 |
HOMEPAGE
>> Free Demo
>> How it looks
>> How it works
>> more...
ONLINE POKER
>> Basic strategy
>> Poker reviews
STRATEGY
>> General strategy
>> Texas Holdem
>> Omaha
>> 7 Stud
>> Betting rounds
>> Tournaments
>> more...
The Bluff
>> Bluffing
>> Higher Limits
>> Semi bluffing
CONTACT
German poker
Poker auf deutsch
French poker
Poker en ligne
Gluecksspiele
Poker & Casino
Casino en ligne
Poker
online
Online Poker
GENERAL POKER STRATEGY - TOURNAMENTS part II
Back to Poker Tournaments - part I
The Bubble
The bubble is one place where the contenders start to really be separated from the pack. The players who regularly make final tables, hit big pay days, and win tournaments are not reaching the bubble and making sure to lock up a paying spot. They are trying to accumulate chips to make a run for the big money reserved for the final few players in a tournament. Top players are willing to bust out on the bubble and win nothing for their efforts, knowing that this is a time when your opponents tendencies can really be used against them.
The bubble is a time to be constantly making raises pre flop. You accumulate chips by winning the blinds and small pots pre flop, not by calling bets or playing big pots. When you are making these bets your opponents have to worry that you will knock them out just before the money starts getting distributed. Many players would rather wait till the bubble bursts before starting to move their chips and build a large stack. Unfortunately, chips are harder to come by at that point and their opponents are more willing to gamble then as well.
How much you can get away with stealing will in large part have to do with the opponents at your table, and their chip stacks. The ideal scenario is playing versus a number of passive opponents with medium to slightly depleted stacks. These sort of opponents should be taken advantage of at every opportunity. Players to use caution against are other players who understand that squeaking into the money with a short stack is not a goal. These players may try to assert dominance and nominate themselves as “table bully”. Ideally you will be able to essentially take turns robbing the weaker players and stay out of each other ways. Players with stacks much larger than yours will also be more willing to play with you. The fear of going broke is eliminated by their large stack. Interestingly, the players with the smallest stacks are also usually more willing to call. They often will know that they have to double up to have a chance to make the money and will take a chance against you, the aggressive player. Focus on the players with slightly small to average chips and you should find yourself in good position to greatly increase your chips. They may know what you are up to but will often choose not to fight anyways.
Late stages
Once the bubble bursts, the late stage of the tournament begins. This is the stage where play becomes very chip stack dependant. If you have been able to build a big stack you can continue to chip away and avoid confrontation to a large degree. You will have to take more risks than you did earlier in the tournament but having a large stack gives you a great deal of flexibility. Continue to try to steal blinds, without jeopardizing your large stack. When players play back at you it is generally better to fold, preserving your stack, rather than try to play a pot with a sub par holding. If you can keep a large stack you may be able to survive in large part by picking up the blinds and antes and slowly continuing to build your chips. At some point you will of course have to play a pot, but a large stack allows you to decide when you do so.
Unfortunately, you will often not have a large stack. Your stack is starting to get small at around 20x the big blind. By the time it reaches 10x the big blind you are very short. Ten times the big blind is where I start to consider myself very short stacked. At this point I will move all in with any hand that I play. I always want to be the first one in the pot, so I have two ways to win. Either everyone will fold, leaving me with the blinds and antes, or I can get called and win at showdown. Those combined possibilities make moving in with a large number of hands profitable. There is a reasonable chance that you will get called, so you should generally move in with a hand that has some showdown value. Any hand with an Ace becomes a candidate for moving in from middle position on. Hands like KQ or KJ become possible all in hands. The blinds are now a large percentage of your entire stack and as such it is a good result to win them without a fight. The better your position, meaning the fewer people between you and the blinds, and the more likely you should be to move all in to try to pick the blinds up. Do not wait until you do not have enough chips to make anyone fold before making your move. If you get this short not only will you have to win every hand you play, but even doubling up will leave you precariously short stacked. This advice on short stack play is correct for any time you find yourself with less that 10 times the big blind, even if it is earlier in the tournament (although it is more common in the later stages).
The Early Stage
Early play in tournaments does not differ much from play in a cash game. Every player has plenty of chips relative to the blinds. It is usually advisable to play fairly tightly during this stage of the tournament. The blinds are to small to be worth going after. That said you do have enough chips to make a few speculative calls pre flop in the hopes of catching a flop and busting someone. The bad players in a tournament are likely to lose all of their chips and it is a good idea to give yourself a chance to win your share of them. I am willing to invest a small amount pre flop with the hopes of hitting a flop and winning a big pot. I am not, however, willing to play a big pot with anything less than a very big hand. The big bluffs and semi-bluffs that become necessary in later stages are in large part a non factor at this stage in the game. Later you will be forced to play big pots with less than big hands but at this stage your job is to try to pick your spots, and if possible increase your chip stack. The most important thing is to not hurt yourself foolishly.