This section will not give you an introduction to playing tournaments
if you have never played a tournament before. It will neither make
you an expert in tournament poker winning the WSOP bracelet.
It will, however, point out a few issues to make you a better tournament
player. Please read through, remember and reflect over it the next
time you play a poker tournament at and you will be
able to improve your game.
Tips, tricks & more
Luck
To win a large multi table tournament you will have to play for a
long time. If you're relying on chance, eventually your luck will
run out! Reduce the risks by considering all possible scenarios. One
mistake can expel you from the entire tournament.
When you play aggressively, people will be waiting for a chance to
take you down with a monster hand. Beware of when this happens to
avoid running into a brick wall, losing all your chips.
Trapping
No Limit Play has a lot to do with trapping. Don't be obvious
with your cards pre-flop and play to trap opponents with monster hands!
You can play slightly looser if you don't risk being raised.
Pot Odds
Use the no-limit bet to make sure no one gets pot odds to outdraw
you.
Remember that the implied odds can be very high in No Limit games.
(Potentially the opponents entire stack.)
If you’re raising someone who is playing short-stacked, consider forcing
him to go all in. It will reduce the risk of getting called down and
make sure he/she doesn’t get a second chance.
Strategy Change
The blind increase will alter the correct strategy for each and every
hand. If your stack is low compared to the blinds, you will have to
take a chance sooner or later and your plan should be to make it at
the right moment. When you do act, you should do it aggressively!
Opponent's stacks are extremely important – you're
more likely to be called on an all-in by someone who possesses substantially
more chips than you are by someone with substantially less. Be aggressive
against short-stacked players.
A special circumstance in tournament games is that you actually know
the opponents total bankroll, (at least for a particular game). This
means that you more easily can put yourself in his/her situation when
you are dominating a player with high bets you are hoping he/she shall
fold to.
Drying Out
Consistently betting and folding to a larger and aggressive bet pre-flop
may prove costly. Avoid this by playing tight seated before aggressive
players.
