The following quick tips will give you a head start in poker tournaments if you are a beginner. They are in no particular order but might save you some tournament buy-ins if you remember to use them!

AJ – In the Muck!

Early in a tournament you may find that you wait for a hand then see the attractive AJ staring at you. This can be tempting to play but is a bit of a Kournikova (looks good but rarely wins!) Unless you are playing a deep stack tournament, or enjoy limping in and have good post flop skills, muck this hand! It will lead you to uncomfortable spots early in the tournament often against aggressive players who bet, bet, bet and your hand suddenly feels weak. Even if you flop top pair and have Jacks with Ace kicker, you worry about the pocket Queens, Kings or Aces as these are normally the only hands tight players raise with early in a tournament. If you pair your Ace this suddenly feels vulnerable because of your Jack kicker.

Know your Tournament ‘M’

Your tournament M is a concept introduced to the poker world in the Harrington on Holdem poker tournament books. If you are playing with blinds of 75/150 and have a stack of 2250, you have an M of 10. This means you can survive ten rounds of poker without playing a hand before busting. Knowing your M gives you vital clues on whether you need to be more aggressive to quickly build chips, or whether you have a comfortable stack and can wait for a better hand. If you M shrinks below five, it’s time to ship those chips and go all-in.

Position, Position, Position

The poker gods will tempt you with marginal hole cards given out of position, but remember it is far easier to make a decision in position after your opponent acts rather than making a bet only to be re-raised. You then realise that every street could see a re-raise coming and perhaps you could fire barrels on each street thus forcing yourself into an all-in confrontation you do not want. Especially early on in a tournament, when the blinds are low, play in optimal spots only, with good starting hands.

Calling An All-In Bet is Different to Pushing All-In

Whilst you may push with strong draws or semi-bluffs later in the tournament, remember to only call off an all-in bet in spots where you believe you are either ahead or have the correct odds to call. Taking a flip for your tournament life will lead to you busting out sometimes, so appreciate the difference between making an all-in bet and facing one. You may fold a hand you would shove with if first in, there is that much difference in calling off or pushing first.

Watch Those Stacks

It is much easier online to know the stack of your opponent, however, learn to observe who the middle stacks are in live tournaments also as these are the vulnerable stacks that you can steal the blinds from. Try and avoid tangling with the large stacks with anything less than a premium hand as they may be bullying the table and make large raises you find difficult to call. Do not be passive however if you do hold a good hand.

Shoot For the Top Three Finish

This is where the big profits are made in poker tournaments. Even in a very small tournament where the smallest cash is for cents rather than dollars you will see players desperately trying to sneak into the money. Take advantage of the bubble to build a stack to make a run at the top prizes. It is probably the only time players play like they would live, when online. The top three spots always have a noticeable jump in prize money compared to the other prizes. Remember the words of top professional poker player Anton Filippi; “To win you must be willing to die”. This attitude will see you clean up when the luck is in your favour.

Good luck in all your poker tournaments, check out bwin.com for more information on their excellent tournament schedule.

By Malcolm Clarke