Tournament Beginning Strategy?

I have been experimenting with two different styles lately:

Playing very tight

and

Limping in to see as many flops as possible


Question is, which is the better strategy?

Very tight always profitable....

If you're see a lot flops / you will be behind many times...

First option no doubt,tight aggressive style,you can read some articles about this style

Like all things Poker, it depends. First you have to be in a game where the other players allow you to limp. if you are limping in the cut off or the button and the blinds follow, you are not in horrible shape. Most good players won't allow you to continuously limp, especially if there are other limpers.

When ever I land at a table with lots of limpers I play very tight and then raise when I have a good hand or position to drive a lot of the limpers out and swelling the pot with dead money.

In general the best method is to play very tight under the gun and loosen up as you approach the button. Limping with hands with potential to hit big (suited connectors and small pairs) in the small blind is great if the table let's you.

The other problem with limping is how hard it is to get paid. Most of the time you'll miss and be folding and when you play, your hand is "face up" so the only action you'll get is from strong hands and strong players.

Tight aggressive is the way I'd recommend a beginner start out.

Playing tight also means you limp with speculative hands when you're in late position. For example suited connectors like 45s+ and any pocket pairs trying to get a set. I recommend the book Harrington on Hold'em, but there's also lots of online content on the matter. Like other people said, try reading up about tight aggressive style, or just google freeroll strategy and you'll get good information for beginners.

Also, if it's a turbo/hyper turbo tournament you're gonna have to play more hands (ie. widening your range) because otherwise the blinds will eat your stack.

Tight aggressive, less flops less problematic situations.

I totally agree with the first option but find myself playing in more pots than I should because it always seems like after folding my trash I'd flop the nuts lol

Botanicaldreams said:

I have been experimenting with two different styles lately:

Playing very tight

and

Limping in to see as many flops as possible


Question is, which is the better strategy?

Click to expand...

Very tight!

You should only bet defined hands and while the tournament runs try to catch your opponents style of play.

I think thats the better for beggining.

As other have said, play tight.

Also, realize the blinds tend to be small compared to player's stacks. You don't gain much by stealing them, and stand to lose a lot being caught doing so.

early on, stick to premium hands. Keep and eye out how the table is playing. If it is allowing a lot of limping, consider adding low pocket pairs in the hope of getting a set. Realize this kind of play means you will probably only see a flop maybe 5-15% of your hands.

Also see if you can find people that fold lots and lots. Realize if they have call or raise, they likely have something scary.

Botanicaldreams said:

I have been experimenting with two different styles lately:

Playing very tight

and

Limping in to see as many flops as possible


Question is, which is the better strategy?

Click to expand...

Good thing in poker is that it's an extremely complex game. Plus there are many kind of tournaments (eg deep stack, rush, freeroll, turbo, satelite etc...). All need different strategies and it can change during the game (eg at bubble time)...so I think both strategies you mentioned can be good, but if I have to choose, the tight game is more profitable (eg in a freeroll, but not in sunday million).

Tight aggressive in general, but I'll limp to see a free flop if the others at the table continually allow me to.

i play tight until the blinds are high, the im a maniac trying to steal blinds and antes and try to survive!

i am tight aggressive but depends more on tourneys are they free opponents are they tight your game has to be evolved to a point to mix it up when needed. I do not like either of your strategies based on lack of information Million dollar acr event lasted 1st 5 hours was down chip 20 mins in till fourth hour finished at like 20 k chips when canceled. I was super patient cause was a huge game and was 5 hours of re entries and late registration believe was even longer I have forgotten already exactly but knew I had to survive for that first 5 hours. I had a game plan and stuck to it. Think chip leaders had like 68 k so was still in running and blinds might have been 500 at that point. For freerolls most people like to get early stacks. Me ive won freeroll money and sat out the other day all but 3 hands the first hour lmao.

Is not something I suggest haha. In a 500 buy in did I lay down small pockets yes. Do I do that in freerolls? Not often but if blinds are high enough later sure at times if on bubble time etc..

Yet also take good notes on players and know really bad ones when get antsy and take risks etc.. so have been known to call those types with small pockets lol.

At the start of the tournament I usually play strictly on the map, in the middle of the already beginning to play a more active, and in the end when the blinds are big push fold.

It is always tight-agressive style, playing only the best start hands and limp in late position with perspective hands like connectors.

At the beginning of a tournament, I will usually play ultra tight and wait for AA, KK, QQ, AK. How I play them will depend on table position, but I generally try to get as muck money into the pot as I think is possible (all in if there are bingo players at the table). Playing this tight, I often don't play a hand for an hour, but if I don't get blinded out, I can usually survive into the middle of the tourney, and then change gears.

I think playing very tight would be good for you.

Any strategy has its advantages and disadvantages. play for the strategy in which you feel most confident. Tara but always play aggressively no matter tight or loose.

Playing tight is a good strategy in the beginning stages of the game

I say be a little loose with your calls/raise in mid to late positions. Start being comfortable with suited/mid connectors for an ugly flop. Don't bluff when you're out of position, unless you really know your table. Show one hand out of ten or more in early blinds so you can achieve an image so you can win your bluffs more of the time than you would've. And value bet...don't shove when you have the nuts. You have to remember that tournaments start go up in blinds. Waiting incredibly tight for premium hands would MOST likely have you suffering with the blinds.

In the beginning of most poker tournaments (unless hyper-turbo or something), you should probably play tight, and fold many hands that are considered "callable", as the difference between the Big Blind and your stack should be approximately 100 to 1 or even more than 100 to 1. Playing tight in the beginning phase of the tournament will help gather reads and ranges on opponents, without sacrificing many chips. So, I recommend playing tight, because of what I've mentioned, and because those extra chips you make early on in the tournament risking your tournament with a 60% chance of winning the hand, aren't worth it in the long run. When you make multiple of those all ins early in the tournament, you probably have less than a 40% chance of making it through those, and the extra chips probably won't matter as much as your think do to the fact that you can make chips in the middle phase of the tournament with the reads and ranges you have. If you switch tables in the middle phase, it's alright. You're still in, and as long as you make the right decisions, you can still cash or even get 1st.

think this is a kinda a stack depth question, with a standard 1500 chip stack think you need to play fairly tight ie limp small pairs

with a really deep structure i think you need to play much looser

fish tend to exit tourneys the earliest and you want to play hands with them

nobody has won a tourney in the beginning, but many have lost it

i will say with the freerolls find the people who see more hands is same guys see at finals Just giving advice see some against that but freerolls is a different animal for sure.

Is same guys at my table fighting me for each 200 it seems lol wanting to see everything and I agree if hitting if your card dead flops totally against you though tighten up if hitting everything def be playing got to pay attention.

I still try to play hands that make sense and yes throw away the queen sevens etc.. offsuits sometimes get cute and limp 34 suited 99 percent of time i wind up losing the blind put in lol

is what it is. Just pay attention.

My suggestion is that you can limp in in the beginning since blinds are not high but as blinds go higher you should be more aggressive and tighter.
To have better results try to mix it up.