Cracking the Multi-Table Tournament Code
Look, we’ll be honest: multi-tables are a little new for us. We’re mostly SNG players, single player SNG to be honest with you. But we kept getting requests for help with MTT’s, so we figured that we’d do our best and play a few MTT’s.
First off, we can see why you like it. It’s a new challenge to keep up with so many different players. The action tends to be pretty fierce, and there’s always someone busting out while someone else is moving up. This is pretty neat, if we say so ourselves. Here’s how to make MTT’s a bit more profitable.
Before you even get too entangled in thoughts of the top prize, you need to make sure that the MTT of your choice is worth playing in. You want to think about how long the tournament will actually be. The tournament could be as long as 4 hours. If the top prize isn’t that much, then you’re really not making as much money as you could be.
Remember too that you’re going to be going against a pretty big field of players. This means that the chances of you winning aren’t as high as in other types of poker matches.
The early stages of the MTT will be very, very important. Don’t think that you can just tread water here. You’re going to need to be strategic from the very beginning. You want to follow position, and you definitely want to think about the strength of each and every hand. You need to be patient — even though other poker players will surge ahead of you, you still need to be patient. The poker player that can play at their own pace without giving into what other people are doing is usually the one that will finish in the money while everyone else busts out. Even though a player might have 5,000 chips to your 1,000, you have to realize that the later blinds will eat that player alive. Or they might start going on tilt and making bad decisions. Both of these points are why you can’t just look to what other people are doing.
The middle stage of a tournament is hard because people are going to start getting crazy. They might start trying to play way too many hands, or they might switch it up on you and get super tight. No poker player is unbeatable — don’t even begin to think that they are. You’re better off looking at each table separately. When you get moved, you want to look at what the new table is really like. Be willing to fold hands in order to study the table. You’ll get your time in the sun, we promise.
The late stage of the tournament is where you really need to make sure that you are as cautious as possible. People WILL be going all in. They will be pushing you around. Make sure that you’re looking at the cards you play. Monsters need to be swung around HARD. Even suited connectors and high cards have value here. You just never know what will win here.
Going heads up against one other opponent is the trickiest part of the MTT. You want to make sure that you don’t lose your cool. You might be tempted, but that’s not going to get you the top prize. Don’t be afraid to battle it out — the first one to get tired loses, you know.
After the tournament, you can review how you did, and figure out where you need to make some tweaks. Don’t let the multi-table format scare you away from the possible profits that you can make. Good luck!