
Satellite Poker Tournaments and Tips for Success
A great way to play poker tournaments with a lot of money or with little or no money is to participate in satellite tournaments. All the major online poker rooms run them. Simply put a satellite poker tournament that offers a number of seats for a larger one. A disciplined and strategic approach allows you to work up to a slice of big money. Here is how.
An initial consideration you must make is to understand the structure. You may be offering a guaranteed number of seats for the next step, for example. Once you know the cut-off point to ensure your progression, this becomes your goal as there are often no cash prizes in a satellite poker tournament. All you need is that place for the next round.
The number of seats offered at later stages will affect your strategic decisions, as satellites by nature tend to be very similar to multi-table tournaments. Always be aware of how many seats are offered and where the cutoff point is. Your only goal is to secure one of these places, not to win.
In the early stages, play a tight game to preserve your chip stack qq online, unless you have an absolute one-handed monster and are the overwhelming favorite to win the hand. Use the table position wisely. Let all-in traders eliminate themselves and narrow the field for you. Each of your eliminated opponents takes you one step closer to your goal of securing one of these guaranteed progression places.
In the middle stages, now that the field has shrunk, your game may depend on your chip stack. If in the early states you hit great cards and were lucky enough to accumulate a large stack of chips, you can sit back and choose your moments to get involved. If you have a medium sized stack, choose your fights carefully as you still need tokens. Try not to get involved with big stack players who can eliminate you, and instead try to come across players with the same size of stacks or small stacks that you believe will give up. Play firmly from the start position and look for opportunities to steal when you are in the final position. If you’re a short stack, pick a time for Mary Hail and a double up to keep you in the game.
Always watch the number of players left and see what you need to do to stay long enough to secure this important seat in the next round. How you do this will depend on the size of your stack after the intermediate stages and as the bubble approaches. If you have a big stack of chips, you can fold the next round. If you have a medium stack, play a solid game using position and selecting smaller stacked players who may give up on any play you make as they are desperate to wait for others to fall. Of course, if you have a small battery, Mary’s call is your most effective weapon and possibly the only one, though it’s selective when you use it. For example, your all-in push from the final position against a small stacked opponent may not be paid and you have stolen enough chips to see yourself through a few more hands, which may be enough to take you to one of those important games of the team. Next round seats.
By playing a solid strategy in satellite poker tournaments, you really can get to the later stages of some serious money without spending signup fees. Do not dismiss these tournaments as tricks and see them as an opportunity. And I wish you every success.