Kick back, relax, then hit ‘em hard in Sit and Go tournaments.
How to grow your bankroll by taking on the single table tournament, or sit-and-go:
It’s a hugely popular format that plays almost identically to the poker which can be seen on television. Shows like
Late Night Poker and Sky’s Poker Million sport six people, with equal chips in a tournament format that sees the
blinds rise at regular intervals. The game’s the same online, although most sit-and-gos start with ten players,
which requires a slightly different tactical approach.
Sit-and-gos are popular for good reason. For starters you know that the game isn’t going to last hours, which makes
it perfect if you’ve got a job and/or a nagging partner. Make it to the end of a 10-man sit-and-go and you’re looking
at around an hour, maybe more, if you’re sat with tight players, but often less if you get sucked into a loose game
where chips are flying everywhere from the off.
£50 Free ScratchCard Game
Play the free scratchcard game below to win £50:
Betting Speed Tells
Every online poker room has a set number of seconds that each player has to respond before he has to make a check,
bet or raise or else they are folded. However, often, the speed of play can be a good ”tell.” Typically, a quick bet
is a sign of weakness, and a delayed action is a sign of strength, as the player is calculating his strategy with
what he perceives to be a huge hand. Watch how much time it takes the other players to make their action, and
mentally make a note of it. If you get a chance to see their cards at showdown, see if you can determine what
they ”slow bet” with and what they ”fast bet” with.
In The Money
With prizes allocated to the top three finishers (typically 50 percent of the prize money for the winner, 30 percent
for second and 20 percent for third), you’ve got a good chance of finishing in the money if you play a solid game.
Compare this to the vast multitable tournaments where the returns are much higher but where it’s feasible to go on a
winless run for months.
They’re also a safe way to play your poker. In ring games you can haemorrhage cash in a hurry. With a sit-and-go you
know exactly how much you’re risking in a single session.
More importantly, though, a lot of poker players simply have a style that’s ideal for the format and reach prize-paying
positions with remarkable consistency.
Moving On Up
Because fish swim on the higher stakes tables too - You can play sit-and-gos at whatever level you’re
comfortable with but when should you make the move up to a higher level? Are you better off playing two £10
sit-and gos, or a single game with a £20 entry fee? Or should you gamble on your ability to win a £10 table and use
the proceeds to play a single £50 table?
There’s a generally held misconception that the standard of poker play increases in direct correlation to the cost
of the game. Funnily enough, in a lot of cases the opposite is true. People tend to gamble within their means, so
that players on low-stakes tables are often unable to lose much, and thus play very well or tight. Conversely, you
often find rich folk at high-stakes tables who simply want the buzz of a big game and aren’t bothered by the
fact they lose on a regular basis.
It’s worth a trawl around to test out the theory but, clearly, the one thing you do not want to do during your
poker-playing career is go broke, so don’t increase your stakes until you’re happy that your bankroll can sustain
an unwelcome losing run. It happens to everyone.
