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In this section, we’ll answer these questions as well as look at some practical examples to help you gain an edge in poker tournaments. The reason we’re going to be focusing specifically on defending the big blind, for this section, is because the Big Blind is one of the most opportune times to play pots in poker tournaments. Think of your approach to poker tournament strategy like a probing effect. Only play solid playable hands which you can confidently put money in postflop when facing aggression. Use your big stack as leverage to exploit shorter stacks—by 3-betting them in spots—where you put them to the test for their entire stack.
While this may be obvious in certain spots, such as when you have second pair or a straight draw, you need to open your range up even further to defend properly vs. continuation bets. The reason you will defend wider vs. a late position raiser is that Villain’s range is wider; therefore, your equity will likely be higher vs. her range. If you feel like you have a postflop advantage over your opponent, you can afford to defend even wider. While I believe everyone can agree that playing from the big blind is important, we still have unanswered questions such as, how often should you defend, and with which hands? You also want to avoid aggressive opponents as they may shove all-in over the top. She is risking 25% of her stack, but the Villain is risking his entire stack, since he should shove or fold with that stack size.
The most common situation to do this is when they open preflop, where you can put them to a very tough decision by 3-betting. gambleton You can widen your shoving range, if your opponent is very likely to fold or you get a strong read. You should aim to exploit tight opponents by min-raising (to 2 big blinds) from late position, in an attempt to steal the blinds.

Poker Tournament Structure – Blinds, Levels, and Stack Depth

From a game theory standpoint, you need to have some bluffs in your range, on the river, when the turn goes check/check, and just as in the hand example above, you can rep Qx on the river with a bet. Again, you are getting a good price, but what you are really hoping for is that your opponent checks behind the turn. While it’s true that you will have plenty of equity vs. his range, you are really calling in hopes that he checks the turn so that you can bet and steal the pot, a play which you will realize a decent percentage of the time. You also want to pick some strategic floats that you can use to bluff the river with in the event your opponent checks back on the turn.

The Final Table

Use your chips to pressure passive opponents, but be disciplined enough to let go when the situation clearly isn’t in your favor. Often, it’s better to wait for others to bust out and move up the payout ladder rather than risking it all in marginal situations. But the good news is, you can turn that around with a solid offline/online poker tournament strategy tailored to different situations. I recorded it while playing on Phenom Poker, so you’ll see the concepts in action against real opponents. ICM mainly applies to final table scenarios; thus, it doesn’t give us the complete picture for how we should be making in-game, tournament strategy decisions.

• While the play is profitable, shoving also means that you will increase your likelihood of busting if your opponent calls and wins.
• At ConsciousPoker, we advocate a more conservative approach to tournament play, favoring a “small ball strategy,” similar to the playing style of Daniel Negreanu and Phil Hellmuth.
• Here are some reasonable defending ranges vs. a standard opening size of 2.25x the big blind.
• Just because there is variance doesn’t mean you cannot calculate a long term hourly rate.
• Below, we’ll go stage-by-stage so you know what matters most at each point and how to adjust your approach to give yourself the best shot at a deep run.
• She is risking 25% of her stack, but the Villain is risking his entire stack, since he should shove or fold with that stack size.
• As your table gets short-handed, widen your ranges and increase aggression to dominate the pots that matter.

Final Table

• You also assume that with your current stack size, if you run average, you will expect to play another 2 hours.
• Move up only when your bankroll comfortably supports the next level.
• With 55BB or more, look for situations to compete with playable hands in position.
• Ideally these hands will include overcards and backdoor flush draws, but depending on the situation and your opponent, you may be able to open up your game even further and profitably float with more marginal hands.
• It requires understanding changing stack sizes, blind pressure, and ICM (Independent Chip Model).
• Here is a quick breakdown of variance, skill edge, and which format each is best for.
• He’s been playing too many hands and is taking advantage of the tight, weak player (TAG) in the big blind.

Push-fold charts are convenient to use, because they tell you how to play both, with and without antes, and how to adjust your shoving ranges, depending on how many opponents are left. Adapt quickly to your opponent’s tendencies and play a much broader range of hands than you would at a full table. You have room to play speculative hands and extract value from weak opponents. Fewer players mean wider ranges and faster action. From mastering stack size strategy at every stage to sharpening your mental game, every edge counts when the goal is to outlast the field and reach the final table. The key is to adjust your sizing based on stack sizes, table dynamics, and the stage of the tournament.
The classic format – and still the gold standard for prestige events. Below are the most common formats you will encounter both live and online. There are many types of poker tournaments, and each format changes how the game plays.

Whether you’re in the early, middle, or late stage, understanding these perspectives will help you play smarter, last longer, and make better calls. But the fact remains that poker tournaments will always include some level of variance that you must be prepared for. Nonetheless, you cannot use TLV as an excuse to fold premium hands and not take risks. For Example, you’re in a juicy tournament, and you can make a play that can net you 1BB with a 25BB stack, but in doing so, you take a significant risk of busting, say 25%. Tournament life value is basing your in-game decisions, not merely on the expectation (EV) of your individual decision, but, rather, on how that play affects your tournament life as a whole. The logic being that ranges are wide and it’s very probable the opener missed this flop; moreover, your pair outs are likely live vs. the CO’s wide range, plus you have a backdoor straight and flush draw.

Poker Tournaments vs Cash Games

If the play shows a 1BB profit in expectation, that one big blind may not be worth the risk in forfeiting your tournament life. You also assume that with your current stack size, if you run average, you will expect to play another 2 hours. Let’s take a closer look at how this situation applies in practicality. Here’s an example of a situation where you may want to apply this principle in a counter intuitive spot. To make a decision based on your “tournament life value” (TLV), you need to factor in these variables to make the best decision, using all the information available to you.
Ideally these hands will include overcards and backdoor flush draws, but depending on the situation and your opponent, you may be able to open up your game even further and profitably float with more marginal hands. Here are some reasonable defending ranges vs. a standard opening size of 2.25x the big blind. – The equity you need to justify calling will likely be around 20%, meaning you can profitably defend with a much wider range of hands. With 55BB or more, look for situations to compete with playable hands in position.