There are few things more thrilling than discovering poker for the first time. Anyone with a good head for games will instantly want to play as much as they can. Online poker sites like Bono PokerStars offers them round the clock games and an account always ready to accept more money.

If you're not careful, things can quickly spiral out of control. The history of the game is littered with players with well intentioned grinders who watch their bankroll quickly ebb away into nothing.

After grasping the fundamentals of the game, the next thing you need to master is bankroll management. The key is in knowing what stakes you should buy-into to keep you cash protected. Stepping outside of your comfort zone without good fiscal foundations is a one way ticket to disaster.

Russian player I7AXA had certainly mastered the skill element of the game. Last week, he took down 2nd place in PokerStars Sunday Million. It certainly made downloading the PokerStars Скачать worthwhile. This landmark finish paid out a massive $148,343 to a player who had previously only dreamed of stepping beyond low limit poker.

As for bankroll management, it's a totally different story. I7AXA took his $140k straight into the $5,000 Heads Up sit and gos frequented by the best in the business. He spent an entire day playing against these top pros and didn't come of out of it looking good.

Over the course of a few hours he halved his bankroll down to $70,000. The very best players make their living in these games, so it's no surprise to see a rank amateur struggling to make a profit.

At this point the Russian enjoyed a little good fortune, suddenly building his stack back up to around $100,000. Most players would probably call themselves lucky to have lost less than half their roll and call it a night, but that wasn't how things played out. I7AXA continued to grind the highest stakes, eventually shipping almost his entire roll.

He was later seen playing $200 heads-up tournaments, after almost all his money had gone. It didn't end there, however, and he was seen in $30 heads up games before the day was over.

In only one day, I7AXA had gone from zero to hero. In an epic trail of disaster that stands as a monument to what not to do, the Russian had lost his entire Sunday Million payout in less than 24 hours. We might see him moving to the Everest Poker download shortly, in order to cover his shame.

Poker forum members were quick to praise a fellow degenerate for his impressive feat and to criticize the inexperienced player for a total lack of bankroll management. Keep a tight leash on your account balance, or else you could become the next I7AXA.