Stop-loss
A stop-loss caps how much you will lose in a session before standing up. It exists to stop tilt and fatigue leaks, not just to protect chips.
In short: A pre-set limit to quit a losing session.
- Category
- Bankroll
- Best use
- Session review and bankroll decisions
- Related page
- Stop-loss calculator
Why Stop-loss matters
A stop-loss caps how much you will lose in a session before standing up. It exists to stop tilt and fatigue leaks, not just to protect chips. Bankroll terms matter because they turn a poker opinion into a risk decision. The question is not whether you feel good enough to play bigger; it is how many buy-ins you have, how violent the game is, and what happens if the next hundred hours run badly.
Worked example
A 2.5 buy-in stop-loss at £500 buy-ins means leaving when you are down £1,250. The useful part is not the label itself; it is the decision it changes. If the example changes your stake, stop-loss, review queue or next study block, write it cleanly in the log.
How to apply it
Start with the buy-in count, not the cash amount. A £10,000 roll means something completely different at £1/2, £2/5 and £5/10. Then set the rule before the session: when you move up, when you move down, and how many buy-ins a shot can cost. For Stop-loss, the practical question is whether the label changes a bankroll, session or study decision. If it does not change a decision, it belongs in a note, not in the headline read.
In a session log, bankroll work lives in stake, buy-in, stop-loss and shot notes. Overshove keeps those fields tied to the actual sessions, so later you can see whether a rule protected the roll or was ignored during heat. Use the same spelling every time, then link it back to stop-loss calculator so the page, calculator or guide beside the term does useful work.
Common mistakes
- +Sizing a roll in cash while forgetting the current buy-in.
- +Taking a shot without a fixed drop-back point.
- +Changing the rule mid-downswing because the graph feels personal.
Questions players actually ask
How should I use Stop-loss in a session log?
Use Stop-loss as a decision label, not decoration. Log the raw session first, then attach the term only where it explains a stake, bankroll, variance or study choice you can review later.
What is the common mistake with Stop-loss?
The common mistake is reading the term without the sample and context behind it. In live cash, a clean label still needs stake, hours, stack depth, cost and result data before it tells you anything reliable.