 So how’d he do it?
Starting with nothing but a Full Tilt Poker account, Chris played in Freerolls until he earned enough to graduate to games with a real-money buy-in. From there, Chris built up his bankroll by adhering to this strict set of guidelines:
He never buys into a cash game or a Sit & Go with more than 5 percent of his total bankroll (there is an exception for the lowest limits: he is allowed to buy into any game with a buy-in of $2.50 or less).
He doesn’t buy into a multi-table tournament for more than 2 percent of his total bankroll, but he’s allowed to buy into any multi-table tournament that costs $1.
If at any time during a No-Limit or Pot-Limit cash-game session the money on the table represents more than 10 percent of his total bankroll, he must leave the game when the blinds reach him.
As you can see on the next chart, getting started wasn’t easy. In fact, it took more than seven months of steady play until he got his bankroll to stabilize at about $6.50.
Then, on November 26th, 2006, Chris made a major breakthrough, turning a $1 tournament buy-in into to $104 in prize money by finishing second in a 683-person tournament. Even with that huge bankroll boost, it still took Chris nine more months of hard work to reach his current level.
Remember that when you play in a game or tournament that is above your head, you are putting your entire bankroll at risk. If you plan ahead and play smart, you will be able to survive any bad beat or lousy run of cards without being crippled. Chris Ferguson knows this, and now he’s out to prove it. | 
