Betting can be a lot like a woman.

Once you think you’ve got it all figured out, it can turn on you in a hurry. I got that reminder about a month ago. Things were going great in 2010 as I’d nearly doubled my bankroll from the start of the year.

Then, all of a sudden, I felt like I couldn’t win. It was one of those losing streaks that every bettor, no matter how good they are, encounters from time to time. Within a few weeks, I’d given back a good chunk of my earnings from this year. It’s not like I was doing anything different, either. I was still betting the same amount per game as I always do, I wasn’t chasing losses by betting on games because I felt I was due, I wasn’t taking a lot more heavy favourites or big underdogs.

I just wasn’t getting the breaks, losing pretty much every baseball game that went to extra innings or any football game that went down to the final minutes.

But the good news is, I’m still in the game. Actually, things have restabilized over the past week as I’ve gone on a pretty hot run, regaining about a quarter of what I lost during that cold streak.

Overall, I’ve still increased my bankroll by about 35 per cent from the start of the year. Considering my goal at the beginning of 2010 was to build my bankroll by 50 per cent, I’m still pretty much on schedule. It just reemphasizes how crucial it is to manage your money properly. No matter how well things are going, they can turn around in the blink of an eye. But by staying disciplined (I bet about 1.5 per cent of my bankroll on almost every play), you can survive those cold streaks and right the ship again.