Dave Mabe

The Shift to Systematic Trading — Building Backtested Confidence · Dave Mabe

Dave Mabe, Tessa

Veteran trader Dave Mabe explains his transition from discretionary to a fully systematic gapping breakout framework, demonstrating how automation can scale annual trade frequency tenfold while increasing profits five times. He warns that maintaining capital size during drawdowns is critical, as reducing exposure often deepens losses and delays recovery, while advocating for forward testing with small positions to validate system logic. Mabe further emphasizes the necessity of developing uncorrelated strategies and leveraging AI tools for code generation to avoid over-optimization and ensure robust, long-term performance.