Poker Tournament Strategies - Winning Poker Tournaments

Every poker tournament strategy depends upon good skills and good cards. To win poker tournaments, you'll need a lot of practice and a lot of patience.

Choosing Your Tournament

The most important part of your poker tournament strategy is in choosing the right tournament. The very best players of Texas hold'em might end up losing big in a tournament for Omaha high-low. You have to choose a game that you're good at, but choosing the right tournament isn't as simple as choosing the right game. If you're used to playing a fixed-limit game, you'll have to work hard to find a fixed-limit tournament, and pot-limit or no-limit play is very different. It requires a different set of poker strategies and skills. You'll also need to choose a tournament that is likely to be at your skill level. If you're a newcomer, look for tournaments with a low buy-in and a prize that isn't too attractive. Sure, it's less exciting to win, but it also means the competition is likely to be less stiff.

Your Demeanor

You can't quite use poker tells and bluffs like they do in the movies when you're playing an online poker tournament, but you can establish a certain persona for yourself. If people are chatting, you should be sure to say hello and wish everyone good luck. If no one is chatting, there's no need to start a discussion, but friendliness will never work against you. If you're playing a live game, try to keep your face even and controlled. If you look happy, that's fine, but you shouldn't frown if you get the wrong card.

Your Skills at Poker Tournaments

If you're really trying to win a poker tournament, you should look into the relative odds of different hands. You should formulate your own strategies for various situations. For the best poker tournament players, the winning strategy is completely ingrained into their play. They will always know their odds of winning a particular hand, and will always play appropriately.

You Don't Have to See the Flop

It's fine to fold before the flop. You don't have to see every flop. If you can stay in for the flop cheaply, go ahead, but if your pocket cards aren't worth anything and there's a high price to see the flop, bow out early and wait for the next hand. Remember that if you fold out of a hand, you can't be eliminated in that hand. Besides, some of your competition may be eliminated for you while you're waiting for the next hand.

Don't Bluff too Much

While you may get away with bluffing in a ring game, it's a very dangerous practice in tournament play. Take a bluff just a little too far and you'll discover that you're all-in without a hand to match the risk you've taken. Of course, sometimes you'll need to bluff, but it's better to get out of a hand early and with minimal loss than to bluff on a lousy hand.