Small Ball Poker Tournament Strategy
- Small Ball Poker Tournament Strategy Games
- Small Ball Poker Tournament Strategy Rules
- Small Ball Poker Tournament Strategy Tactics
- Small Ball Poker Tournament Strategy Game
I won’t claim to be any sort of poker savant, and while I play the game seriously, I’m not a poker pro by any means. I make the bulk of my living as an advantage-play casino gambler, battling the house in blackjack and video poker for the most part. For me, poker is a way to blow off steam and an escape from the often rote and mechanical world of table game advantage play.
At the poker table, I’m free to mix up my moves, applying creativity in conjunction with strategy to try and outwit my opponents. And while most casino games have long since been mastered through mathematical analysis, Texas hold’em still offers an unpredictable game where random chance, bluffs, and the human element all conspire to influence the outcome.
There is a rule that you should follow when you play poker for real cash or a poker tournament: The best way to play with small pocket pairs after the flop is not to play at all – unless you hit a set. Spending money and risking your poker bankroll to find out if you are in the lead is not smart strategy, and it is very hard to get anything. Get Ready to Make That Call! Poker Tournament Strategy 101. Ask any poker player where the big money is, and they’ll tell you unequivocally: It’s in poker tournaments. The prestige of winning a reputable poker tournament is unbelievable; your name gets recorded in the poker annals of history, and your reputation gets bumped up a few notches. As “Kid Poker” himself observes, most small-stakes daily or nightly tournaments run by local casinos use a turbo structure. In other words, the starting stacks are on the smaller side (5,000 to 10,000 chips, for the most part), while the blinds escalate quite rapidly at 15- or 20-minute intervals.
Discussion Small buy-in local tournament strategy Author Date within 1 day 3 days 1 week 2 weeks 1 month 2 months 6 months 1 year of Examples: Monday, today, last week, Mar 26, 3/26/04. In the low limit tournaments, specifically up to about the $20-$30 range, you are still going to run into a lot of players who simply don't know when to fold. The number of players that will play top pair, middle pair or call draws all in actually dominate the low level buy-ins. Now granted, they are usually the early departed crowd too, but that doesn't mean all of them are gone.
Simply put, I love playing poker for pleasure over profit. Even so, the goal for every poker player is winning – to win this pot, the next one, and eventually, the entire tournament.
I’ve had the pleasure of winning a tournament or two in my day, and let me tell you, there’s nothing quite like it in the world. The adrenaline rush, the sense of accomplishment, and of course, the top prize payout all combine to create an experience you won’t soon forget.
To help you experience that feeling for yourself, I present my guide to dominating small-buy-in poker tournaments.
Game Selection Is Crucial
Be wary of how tough the game you’re in is, and try to avoid the toughest game in the house!”
– Phil Hellmuth, 14-time WSOP bracelet winner
Small Ball Poker Tournament Strategy Games
On my most recent trip to Las Vegas, just a few weeks ago, in fact, I happened to arrive right as two mid-level tournament series were taking place. I had a choice between playing a few prelims at the Venetian DeepStack Extravaganza, or the WSOP-C event at the Rio. Both series offer several events that fall within our small-buy-in classification, and both venues are known for running top-notch tournaments.
Thus, I had two seemingly evenly matched series to choose from.
Based on prior experience playing both, however, it didn’t take long at all to decide on the WSOP-C. Affectionately known as “The Circuit” by touring pros, this offshoot of the larger WSOP travels around the country hosting small-stakes series. Most of the prelims are priced at $365, and each stop is capped off by a $1,675 Main Event.
Conversely, the Venetian DeepStack Extravaganza is an in-house affair, hosted several times each year by the Venetian poker room. But while the buy-ins are almost identical, with a slew of prelims priced at $300 or so and a $1,600 Main Event, tournaments at the Venetian tend to attract tougher tournament players.
Maybe it’s because these guys and gals grind there every night, creating a roomful of card sharps just waiting for tourists like me to saunter in. Or perhaps the bigger-name pros look down on the WSOP-C as the “minor leagues,” so they stay away from the Rio until the real WSOP arrives. In any case, I’ve found the WSOP-C to offer softer competition, so I chose to play there over the Venetian.
That’s just one example, of course, but it illustrates the importance of game selection.
During any series or circuit stop, you’ll have a dozen or more prelim events on the schedule. And in a place like Sin City, there’re usually two or three mid-level series taking place at the same time. Without a sensible approach to game selection, you can easily put yourself at a disadvantage simply by signing up to play much tougher opponents.
In the first WSOP-C Rio event I entered – a $365 No Limit hold’em tournament with re-entries and a $250,000 guaranteed prize pool – I found myself sitting alongside senior citizens and tourists looking for a good time. Don’t get me wrong, there were plenty of competent players on hand, but on an overall scale, the caliber of competition was rather weak.
And while the cards didn’t cooperate for me on that day, a genuine amateur who just happened to be visiting Vegas that week wound up winning the whole shebang. For just $365, Randy Khami outlasted a field of 1,074 entries to take home $57,462 in winnings, along with his first WSOP-C gold ring. For a casual player like Khami, who had never cashed for more than $1,400 before, playing against the softer WSOP-C field gave him a chance to live every poker player’s dream.
On the other side of the Strip, a similarly sized prelim event at the Venetian saw professional Jon Turner take the title. Turner, better known as “PearlJammed” from his days as an online beast, simply added to his more than $2.7 million in live tournament earnings. Confronted with highly talented pros like Turner, players like myself and Khami are the proverbial “dead money” at the table.
Therefore, one of the most important steps you can take toward dominating small-buy-in poker tournaments takes place before you ever buy in. Practicing savvy game selection gives you the best chance to overcome the odds and wind up enjoying a deep run.
Study Your Structure Sheets Closely
I’m not a kid anymore, though, and I find fast paced structures to get boring very quickly.
I simply don’t enjoy the pre-flop aspects of the game nearly as much as the post flop part of the game, but the faster the structure, the less of an opportunity you have to really take advantage of the weaker players at the table.”
– Daniel “Kid Poker” Negreanu, the all-time tournament earnings leader with over $36.5 million in live cashes
Another aspect of game selection that allows you to maximize your ability while limiting your skill liability is studying structure sheets.
As “Kid Poker” himself observes, most small-stakes daily or nightly tournaments run by local casinos use a turbo structure. In other words, the starting stacks are on the smaller side (5,000 to 10,000 chips, for the most part), while the blinds escalate quite rapidly at 15- or 20-minute intervals.
Conversely, a “major” tournament like a series Main Event or higher-priced WSOP prelim gives players larger stacks (15,000 or 20,000) and longer blind levels (30 minutes to one hour).
And within each individual structure, skipping certain blind levels can wreak havoc on the overall gameplay. When the blinds jump from 400/800 to 600/1,200, for example, missing out on that 500/1,000 level instantly shrinks your “effective stack.”
Just in case you’re in the dark on that poker slang, your effective stack simply measures your chip count against the current big blind.
Let’s say you have 10,000 chips when the big blind is set at 100. In this case, you’re sitting on 100 big blinds, which is quite comfortable. You have room to maneuver, make creative plays, and mix it up during post-flop rounds without fear of going broke.
But just a few levels later, with the big blind increased to 500, your 10,000 chips now equate to just 20 big blinds. You’re still doing fine at this point, but your options are much more limited. Any opening raise you make will utilize a decent chunk of your stack, so you have to be much more conservative pre-flop. Players often talk about being “handcuffed” at the 20 big blind or lower level, with their plays reduced to folding or shoving all-in.
Using the same two tournaments mentioned earlier, you can see how a slightly different structure serves to influence the game.
In the $365 buy-in WSOP-C event I played, the starting stack was 10,000 chips, and blind levels lasted 30 minutes each. Level 1 started at 25/50 blinds, and the first antes kicked in at Level 5, with the blinds sitting at 100/200 and a 25-chip ante. Thus, my 10,000 chips were worth 200 big blinds at the beginning, and 50 big blinds when we started anteing up.
But by taking a look at the Venetian structure sheet, you’ll find that a $400 buy-in bought 18,000 starting chips, and the blind levels lasted 40 minutes apiece. The opening blind level was 50/100, and the antes kicked in at Level 4 (100/200/25).
In this case, your 18,000 starting stack was worth 180 big blinds at the outset, slightly less than the WSOP-C event. But when the antes arrived, signaling the real start of any tournament, that same stack held a value of 90 big blinds – almost double what you’d have in the WSOP-C event.
Had I run through these calculations beforehand, I probably would’ve hit the Venetian instead. Those tournaments live up to their DeepStack title, letting players have a lot more wiggle room during the middle and late stages of the game.
Studying structure sheets is an essential poker skill, as you’ll be able to plan ahead to gauge just how shallow or deep your stack will be at any stage.
Look, Listen, and Observe
If you do not focus well, you will miss loads of vital information that will help you adjust to your opponents’ specific tendencies, allowing you to win significantly more money. When playing poker, turn off the distractions and play poker.”
– Jonathan Little, two-time World Poker Tour champion and author of Strategies to Beat Small Stakes Poker Tournaments
With the pregame prep out of the way, it’s time to tackle some actual poker tips.
One of the leading poker instructional authors of the era and accomplished player in his own right, Jonathan Little lays it all on the table in the quote above. Unless you’re willing to play poker, and not just cards, you’ll never be ready to dominate these small-stakes tournaments.
Most players in the modern age come to the tournament table with a backpack, a hoodie, and a pair of headphones. These tools are used to make the long days more comfortable, but for most grinders, they’re also a source of escape.
Let’s face it; Texas hold’em tournaments involve a whole lot of folding, especially in the early stages. With just 10% of hands falling into the “premium” category, you’ll be ditching a ton of 10-2s and 7-3s before the flop. Folding eight out of nine hands during a single orbit can be mind-numbing, to say the least, which is where music, texting, and the overhead TVs come into play.
But while your opponent is zoning out, you should be taking the exact opposite approach. Try to watch every hand play out, even when your cards have long since been mucked.
Watch to see which players are opening several times an orbit, signaling a loose approach to hand selection, and which ones turtle up into a fold-fest. After the flop, try to track an opponent’s continuation bet tendencies. Some will fire a c-bet every single time after opening pre-flop, while others will only continue when they have the goods.
And at showdown, always take advantage of the exposed information available to you. Texas hold’em is all about deception, so learning exactly which two cards an opponent held – and how they played the hand – is invaluable to the thinking player.
Understanding Pre-Ante and Post-Ante Play
Once the antes kick in, if you can win more than your share of preflop pots, you’ve already accomplished much of what is necessary to succeed in tournaments.”
– Nate Meyvis, tournament pro and host of the Thinking Poker podcast
Back in the section on studying structure sheets, I paid special attention to when the antes kicked in – and so should you.
The first few levels of a small-buy-in tournament are essentially meaningless, as the tiny blinds and lack of antes produce pots that just aren’t worth fighting over. Even so, you’ll invariably see players fall by the wayside and go bust before the antes ever start.
I know this because I was one them.
During my most recent trip to the WSOP-C Rio, I succumbed to the same danger I’m warning you about right now – playing too many hands during the pre-ante period. When I sat down to my first table, I was surrounded by players who would be generously described as “casual” players. These were grandparents, tourists, and cash game grinders who just didn’t seem to pose a threat at the time.
My plan was as follows. Mix it up early with speculative hands, play a loose aggressive style, and try to take advantage of my seemingly overmatched opponents. On the very first deal, I picked up A-10 off suit and played it aggressively, especially after flopping a 10-high board. Unfortunately for me, my foe found two pair on the turn, and within one hand, my 10,000-chip starting stack was carved down to 8,250. I wound up chasing from there, trying to catch up, until I was the first one eliminated from that seemingly soft table.
The problem with overplaying the pre-ante levels is readily apparent, but as I proved, even decent players can fall prey. Basically, until the whole table is forced to ante up, the pre-flop pot just doesn’t contain enough chips to justify chasing it aggressively.
Let’s say you’re sitting on that 10,000 stack in Level 3, with the blinds at 75-150 and no ante. The pre-flop pot holds just 225 to begin with, and even if somebody makes the standard 350 opening raise and catches a caller, the pot will only have 775 up for grabs. But more often than not, you’ll be opening for 350 just to win 225, which doesn’t really add up in terms of risk versus reward.
Fast forward two levels to when the first antes have arrived, and the math changes considerably. With blinds of 100/200 and a 25-chip ante, every pre-flop pot (assuming a full nine-handed table) has 525 sitting in the middle. Here, a standard opening raise of 450 gives you a shot to claim 525 chips without a fight, forming a positive risk-to-reward ratio.
For this reason, many of the more skilled players and pros don’t even bother to contest the pre-ante levels. By skipping the pre-ante play altogether, they start the game competing for pots that actually have some value relative to their stack size.
I’m not an advocate of skipping levels, and I always show up on time to play from the start time whenever possible. But still smarting from my early bust-outs at the Rio, I recognize the importance of playing a snug, tight game with antes in play.
Additional Resources
The strategic approaches needed to dominate the middle and late stages of a small-buy-in tournament are about as diverse as it gets. Between different playing styles, in-game circumstances, bankroll considerations, and a whole host of external factors, playing properly is a matter of perspective.
Owing to the fact that I’m not a pro poker player, I figure the best way for you to perfect your mid- and endgame play is by learning from the best.
To that end, I recommend Jonathan Little’s seminal book on the subject: Strategies for Beating Small Stakes Poker Tournaments. You can check it out here, but suffice it to say, Little is the leading authority on teaching recreational players how to take their game to the next level.
He’s written more than a dozen books on poker instruction, but this one focuses on the daily/nightly and prelim events that millions of players call home.
Other books to check out include the Harrington on Hold’em series by WSOP legend Dan Harrington, Ace on the River by bracelet winner Barry Greenstein, and the Thinking Poker podcast by Nate Meyvis. I’d also check out poker tutorial platforms like Upswing Poker, Run It Up, and Run It Once, all of which were pioneered by top-tier tournament pros.
Conclusion
Dominating poker tournaments with a low buy-in is a good goal if you want to eventually become profitable in events with bigger buy-ins. Use this guide to help you start winning more money in low buy-in poker tournaments.
Please enable JavaScript to view the comments powered by Disqus.Everyday players are sitting down at the tables and consistently making fundamental mistakes because of lack of knowledge, misinformation or failing to maintain focus.
Even just a small strategical adjustment in poker can potentially save you a huge amount in the long run.
In this article we will point out some of the best live and online poker tournament strategy tips you can use to improve your game as quickly as possible.
Tip 1: Play The Right Starting Hands
Whether it be lack of patience, or an unfamiliarity with opening ranges, many tournament poker players still open too wide. This is especially true when it comes to early and middle position opens, where there are still many opponents left to act behind who can be dealt a strong hand.
The problem is when called, wide openers are often at a range disadvantage. Often being dominated by their opponents, they are vulnerable to 3 bets since they frequently won't have a holding strong enough to continue under pressure.
Furthermore, although opening a hand like 7 ♠ 5♠ might at times not be a terrible strategy from early or middle position, speculative hands like suited connectors and gappers, as well as small pairs, work best with deep stacks behind.
These speculative hand types infrequently connect strongly with the flop, so those times they do you want to have deep stakes behind to have the potential to win a huge pot. Modern day tournament structures often only see deep stack play occur during the first few levels of play. This leads us into the next tournament poker tip, being stack size aware.
Learn which hands to open raise in MTT's - Watch lesson 6.1 from the Road to Success MTT Course. A power-packed 50 minute video below, just use one of the button options to unlock it and get instant access.
Tip 2: Be Stack Size Aware
Effective stack size plays a critical role in a tournament players success.
Having a deep stack, and therefore expanding an opening range to include a lot of speculative suited hands and small pairs is a tournament strategy that is going to be punished if a number of short stacks are yet to act behind. This most notably occurs in turbo tournaments where the average stack size is quite short.
Short stacks will be in push-or-fold mode. Being short, they don't have time to wait and will be looking to take any opportunity they can to move all-in. This high rate of all-ins will leave wide openers frequently being forced to relinquish their hands, without even having the opportunity to try to hit a nice flop. Problematic hands often include; J8s , KTo and weak Ax hands.
It's not just short-stacks that can cause a problem, aggressive players will be looking to attack wide-openers. This is especially true when a player opens with a vulnerable M8-M14 (20bb-35bb) stack. 3 bets get good leverage against this stack size, since continuing in the pot represents committing a significant portion of a players stack.
Wide openers would be wise not to commit a large percentage of their stack with marginal holdings, and so will be forced to fold, or face being in a high-risk situation. Staying aware of your own stacks utility, as well as anticipating how opponents will utilize their stacks, is an important tournament poker tip to keep in mind.
POKER TIP: If you are currently using BB to calculate stack size, here's a look at why using 'M' is a better MTT strategy.
Tip 3: Be Careful Overplaying In The Early Stages
As a stack gets deeper, the less willing a competent player will be to put their entire stack at risk since they have more to lose. It's rare to see good players all-in during the early stages of a tournament with hands like AKo or JJ preflop.
Smart players recognize that their counterparts aren't going to be risking their entire stack with weaker hands like AQo . Therefore, even a strong hand like AK could be at a significant equity disadvantage facing a deep stacked opponents all-in range. Could you fold QQ here?
Rather than putting in an extra raise, often times just calling with even very strong hands in the early stage of a poker tournament has great benefits.
- Allows your opponents to continue with hands they were folding to a re-raise that you have crushed.
- Disguises the strength of your hand and keeps you unpredictable.
- Prevents you from getting all-in facing a super strong range where often times you're crushed.
Tip 4: Continuation Bet Aggressively But Not Always
Players have learnt the value of c-betting, but it's a strategy that is often misapplied. Being the preflop aggressor shouldn't lead to a mandatory c-bet and double barrels.
This is especially true in multi-way pots yet players continue to make fruitless c-bets with weak holdings into multiple opponents.
Even in heads-up situations, key factors to consider include;
- How does the flop texture interact with players ranges?
- Who has the strongest range?
- Who has nut advantage (the biggest share of super strong hands)?
- How passive or aggressive is the opponent we're facing?
- How does the stack size/SPR allow us to operate on the flop and future streets?
The following hand illustrates the effect nut advantage can have on profitable continuation betting and how it applies to this tournament poker tip:
Tip 5: Be ICM Aware
The Independent Chip Model or ICM, is a great model players use to make more profitable decisions when deep in a tournament and especially at a final table.
Unlike in cash games, chip values fluctuate depending on the stage of the tournament and the competing opponents stack sizes. At it's most extreme, ICM strategy can make A♠A♣: an easy fold preflop.
Imagine a situation in a satellite where 9 players get a World Series of Poker entry and there's 10 remaining. The action folds around to a player with 100,000 in tournament chips who moves all in from the small blind. You're sitting in the big blind with A♠A♣: and also 100,000 in chips. You look around and see a few opponents with only 1000 chips left, which is the size of the current big blind. Obviously one of these short stacks is likely to bust very soon.
Obviously one of these short stacks is likely to bust very soon. Moreover the chance that they collectively out survive your 100,000 stack is extremely remote. You'd likely be a 99% chance to get a WSOP entry, so why would you call with your A♠A♣ and risk busting next around 20% of the time?
Aside from calling too wide in spots when the most profitable strategy is to proceed tightly, the opposite can also be true when it comes to pressuring your opponents. ICM allows players when they have the opportunity to assert pressure on there opponents stacks, to go ahead and do so liberally, since thinking opponents counter-strategy is to play a tight range of hands.
Here's an example of how drastically a hand range can change when the opportunity to assert pressure at a final table exists. 5 of the 6 remaining players at the Pokerstars Sunday Millions have 15bb's, whilst the UTG player has a short 2bb stack. Since the 15bb stacks wants to avoid busting out next and missing out on a large pay jump before the immanent bust out of the 2bb stack, the small blind can adjust their all-in range. Instead of the profitably 57% all-in range in normal play, they can move all-in with 100% of hands to apply pressure on the big blind.
Whilst the big blind should adjust their calling range from the regular 36% to just 10% of hands to account for the ICM effect in play.
The PokerNerve Road to Success course teaches players how to master ICM situations, which is key to tournament poker success since ICM comes into play as the prizes become significant. If there was only one tournament poker tip that you take away from this article, it's that you need to know ICM!
Tip 6: Bet The Appropriate Size
Strong players are capitalizing on their opponents tendencies to bet too big or too small in a number of different situations. With some similar considerations to that of continuation betting, when selecting a bet size important aspects include;
- Which player's range does the board texture favor?
- Who has the greatest nut saturation?
- How does SPR influence our betting strategy
There are many great articles online about bet sizing. You should be sure to check out ThePokerBank's and the Pokerology's to learn more about this tournament tip.
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Small Ball Poker Tournament Strategy Rules
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Tip 7: Take Equity Realization Into Account
Possibly due to the popularity growth of Twitch, many poker players approach to big blind play has evolved. The current trend is to defend the big blind with virtually any 2 cards, as some top pros elect to do, and the justification for this is taking advantage of the excellent pot odds being offered.
While the inclusion of antes combined with commonly seeing a small open raise size does offer the big blind generous pot odds, this has led to a fundamental flaw in the way many players approach big blind play in poker tournaments. The key concept overlooked, is equity realization.
Equity realization reflects a players ability to take a certain hand, and win their share of the pot, frequently enough, to make it profitable in the long-term. Although some top pros have the ability to win their equity share of the pot even out of position, less skilled players rarely do. This leads to a large chip loss in the long run.
It is quite difficult to realize of your equity when out of position, with no initiative and a weak range. This means them glorious odds you are being offered aren't quite as good as you think!
The following article explains this crucial tournament poker tip in more detail; Equity Realization.
Tip 8: Don't Miss Double And Triple Barrel Opportunities
Small Ball Poker Tournament Strategy Tactics
'One and done' is the plight of many aspiring tournament poker players. Everyday at the tables I see players missing profitable opportunities to double, or even triple barrel. Understanding what turn and river cards are advantageous to a players range, along with opponent tendencies, are crucial parts of a winning barreling formula.
The most common scenario at the table, is a heads-up pot where the big blind calls an open-raise. And this happens to be a great spot to barrel. Big blind defenders have a wide range, and it's important to pressure this wide range, especially on only partially connected board textures with one or multiple high cards.
RedChipPoker has a great article on spotting profitable double barrel opportunities which you can read here: THE +EV DOUBLE BARREL GUIDE
Tip 9: Check-Raise More Flops
The biggest difference between the current tournament population, and the future generation, will likely be their approach to check-raising the flop. This opportunity typically occurs in a heads-up pot, after defending the big blind verse an opponents raise.
Currently, MTT players only check-raise the flop in this situation around 7-8% of the time, when closer to 20% is a more optimal strategy. On certain flop textures, check-raising close to 25% of the time is an extremely profitable strategy. And if players are getting out of line with their c-bets, then check-raising at an even higher frequency could be a profitable exploit.
By giving up too easily on a wide range of board textures, or taking a more passive approach and simply calling, c-betting can be done with reckless abandon. However, by selecting a nice mix of check-raising hands, combining some strong hands with some good semi-bluffing candidates, a check-raiser can become tricky to play against and exploit the average players tendency to over c-bet.
POKER TIP: Applied correctly and check-raising becomes a super powerful weapon in your arsenal leading to more profitable poker results. But also think beyond the flop, there's plenty of check-raising opportunities you may be missing. This video demonstrates an interesting turn check-raise situation.
We discuss check raising strategy in more detail in our post over on unfeltedpoker.com.
Tip 10: Develop A Good 3betting Strategy
Whilst 3 betting aggressively is a strategy many players employ, especially in online poker circles, failure to apply optimal 3 betting strategies has certainly led to a lot of spewy poker. Simply attacking opponents who are suspected of opening wide doesn't cut it in the modern poker world.
Players have learnt to deal with 3 bets more profitably, by mixing in some calls with timely 4 bets. Moreover, the role stack size plays when it comes to 3 betting it still largely misunderstood by much of the poker community.
Sure there are certain stack sizes where 3 bets gain a lot of leverage, but how about the role blockers play? And when is 9♦7♦ a better 3 bet candidate than K♦T♠ ? These are just some of the considerations when it comes to a profitable 3 betting strategy. See how to design strong 3betting ranges in this article by Donkr.
Bonus Poker Strategy Tip: Avoid and Deal with Downswings
As a poker player you want to earn your money as easily and as stress-free as possible right? Well, understanding ROI, variance and bankroll management can help (see TopPokerValue's article on bankroll management).
All poker players at some point experience downswings. In some cases, this can affect their play, volume or state of mind.
You'll be miserable, hating poker, playing less and earning less per tournament as your play will suffer.
Along with finding ways that work for you to keep a positive mindset, taking pro-active steps can help keep you confident by knowing you are dealing with the situation like a professional whilst at the same time taking positive action to get back on track and winning.
What is ROI and variance?
Every tournament you enter has an EV associated with it. So if you enter a $10 tourney, as a good player maybe you have a 30% ROI, so you make $3. So it doesn't matter whether you brick that tourney or win it for $5000, you make $3 in the long run.
Now, of course, you don't make $3 each time. 80-85% of the time you lose that $10, some percentage of the time you win a little bit, and some very small percentage of the time you win a lot. How small those ‘small percentages’ are primarily depends on not only your skill edge, but also the field size which is an extremely important concept that is often ignored.
Variance is a factor of two things:
1) Your edge
2) The field size
Example 1)
You play the Hot $55 which has $30K guaranteed, every day for a year on Pokerstars. It has 1600 runners and you have a 5% ROI, because turbo ROIs are small. Your average yearly profit is $605 however you will lose money on the year 55% of the time.
Example 2)
Small Ball Poker Tournament Strategy Game
You play a $20 tourney with $3K guaranteed on a softer site every day for a year. It has 200 runners and you have a 30% ROI, because it's a normal speed tourney and you’re against an easier field. Your average yearly profit is $2400 and in this case you lose money only 12% of the time.
A lot of people would look at those two tournaments and make a decision based on the buy-in and 1st place prize money as to which was better to play, and it would be grossly wrong. Once you accept all the above, you realise that the 'up top' number is largely meaningless.
Yes, on the same site bigger fields may mean a lot of fish have registered to play, but you'll find a lot of small field, soft, non-peak hour tournaments have a great pro-to-fish ratio and hence are great value. Of course once you consider other sites that have smaller fields, you'll often find they are a better choice than what might be running on Pokerstars.
So what can you do?
When players start losing money and along with that, confidence, not only does their game deteriorate but they often compound that problem by failing to make rational decisions. Often losing players, or players on a downswing, go 'bink chasing' and decide to take a shot to win all their money back in one tourney. Or load up some quick $82 hyper-turbos to try to turn it all around quickly.
People get overly fixated on what's 'up top' and wanting to score big in one tournament. That’s a sure-fire strategy to fuel a down swing. If your house got knocked down would you try to slap it back up in a week? Take that opportunity to rebuild a better, stronger house.
Make sure you're adding in some study and keep focused (see Sky's Matsuhashi How To Study Poker series), and stay fresh and positive as you approach each session. Be smart and get back into profit quicker instead of enduring a 6-12 month variance rollercoaster!
Closing Words On Tournament Poker Tips
Poker is a multi-faceted game which makes it fun but challenging. Challenge yourself to factor in the relevant concepts, and make more profitable decisions. Tighten up from the big blind, and in general around the table. This tip often quickly improves a new players results, or those that have a got a little sloppy with their play.
Calculate stack size using 'M'. Always be aware of your own, and your opponents stack sizes so you don't get yourself caught in awkward situations. One awkward situation that often comes up is when you hold an overpair to the board and an opponent puts the heat on you. Don't be afraid to make big lay downs to preserve your stack, especially in the early levels.
Be aware of your cbetting frequency. There's no need to waste tournament poker chips cbetting every time, especially when the pot is multi-way. Pick your spots to make profitable plays. Remember when it comes to the final table, regularly profitable playing ranges might alter due to the payouts. ICM is the key when it comes to those final big decisions.
Another key to success is knowing when to fire multiple bullets at your opponents. Barreling, especially against a wide big blind range can really help increase your non-showdown winnings. Finding ways to accumulate chips without always having the best hand is what top players do. This is why check-raising and having a good 3 betting strategy is so important. Correct use of these strategical concepts and the other tips outlines will get you winning more at the tables.
Now that you've acquired some great holdem tournament strategy tips to help you achieve MTT success, go out there an implement them!
One of the quickest way to improve your poker game is to take on a poker coaching, a course or join a poker training site; if that is something that interests you be sure to check out the PokerNerve road to Success Course for some advanced poker tournament strategy or you can check out HowToPlayPokerInfo's guide on poker training & poker courses to find the right option for you.
Any other poker tournament strategy tips? Leave them below in the comments, we would love to hear them!