Texas Holdem Poker Tournament Types

The purpose of this article is to introduce you to some specific tournament types and explain how you should adopt your strategy to different tournament types.

A Texas Holdem tournament is usually played as follows: all player start with equal amount of chips, value of blind bets gradually grows throughout the tournament and players are gradually eliminated. Usually, the prize pool is heavily weighted to the top winners, but about ten percent of the entrants place in the money. Generally, standard Texas Holdem tournaments are played as freeze-outs, which means that once a player runs out of chips, he cannot re-buy more and get back into the tournament.

While most tournaments are played with the above structure, there are many other tournament variants as well. Typically all tournaments start with all players receiving an equal amount of tournament chips (that have no cash value) and end when one player wins all of the tournament chips. However, some tournaments make slight changes on the typical freeze-out structure. For example, these tournaments may increase value of the blinds quickly, allow re-buys, have a winner-takes-all structure, etc.

When any of the typical Texas Holdem tournament rules change, the strategy of play should be altered too. Here is a detailed list of common tournament types, as well as tips and ideas about how to alter your strategy for a particular tournament structure.

Add-on and re-buy Texas Holdem tournaments

Re-buy and add-on Texas Holdem tournaments are very popular in many online poker rooms. These tournaments allow eliminated players to buy back into the tournament (re-buy), or buy a certain amount of chips, when players stack dwindles to a low point (add-on). This amount is usually equal to the initial amount of chips pre-defined by tournament rules.

For instance, say the tournament is $100+$10 and everyone start with 1,000 chips. If a player gets busted on the third hand and wants to stay in the tournament, then he is able to re-buy, which means that he buys another 1,000 chips for $100 in order to continue playing.

Usually, re-buy and add-on tournaments only allow re-buys for a certain period of time. When this period ends, the tournament continues in a freeze-out structure, but players are opt to add-on, which means that they can add a certain amount of chips to their stack for a set price. This amount of chips as well as its price depends on particular tournament rules, but is usually equal to the starting amount of chips and at buy-in price of that tournament.

For these tournaments, players can afford looser play during early rounds, since they are able to re-buy and add-on, which means that they can be less risk-averse. Unlike in usual Texas Holdem tournaments, in re-buy and add-on tournaments you dont need to potentially sacrifice the expected value just not to get busted out.

However, if you actually do bust out, then the decision to re-buy is not as easy as it may seem. First of all, you should analyze your play and answer two important questions.

How tight and skilled are your opponents?

Can you possibly beat them, if you re-buy into the tournament?
When youre almost out of chips and its time to add-on, then it is almost definitely required to do so, since all of the tournament money is at the top, so building your stack is very important, regardless of the fact whether you win or buy chips.

Although it is generally recommended to purchase add-ons when you run out of chips, there are several situations, when you shouldnt. First of all, you shouldnt add-on, if you dont match the average skill of your opponents. Literally: if you are obviously losing due to your opponents strength, then what is the point of wasting your money?

Turbo Texas Holdem Tournaments

In turbo tournaments, also known as speed tournaments the blind bets rise very quickly. Usually the blinds rise every ten minutes, or even faster.

These tournaments are more luck dependant than typical Texas Holdem tournaments. The game usually ends preflop and rarely at the flop, because players tend to be forced to either go all-in preflop, or just fold. These tournaments generally require aggressive play, since huge blinds will quickly drain your stack, if you will keep to passive style of play. Try to steal the blinds a lot and hope to get lucky.

Satellite tournaments

Instead of a cash prize, satellite tournaments reward winning players with entries to higher buy-in tournaments. Most notable example of such tournaments is the World Series of Poker satellite tournaments.

Satellite tournaments can also be divided in several subgroups. Generally, most of them require aggressive strategy and style of play during early stages and more selectively aggressive play throughout middle stages and towards the end. Thats because there tends to be just few prizes awarded relative to the number of players who enter the tournament. Nevertheless, since the top player is awarded the very same prize as the player, who gets the lowest winning spot, there is no need to be very aggressive in gathering vast amounts of chips. In-depth strategies applied in the World Series of Poker satellites are described in a separate article.

Steps tournaments

Step Texas Holdem Tournaments are brainchildren of Party Poker. Step tournaments act as series of smaller single-table satellites of gradually growing buy-ins. The entire action culminates in huge cash prizes at the final stage.

Usually, the steps tournaments consist of five major stages. Winners of the first stage win an entry into the second stage, then compete to enter the third stage and so on. Generally, it is possible to buy-in at any particular stage of the tournament, but the buy-in at later stages is much more expensive than at the early stages. Nevertheless, major cash prizes are only awarded at the final stage of the tournament.

The first thing to consider about these steps tournaments is the prize structure. Online poker rooms are often sneaky trying to extract a lot of money in the way of entry fees from this type of Texas Holdem tournaments. Thats because poker rooms often frame the prize structure in order to keep the players always playing in the same steps Texas Holdem tournaments, which forces players to continually pay more entry fees to the online poker room.

In order to avoid paying too much rake, you shall want playing in steps Texas Holdem tournaments that tend to end up with either awarding seats to higher steps tournaments, or players elimination, because when many prizes give entry to a lower step of the same step, then a player will more likely end up paying huge amounts of rake in order to work his way up the steps.

Generally, a winning strategy for steps Texas Holdem tournaments is very similar to strategies applied in single-table Texas Holdem tournaments and most satellite tournaments. This means that when about 30 percent of players enter the next stage, you shall want playing a selectively aggressive rather than loose-passive game. You goal is to steal the blinds and always keep your stack at least above average. You dont need to gather most chips to win. Nevertheless, you always want to keep your stack large, so your opponents wouldnt be able to attack and attempt to knock you out. Thus, by frequently stealing the blinds from your opponents, you will build a larger than average stack, which will result in fewer confrontations.

Finally, when you enter the final stage, you goal is to play a standard single-table Texas Holdem tournament applying strategies and tricks recommended for this tournament type. Most steps tournaments, except World Series of Poker steps tournaments, have typical prize structure at the final stage. The winner receives a huge share of the prize pool, but the second, third and fourth players get pretty decent prizes as well.

Shootout tournaments

Just like steps tournaments, shootout Texas Holdem tournaments consist of series of single-table tournaments. The only difference between these types of tournaments is that players dont win seats to the same, or lower stages. A player either enters the next stage of the tournament, or leaves the table.

Besides of this, shootout tournaments are single events. For example, in steps tournaments, a winner of the first stage that won an entry to the second stage can play that second stage whenever he wants: the same day, the next day, or a month later.

Moreover, shootout tournaments have different prize structures. For example, some shootouts award only one seat to the next stage per table, while others may award multiple seats. However, most shootouts have a flattered prize structure at the final stage, which means arent usually played as winner-takes-all Texas Holdem tournaments. Usually, the prize pool is widely distributed among the finishers of the final table.

For instance, suppose there are hundred players entering a shootout tournament. There are ten tables with ten players at each. Generally only one player from each table is promoted to the next stage, so at the final table there will be ten winners, which are winners of the first stage. These players will compete in a single-table-tournament. Usually all players at the final table receive prizes, but the first and the second place receive comparatively larger slices of the prize pool.

However, shootout tournaments can often promote three players from each starting table to the next stage. During the second stage, three players from each table can still advance to the final stage, making only nine opponents playing in the final stage.

Generally, shootout tournament structures can differ room to room, so you should check it out, because the tournament structure determines your strategy and style of play. For example, if only one player is advanced to the next round, then you must consider very aggressive play, which means that you will have to gamble a lot hoping to win all chips of your opponents.

In shootouts, where several players are promoted to the next stage, a more selective-aggressive play is in order. You should keep a decent stack (at least above average) in order not to let your opponents knock you out. At the same time you must try avoiding most confrontations, since you want to enter the next stage with as less gambling as possible. A good strategy to build a decent stack is stealing the blinds.

Winner-takes-all tournaments

Many home Texas Holdem games are played as winner-takes-all STTs. Since there are no second and third prizes in this type of tournaments, you have to be very aggressive. Your goal is to win all of your opponents chips, so you shouldnt sacrifice any expected value just to stay in the tournament. Be aggressive, exploit every edge and go after those chips without any doubt. Finishing second out of ten is as bad as finishing tenth out of ten in this type of tournament, since there is only one winning place.