Online Poker Mtt Tips

admin 3/23/2022 23/03/22

Poker Strategy for No Limit Hold’em MTT’s

Most online poker tournaments aren’t very deep-stacked, so unless both the initial raiser and you are deep-stacked, you probably can’t play pocket Sevens profitably to an early position raise. What people don’t realise with small pairs is that in order to get paid the implied odds, they need to hit their set, still have the best hand (e.g. Poker Tournament Tip 1: Steal a Lot, But Don’t Go Overboard. “Open small and often.” This phrase. Team partypoker’s Louise “lou045” Butler has won more than $450,000 from online poker tournaments and is currently ranked in the top 10 in the Irish online poker rankings, according to PocketFives.com. Louise has penned this poker strategy article to give you five tips on how to build a bankroll if you a a low stakes tournament player, which is perfect timing because the Monster Series. Poker room is ready to pay your learning in Academy of Poker. Just leave the request: 5 tips in 5 minutes How to win in.

Multi table tournaments are one of the most lucrative ways to play poker. As seen on TV, players buy in for substantial amounts of dollars in hopes that they can grind their way to the final table where thousands, if not millions, of dollars can be won.

As great as these tournaments seem to be, what viewers or many newer MTT players do not seem to realize is the fact that these fields are generally pretty large, sometimes with well over 5,000 players, and that only the top 20% to 30% of the players are paid for their efforts. In case that does not stand out very clearly, 70% to 80% of those playing in these tournaments can play for several hours, if not days, only to walk away empty-handed.

Because of these large fields, it takes a different kind of strategy to do well in a MTT than one might employ in a cash game or even a single table tournament or sit n go. And to try to get those of you interested in playing in MTT’s on the right track, we have provided some tips and strategies that should help you get through some of the early stages of these tournaments.

MTT Strategy – Starting Hands/Position

Multi table tournaments are going to require a different kind of strategy then single table tournaments or cash games because of the fact that so few get paid. So the focus in the beginning needs to be survival to make it into the money. Sure, many of you may be thinking that the real focus should be on winning the tournament. But it is important to keep in mind that you will cash more times than you will win these tournaments and cashes are what keeps money coming into your account, thus allowing you to play the next tournament.

So, with the focus on making it into the money, the first step to this is by playing A-B-C poker. Meaning, you will want to raise when you have a hand, fold when you do not, and play hands according to position. There is, of course, room for the occasional bluff or steal but the blinds are so small at early stages in the tournament that it is virtually pointless to take needless risks. Here are some hands we would recommend playing while in the early and middle stages of the tournament:

Early Position: AA-KK, AK,
Middle Position: AA-JJ, AK-AJ, KQ-K10
Late Position: AA-88, AK-A9, KQ-K9, Connectors/Suited

What needs to be taken from this is that “tight is right” when choosing hands as this will allow players the opportunity to have easier decisions on later streets. Just remember that survival is key and that every time you try to play less than par hands or play out of position you make the decisions more difficult for yourself which in the end can risk your tournament life.

Pay Attention to Your Table – Not Your Surroundings

Tournaments can be very long and although it is easier to look around, read, listen to music, or browse the web, the bottom line is that it is very beneficial to you to pay attention to your opponents. You will be playing against these players for hours or days on end, so the more information you have on them the more chips you can attempt to save and/or accumulate. Be sure to pay attention whether you are in the hand or not and pay specific attention to betting habits, what cards your opponents play in what position, and what they show down. This is invaluable information all free, and all at your disposal.

Aside from paying attention to your opponents, be sure to pay attention to the tournament itself. Things like levels, antes, and average chips stacks are important things to know and can affect many of the decisions you make.

Patience is Key in MTT’s

Although this is important through all stages of the tournament and not just early stages, players will have a much harder time in the early stages because of the lack of action due to everyone playing tight and the blinds being so low. But what will make the biggest difference between you and someone who decides not to be as patient is that often times you will last much longer in tournaments.

There is no reason to play just because you’re bored and want some action. The hands will come and you will want to have all the chips possible when they do. Being impatient tends to lead to losing bits and pieces of your stack.

MTT Bankroll Management

Although it may not seem like a player’s bankroll has a direct affect to how they approach and play a multi table tournament, the truth of the matter is, is that it can. If a player buys into a tournament with all the money that they have in their bankroll, they will be playing ‘scared’ poker which disables them from making rational decisions based on their opponents, their cards, and odds.

A good rule of thumb is for players to have from 20 to 40 times the amount of the buy-in in their bankroll. This will ensure that players can face a loss without substantial damage to their bankroll which should allow them to focus and play their “A” game. By playing in tournaments that are above your limits, you really are just placing a cap on yourself.

To survive in the early stages of a multi table tournament, players need to ensure that they are playing basic and straightforward poker. By choosing the correct starting hands according to position, paying attention to the action at the table, and by being patient, players should expect to make it through the early stages of any multi table tournament and can then focus on employing strategies that will get them into the money and then hopefully to the final table.

(This article is a follow up to 'Bubble Tournament Strategy')

The late stages of a tournament begins when the money bubble bursts, and ends when players reach the final table (or final few tables, if it is a really large tournament). Your play during this stage of the tournament should change drastically, as you have now made the money and have the opportunity to climb in the payouts.

During the late stages, blinds will be placing immense pressure on almost everyone's stack, save for the chip leader. Once again, the most important factor in determining your correct style of play is your stack size, so we have written guides for playing the late stages with a short stack, an average stack, and a large stack.

You can finally see the finish line, so make sure to follow the strategies below to reach the final table and win a huge pay day:

Playing the Short Stack in the Late Stages

At this stage in the game the short stack is actually the simplest stack to play, because you only have two moves: all-in or fold. A short stack is any stack that only has ten or less big blinds. You can only last one or two rounds without making a play, so you need to be on the lookout for opportunities every single hand.

Although you only have two plays, you can use them in strategic ways to build your chip stack. When you are in late position, you should be pushing all-in whenever the table folds to you in order to steal the blinds. Also, if a couple players limp in you can try a squeeze play by raising all-in with the hopes that everyone folds. And it goes without saying that you are pushing all-in with any pocket pair or any two face cards, regardless of position.

If you are in the small blind and everyone folds to you, you should be going all-in the majority of the time because the big blind is very likely to fold. By stealing in late position, occasionally squeezing, and stealing from the small blind, you can pad your stack and build back up to an average-sized stack.

Playing the Average Stack in the Late Stages

Playing an average stack during the late stages of a tournament is a lot more difficult than playing an average stack at the start of a tournament, because the enormous blinds and antes will place far more pressure on your stack. Players with an average stack can steal, re-steal, and squeeze, but should avoid going all-in from the small blind, as you don't need to do that yet. In addition, average stacks should look to get all-in preflop in favorable situations.

Playing coin flips against smaller stacks is a good opportunity to build your stack. Short stacks will push all-in with marginal hands, so you can make calls with a wide variety of hands and still be ahead. If a short stack pushes all in, feel free to call them down with any pocket pair, or any two big cards. You will almost always either be ahead or be in a coin flip situation, so it is a profitable move overall.

Playing the Big Stack in the Late Stages

Mtt Poker Strategy

Big stacks should follow a similar strategy to the middle stacks during the late stages: steal from late position, re-steal occasionally, squeeze when it is appropriate, and call all-ins when you think you are ahead. However, with a big chip stack you can do all of those things, but more aggressively.

Depending on how badly you need a big pay day, you can vary your aggression. If you want to go for the win and can afford to place outside of the final table, go with a super aggressive approach and try to become the overall chip leader of the tournament. If you really need a final table finish and don't want to take a risk, you can take a more passive approach that will guarantee you a nice score.

Regardless of your approach, you should never be limping in as the big stack - either fold or raise. If you are going to call another player's all-in, make sure that you can comfortably afford to lose the hand. If the other player has big chip stack you better have a solid hand, because you are basically gambling with your tournament life.