since everyone has his own personal income and reason for playing, everyone will also have his very own personal hell, that being his pain threshold. What am I talking about? Let me explain.

At some point in time during your poker-playing career, you found a limit at which you were comfortable. Perhaps you have not yet found it. If you still don't know what limit to play, stepping up your limit obviously would be putting the cart before the horse. If that is the case, you need to determine what your playing ability is, and which games are available in the areas where you have the opportunity to play. If you are a novice player (which I must assume to be the case if you don't know which limit to play), I suggest playing in the smallest game possible. The game that affords you the most bang for the buck with the least amount of financial exposure is the best training ground for you. Then, when you find out what it's all about, you can progress to slightly larger games.

This topic has been addressed before, and is not really what I wanted to discuss, so I will try to get back to the point. How high is too high, and when is it time to step up? As is the case with nearly all poker questions (and you are gonna hate me), it depends! OK, now that I got that off my chest, let me explain. What are the reasons for moving up in limits? There are several, including to receive more thrills and excitement, to make more money, better games, better game selection, and an increased chance to really learn something about the game while playing the game. Each player should determine his own motivation for playing and the answer is simpler. If you have plenty of money, are not particularly results-oriented, and play poker to "gamble and get the rush," your reasons for playing higher limits will be a lot different than mine were as I played at new and higher limits during my poker growth. I am not qualified to address that motive, as it is not something I really know anything about, since I do not play for the rush. I play to win. Very simply, I want the money.

I think the way that I moved up in limits and why I have stayed where I am for quite a while is typical of many middle-limit players today. Most of them either make a living playing poker (and therefore are real poker professionals) or augment other sources of income. I started playing poker in Las Vegas in the mid-'70s, and played $1-$3 seven-card stud exclusively. That was all I played for many years. I kept very accurate records and knew exactly where I stood in regard to my gaming money. I also had a job at the time as a poker dealer, so my opportunities to play were frequent. Since I kept records, which is very important, I knew that if I was losing, playing higher would not be the right move – unless I hated money, of course. As my records indicated that I was beating the game over time, I branched out and picked up another game, rather than playing higher. I started playing Texas hold'em. Back then, the smallest game was $3-$6, so I was playing higher due to the game change, not really because I wanted to kick it up. As I began beating this game, I moved up to the $5-$10 limit. This is really where I found that the caliber of play improved a great deal, but I already had logged lots of hours by this time, and had many winning years under my belt. I had been playing Las Vegas casino poker for more than 10 years by the time I reached the red chips (yellow chips for you Californians).

I have now been playing in legal poker rooms for 25 years, and have found some limits at which I am totally comfortable. I play mostly the $15-$30 and $20-$40 games, and if I am playing Omaha eight-or-better, it is usually with a half-kill (which brings the game up to $30-$60 sometimes). I have dabbled in the higher games, and you know what? I hated it. There have been times when I was on the road and there were no games available in my comfort zone or the lists were too long. In those instances, I played higher, perhaps $30-$60 or $40-$80. I have a very good winning record in those games, but guess what I learned about myself from playing in them? I don't have the need or desire to risk that much money, and when I lose, it really hurts. I don't mean just a sting – I mean, it hurts! It is beyone my pain threshold, where I can play good poker and enjoy the game. I have found that in the higher-limit games, the joy of winning more money is not enough to outweigh the horrible feeling I have when I lose large sums of money.

It is important to know what motivates you to play. Look into your soul and study your playing records. If you are a winning player, and have been one long enough to stand the test of time, it may be time to move up in limits. However, when you hit the wall in regard to the dollar amount of a loss that hurts, you will know it, trust me. Some players for whom I have great respect advocate playing higher and higher as long as you are beating the game. They don't understand why I can beat a game regularly and be satisfied with staying at the same limit … why I don't feel the need to play higher. Well, I can't answer that for anyone but myself. I dislike the pain much more than I like the rewards. Class dismissed.

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