Tournament Poker Strategy: Take An Aggressive Stance For The Later Stages Of Play
If you play in single table sit and go poker tournaments you will probably be playing in the ten player variant meaning you must finish in the top three to see some prize money. Here are a few tips and strategies for how to handle those nervous times as ypour opponents fall away and you get nearer to the money.
Following classic sit and go poker tournament strategy you will probably have sat tight in then early rounds and only got involved in a pot if you have a premium starting hand. You can afford to wait for your opponents to knock each other out whilst getting a read on them yourself.
However when the action gets down to five or less players (hopefully including you) then you simply cannot wait for those premium hands. You must change your strategy and approach to becomemore aggressive and play more hands. If you insist on waiting for premium hands - your odds of hitting one decrease significantly as the number of players at the table decreases and you will find your chip stack and chances of a money finish disappearing with your chip stack as of course you still have to post blinds.
Become a more agressive player and put your opponents on the back foot. Taking advantage of your table position is a key consideration particularly if your remaining opponents are trying to hang on in there and hooing to snaek in to the top three by others being knocked out. If you sense a weak player hanging in you can bully them and steal their chips by raising in to them for example.
Or if you are in late table position and there are no callers a raisers in front of you, a tasty raise of your own could take doewn the pot for you there and then. Look for weakness in others and exploit it.
Widen your range of starting hands also. You know that you cannot rely on a premium hand finding you so consider entreing pots with small pairs, suited connectors and lower ranked starting hands you would automatically fold in the earlier rounds or when seven or more players are still left in.
Of course you will not win all the time or finish in the money however by taing the initiative and being a more agressive player in the later stages of a ten player sit and go poker tournament you can significantly enhance your chances of finishing in the money or winning.
Following classic sit and go poker tournament strategy you will probably have sat tight in then early rounds and only got involved in a pot if you have a premium starting hand. You can afford to wait for your opponents to knock each other out whilst getting a read on them yourself.
However when the action gets down to five or less players (hopefully including you) then you simply cannot wait for those premium hands. You must change your strategy and approach to becomemore aggressive and play more hands. If you insist on waiting for premium hands - your odds of hitting one decrease significantly as the number of players at the table decreases and you will find your chip stack and chances of a money finish disappearing with your chip stack as of course you still have to post blinds.
Become a more agressive player and put your opponents on the back foot. Taking advantage of your table position is a key consideration particularly if your remaining opponents are trying to hang on in there and hooing to snaek in to the top three by others being knocked out. If you sense a weak player hanging in you can bully them and steal their chips by raising in to them for example.
Or if you are in late table position and there are no callers a raisers in front of you, a tasty raise of your own could take doewn the pot for you there and then. Look for weakness in others and exploit it.
Widen your range of starting hands also. You know that you cannot rely on a premium hand finding you so consider entreing pots with small pairs, suited connectors and lower ranked starting hands you would automatically fold in the earlier rounds or when seven or more players are still left in.
Of course you will not win all the time or finish in the money however by taing the initiative and being a more agressive player in the later stages of a ten player sit and go poker tournament you can significantly enhance your chances of finishing in the money or winning.
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