Here is how you can play your way in to big money online poker tournaments for free or at very little cost. All the big poker rooms run what are known as satellite qualifiers for their major tournaments with a number of seats in the next round available. Quite often satellites are free to enter. If you adopt the right strategy you can be playing in big money finals without it costing you anything at all.
First - what is a satellite poker tournament? Very simply is it a tournament which offers a given number of seats in to a larger tournament and the entry is often free or a very small stake. For example you enter a satellite with say 10 seats on offer to the final or so many seats per number of entries then all you have to do is finish in those positions to progress.
If you can progress then you are closer to playing for a bigger prize. To make your way from satellites to tournament finals you need to apply the right strategic approach which is different to that which you might adopt in regular tournaments. The reason for this is that your goal if when playing in a satellite poker tournament is simply to secure progression.
In the early stages of the tournament play tight to preserve your chip stack and only get involved when you have a premium starting hand or are an overwhelming favourite to win the hand. Throwing chips away by getting involved in too many hands too early ca hurt you badly so be careful in these initial stages and look for only the best opportunities to accumulate chips. Whilst you are doing this your opponents will be getting eliminated which is exactly what you want.
As the blinds increase in the middle stages of the tournament look at the size of your stack and the stack sizes of your opponents as well as your cards before deciding who to tangle with. Pick your fights carefully. By this I mean if you have a large chip stack why tangle with a player with another large stack. If you do and lose the hand you could be on your way out. Remember that your objective is to make it in to the next round by finishing high enough to qualify. So pick your fights carefully depending on your chip stack, cards and table position. Try to pick up pots uncontested by zeroing in on people with a much smaller chip stack. Of course if you have a dwindling stack yourself you will have to pick your moment and push all in.
If you have made it to the late stages of the satellite keep playing sensibly and be aware of what position you are and where the cut off is. Keep playing your best game. If you are unfortunate enough to still be pitching with a small stack you may have to go for a hail mary and hope for the best. If it is time to push try to do it against other small stacked players. If you have a comfortable enough stack size to fold and survive until you have secured a progression position then do just that.
Once you have won yourself that seat in the next round or the final then give yourself a huge slap on the back and congratulate yourself as you are one step closer to a shot at a bigger money tournament - and you deserve it.
Sensible poker satellite strategy can pay off for you and I hoe this article has given you a taste of the opportunities on offer out there.