Beating sit & go turnaments

A guide to low limit NL tournaments for 10 players

The majority of the poker players can not concentrate long enough to make a profit in the long run when they are playing poker. After a short period of time they lower their standard level concerning calling, betting or raising. This normally leads to a loss if the opposition at the table is at least average or better.

Is there a better cure against this way of destructive playing than the evidence that you by playing tightly really can achieve good results? The cure is "No limit Hold'em Tournament" for 10 players. This is sometimes called Sit & Go.

As usual you should look upon this text as a rough template of what the game looks like and how you should be acting. Being able to read how other people play especially applies to NL poker (as this) as you can save/make money depending on your way of acting differently depending on the opponents you are playing against.

Please note that it is incorrect to say that playing tightly always is correct. It is however the safest way of playing and most often necessary to win at full 10-player-tables - even if tournament strategy differs from cash game strategy.

Before starting your first test:

* As a suggestion you select one of the tables with the lowest buy-in.

* When you have registered and paid you and all the other players around the table will be given the same amount of chips to play with. When you have paid your entrance fee you play on the same conditions as all the other players and you do not have to worry about that your bank roll might be too small.

* First, second and third place are the positions that mostly results in a prize. The prize is taken from the amount that all the players deposited before the game started (buy-in)

You should mainly play according to this template:

The tournament starts

- 10 players at the table -

Keep very passive. Do not even call the flop unless you have a hand matching the below hands - even if nobody has raised. Do not forget to consider your position and aggressivity shown by your opponents.

Give up the thought of calling the flop unless you have any of these hands.

It is up to you to decide how big raises or bets you should make as you already know what starting hands are suitable in different situations.

You play tightly to let the other players screw up while you are watching. In most cases you can fold and get a fifth place in these games and then you are forced to start playing. Of course you do not doze off even if you do not get anything on your hand - instead you should concentrate on the way your opponents are acting and thus get a certain opinion about how they play. Remeber we are talking about the lowest limits now, where you most often have to use "ABC poker" to win. Fancy play won't pay you as your opponents are very often calling stations.

Never mind about the fact that you have paid for the big and small blind. If your hand is no good you should not waste any more money. Do not think like this: "I have put money on the table and no simple idiot can make me let it go just because of a simple raise". That way of thinking can be very expensive at the same time as you can be trapped into dangerous and more costly situations with a pair that is too low at the flop.

You will probably see that there fairly soon is somebody who makes all-in, loses and has to leave the table. You are one step closer to victory, perhaps even victories thanks to your tight way of playing. You got this for free, without seeing any flop.

Do you think there is too much time passing by without getting any good hands? As an exception you can play a somewhat worse hand in order not to be known as a player who plays too tightly, as this might worsen your chances when you get a good hand and everybody might fold. The least demand you should have on these cards is that they should be sequential, 7, 8 or 9, T. If you are lucky you will flop something valuable. You should however take it easy. It is foolish to play too hard on the highest pair TT with a 9 as a kicker card if you do not have many outs. This is what many players exactly do.

Plan to get an image as being a "tight player". (At the end you should play a bit loser.)

In certain cases there are players who take big risks with all-ins at the table. If the blinds are not too high and there have not been any raises it might be a good idea to sneak in with considerably more hands thanks to the fact that the implicated odds can be fairly high if you hit the flop. This in the first place is applicable if you have a good chance to play about the pot with just a few opponents, including the player/players who pay well at a favourable flop.

Middle stage of the tournament

- The number of players is still more than 5 -

Let us pretend you have got average hands and that you have played safely. Then it is probable that you still have made a small profit. With certainty you have not lost much or have had to give up. Unless you have been tempted with an all-in pre-flop when you had AA or KK and lost when you were playing against a bigger chip stack. A decision like that is seldom wrong (although it sometimes can be) but it can still make you having to leave the tournament.

Please note that you carefully pick the ones you will play all-in against. A, K is hardly worth joining all-in with, especially if you are playing against a chip stack bigger than yours. Instead you should hurt the players who are smaller than you and where you have everything to win: The odds are at your advantage and you will not lose the whole chip stack if you lose, thus you can go on playing wisely for some more time. Joining the all-in at a pre-flop stage without a high pair can often be costly which you should not forget. Instead you should make a big raise as long as the situation is not bad.

Go on playing fairly tightly as long as the number of players is more than 5.

You have not forgotten to check your opponents and the way they are playing?

Final stage of the tournament

- The number of players is 5 or fewer -

At the end of the game you will have great usage of your tight way of playing which you have been using so far. The players around the table should have a certain respect for you and the hands you are playing. This is a good opportunity to adapt your way of playing into a shorthanded game! (Remember that this link deals with fixed limit but many of the theories work in NL too).

Do the other players pay you respect? In that case you should grab the opportunity to steal some blinds provided you have a chip stack which allows this. At the end the blinds are expensive.

Try to play in a deceptive way. Raise low suited connectors, raise high suited connectors etc. Not always but once in a while. You are looking for a strong flop to get the money back with a profit and a deceptive raise might be a way to make your opponents pay quite a lot when you hit the flop. Sometimes you however are too short of chips and then it is difficult to use your special moves.

Heads up

- You and one opponent are the only ones left -

Let us pretend you are heads-up. You are either at an advantage or a disadvantage. Chance and luck are often present at this stage. Normally you can not afford to lose many blinds in a row because the opponent makes raises all the time. At a position where I am at a disadvantage I would without hesitation make an all-in with a pair of any kind, ace with kicker 9 or higher or high sequential cards.

In order to join in when my opponent makes an all-in I would probably select a pair or high sequential cards. Of course in the same suit if possible, but at the final stage you can not calculate with this, especially not for a pair ;-).

Please note that these rules apply to a tricky situation when perhaps only can afford a few Big Blinds. If you are at an advantage it is easier for you to pick your cards better. Doing this will however be costly as the blinds are so high. It is up to you to weigh the pros and cons.

Thats pretty much all I have to say about NL sit & go's at low limits, but I'm sure it will at least improve your results if you are a beginner. Good luck!