 |
|
 Poker Tournament Tips |
|
|
Overview
Poker tournaments are exciting, multi-round
events that can vary in length, type,
structure, and size. Players contribute a
set amount of cash to the house and the
tournament's prize pool, and in return,
receive a number of poker chips for use
during the tournament.
Tournaments operate on the basis of
eliminating players who run out of chips. At
regular intervals, the blinds, antes, or
limits are raised to make the game more
difficult and eliminate more players.
Depending on the type of tournament, it's
important to adjust your strategy according
to the different rules and costs.
|
| |
Key Tournament Terms:
- Entry Fee
: The fee a player pays
to the house. This is a relatively small
amount of money in comparison to the
buy-in.
- Buy-In
: The amount of money it
costs after paying the entry fee to
participate in a poker tournament and
receive chips. Chip amounts vary for each
tournament and the buy-ins are added to
the tournament prize pool.
- Re-buy
: The option to buy
additional chips. Rules vary regarding the
amount of chips a player may have in their
possession in order to buy more.
- Add-on
: Option for purchasing more
chips at certain times during the
tournament regardless of the amount of
chips in a player's possession.
- Prize Pool
: The total amount of
prizes and money up for grabs at a
tournament, consisting of all the player
buy-ins, add-ons, and re-buys, in addition
to the amount contributed by the
tournament host.
- Round
: The amount of time
specified in a tournament for each betting
limit. Length varies from tournament to
tournament, often according to tournament
size.
|
| |
A Look at Poker Tournament Strategy
To begin formulating a tournament strategy,
you first have to be aware of the different
phases that occur and are relevant to game
play. The easiest way to approach tournament
strategy is to divide the process into four
parts, starting with Pre-Tournament
decision-making, looking at the beginning
and middle stages, and ending with the final
stage.
1. Before the Tournament:
Pre-Tournament Decision Making
There are many different types of poker
tournaments, so the first step is to be very
clear on what type of tournament you're
entering.
- Major Tournaments:
Large
tournaments that last for an extended
period of time, such as one week up to one
month with larger buy-in fees.
- Minor Tournaments:
Much smaller
tournaments that usually last for three
days. Buy-ins are cheaper than in major
tournaments.
- Free Roll Tournaments:
There is no
buy-in fee required for entry into the
tournament.
- Re-buy Tournaments:
Players are
given the option during a certain period
to purchase more chips, usually for the
same price as the original buy-in. Each
tournament has different re-buy rules
regarding how many chips a player must
have in order to purchase more, and
another issue is whether or not the
tournament allows for multiple re-buys, or
a one-optional re-buy. When the period for
re-buys ends, the tournament becomes a
Freezeout.
- Guaranteed Tournaments:
Guarantees
from the start that a certain amount of
money will be in the prize pool,
regardless of how many players buy-in to
the tournament.
- Satellite Tournaments:
A one-table
tournament that's used for the purpose of
awarding winners with buy-ins to major
tournaments.
- Shootout:
A player must defeat all
players at his table before advancing to
the final round. All finalists play
against each other in a freeze-out format
until only one player remains.
- Freezeout:
Players who run out of
chips are eliminated. As seats open up,
tables are combined together until there
is only one player remaining. Players in
the top remaining positions receive a
percentage of the prize pool on a
predetermined scale.
[Note: It's important to check the
blind/ante structure before the tournament.
This is to make sure you understand the
structure and know how frequently it
changes.]
|
| |
2. Beginning Stages of the Tournament
Depending on the type of tournament, players
will have a general tendency either to play
more aggressively in the early stages or
very tight.
Re-buy tournaments, due to the fact that
players can purchase more chips during
re-buy periods, are played much more loosely
and aggressively. The cost of blinds towards
the beginning of the tournament is fairly
low, which allows players much more leeway
when deciding which hands to play. Again,
factoring your cost allowance versus
aggressive playing is important for finding
the proper balance somewhere in-between
both. It may be worth the risk to invest up
to five percent of your stack to see the
flop on marginal hands for the chance of
doubling what you have. This is only toward
the beginning of the tournament when blinds
are still affordable and you know that you
won't let yourself put in more than 5% of
what you have on a small pair.
Now, if you have a decent hand pre-flop such
as an Ace-King, it's better to play a bit
more conservatively. Firstly, this allows
you to minimize your losses if the flop
doesn't work out, and secondly, if you flat
call and manage to hit it big after the
flop, you enjoy the benefit of disguise.
This is your best bet since you most likely
won't be able to get other players to fold
by raising them, especially if you're
sitting in late position.
In general, pre-flop betting strategy should
be slightly loose but relative to your stack
for the chance of early chip accumulation,
but post-flop strategy should be played
tighter, particularly if you're not positive
that you are ahead and will be wasting
another bet that could've been saved. In
these types of cases, save the bet and lose
the pot rather than risk losing both.
Keep in mind that your main focus in the
beginning stages of a tournament should be
to keep a decent stack of chips so that
you'll be in a secure position for the
upcoming rounds.
|
| |
3. Middle Stages of the Tournament
Towards the middle of the tournament,
significant changes in the blinds need to be
taken into account. Blinds will be raised
and you'll be required to invest a larger
chunk of your chip stack as the rounds
continue. This affects your playing strategy
because the general tendency here is to try
to win the blind by raising immediately. In
order to call, you will have to invest a
significant amount of money, which is not a
smart move to make if your hand is weak.
Smart players will fold immediately if they
have nothing to go on. Remember that
tournaments are a matter of survival, and if
you're wasting your chips on weak hands at
this stage, you probably won't last long.
To recap, your best bet if you're in early
position is to aggressively make the first
raise, but if another player makes the
raise, play tight and fold immediately if
you have a weak hand.
|
|
|
4. The Final Stage
In order to make it to the final round, you
should shoot for winning the blinds at least
once per round. If you succeed, you'll be in
a position where the increasingly high
blinds leave you in a critical position with
your chips and requires skillful short-hand
play. The best strategy at this stage is to
take stock of where you stand with your
chips and how close you are to the prize
money according to the tournament's prize
structure. If you have a decent amount of
chips, your focus should be on eliminating
the other players by playing aggressively.
If not, play conservatively and call only if
you have a strong hand. It's important at
this stage to know realistically what's
possible and to adjust your strategy to aim
for that goal.
|
|
|
General Tips
Regular poker-playing tips apply here, in
addition to some of the adjustments
necessary for tournaments. It's important to
increase your stack slowly throughout the
tournament. Going for the big wins early on
may be repairable if you don't succeed, but
later on, too much aggressive playing will
get you eliminated before you realize you've
made a mistake. Observe your opponents'
betting patterns in different situations as
the tournament progresses to get an idea of
their style of play. Make a good opponent
model so you'll know exactly when to push
and when to bluff.
If it's a Single Table Tournament:
- Be careful of playing aggressively on
suited connectors. Their value is lower
than expected since people are going to
be short stacked, so if you still decide
to call, only do so at the beginning of
the tournament.
- Pay attention and keep track of the
players you're competing against since
you may run into them again if you
continue playing single table
tournaments with the same buy-in.
It it's a Multi Table Tournament:
- If you're short stacked and it's
already much later on in the tournament,
consider going all in pre-flop to try
and steal the blinds even if your hand
isn't looking so great, rather than
waiting and going all in on the flop.
- There tournaments are long and last
awhile, so be prepared for a full-day
event and pace yourself. Place your bets
wisely.
The best tip of all is perhaps the most
cliché, but it still deserves mentioning: PRACTICE!
Good Luck!
|