If anyone has seen Phil Helmuth's instruction videos, you will know he quite rightly points out that it 
is best to play very few hands: his Top Ten Hands to be precise. In a cash game, this is a sure way to make a profit. Sklansky may take this strategy a little further and suggest that maybe we shouldn't be playing pocket 7s and pocket 8s as well! Although I agree with this strategy in a 9 handed cash game, it leaves us with very little chance of winning a tournament. This strategy would clearly lead to being blinded to death.
Personally I like to play a lot more hands than this, especially earlier in the tournament. Many of the top professionals, such as Phil and even Doyle Brunson, suggest that you may as well sit on your hands for the first few levels of a tournament. Their point is that the blinds, and the size of the pot, just isn't worth fighting for. Personally, I like to play any pocket pair during the early stages : trying to get in cheaply and flop a set. You can often injure anyone foolishly slow playing an overpair at this stage. I also like playing suited connectors, in the hope I can flop a straight, or a flush and hopefully get paid for my trouble.
Later in the tournament though, the price is too expensive to play dangerous hands such as suited connectors and small pairs. We just don't hit enough flops to warrant paying a big blind. So if Phil's top 10 arrive once every 22 hands, how do we survive? Over the years I have found that the answer to this problem is knowing when to steal the blinds, and knowing when to defend the blinds. These few extra pots supply the oxygen to survive until the next big hand comes along.
The most common error is to attempt to steal blinds when they just aren't worth stealing. Early in a tournament you may have 10,000 chips, and the blinds are 50/100, and everyone passes around to you on the button. You would probably need to bet 400 or more to steal a pot of only 150. If it is any less, the big blind will often take a flop in the early stages. It just isn't worth trying to steal. However, the same scenario may develop later in the tournament. You both now have around 12,000 chips and the blinds are now 800/1600. If you bet 4000 on the button now, the Big Blind will be reluctant to call the extra 2400 without a hand. So now you are risking 4000 to win 3200 : a much better odds proposition.
Often in No Limit Hold em competitions there is a running ante as well. So now, in the same situation, there may have been an ante of 100 per player. This produces a pot size of 4100 and excellent pot odds for a steal! If your opponents have watched you pass your hand on the button in
the early stages, you should now be able to pick up over 50% of these pots uncontested. A healthy profit without even seeing a flop.
In No Limit and Pot Limit tournaments it could be argued that the cards you hold in this situation are completely irrelevant. If you get re-raised you pass. If your raise is called, you only get busy after the flop if you hit two pair or better. Your profit comes from the uncontested pots. Lastly, you are also now cultivating a looser image. So when you do pick up AA or KK, you are much more likely to achieve a double up coupe.
The question of when to defend your blinds is far more complicated, but the three main factors to consider are.
. Pot odds (again) - In the above scenario, you have to call only 2400, and the pot size is now 8100 (2400 in blinds, 900 antes, and an opponents bet of 4000). You are getting over 3 to 1. If you feel your opponent does not have a premium pair, then many hands warrant a call e.g. K2 v JJ will show a profit!
. Post flop value - Should the flop be K92 can you make more money from your opponent? If you trap check, will he move all-in recklessly? If so, this also adds to the value in calling a raise from your Big Blind.
. Your opponent - Is your opponent weak after the flop? Having called his raise with K2, the flop comes 567. You know that your opponent only raises with high quality cards and hates this flop. If you move all-in from first position, will he call for his remaining 8000 chips? Even great players such as Phil Helmuth will rarely call in this situation if their original raise was with AK or AQ. If you are 90% sure the opponent will not risk his stack without Aces or Kings, go for it. This is one of the rare poker scenarios where it could be argued that first to act is the better position.
Your current stack size - If it will cost 2400 to call the raise, and your stack size is only 7400 then you just can't do it. The raise will cripple you too much. Passing will allow you another round to find a better situation. Conversely, if you have a stack of 40,000, then the 2400 does have any affect. The potential post flop value will often dictate that you should call.
As usual, it's all about doing the right thing at the right time. However, you do have to do something, because the top 10 hands just don't arrive often enough to provide all the ammunition to win tournaments.
is best to play very few hands: his Top Ten Hands to be precise. In a cash game, this is a sure way to make a profit. Sklansky may take this strategy a little further and suggest that maybe we shouldn't be playing pocket 7s and pocket 8s as well! Although I agree with this strategy in a 9 handed cash game, it leaves us with very little chance of winning a tournament. This strategy would clearly lead to being blinded to death.Personally I like to play a lot more hands than this, especially earlier in the tournament. Many of the top professionals, such as Phil and even Doyle Brunson, suggest that you may as well sit on your hands for the first few levels of a tournament. Their point is that the blinds, and the size of the pot, just isn't worth fighting for. Personally, I like to play any pocket pair during the early stages : trying to get in cheaply and flop a set. You can often injure anyone foolishly slow playing an overpair at this stage. I also like playing suited connectors, in the hope I can flop a straight, or a flush and hopefully get paid for my trouble.
Later in the tournament though, the price is too expensive to play dangerous hands such as suited connectors and small pairs. We just don't hit enough flops to warrant paying a big blind. So if Phil's top 10 arrive once every 22 hands, how do we survive? Over the years I have found that the answer to this problem is knowing when to steal the blinds, and knowing when to defend the blinds. These few extra pots supply the oxygen to survive until the next big hand comes along.
The most common error is to attempt to steal blinds when they just aren't worth stealing. Early in a tournament you may have 10,000 chips, and the blinds are 50/100, and everyone passes around to you on the button. You would probably need to bet 400 or more to steal a pot of only 150. If it is any less, the big blind will often take a flop in the early stages. It just isn't worth trying to steal. However, the same scenario may develop later in the tournament. You both now have around 12,000 chips and the blinds are now 800/1600. If you bet 4000 on the button now, the Big Blind will be reluctant to call the extra 2400 without a hand. So now you are risking 4000 to win 3200 : a much better odds proposition.
Often in No Limit Hold em competitions there is a running ante as well. So now, in the same situation, there may have been an ante of 100 per player. This produces a pot size of 4100 and excellent pot odds for a steal! If your opponents have watched you pass your hand on the button in
the early stages, you should now be able to pick up over 50% of these pots uncontested. A healthy profit without even seeing a flop.In No Limit and Pot Limit tournaments it could be argued that the cards you hold in this situation are completely irrelevant. If you get re-raised you pass. If your raise is called, you only get busy after the flop if you hit two pair or better. Your profit comes from the uncontested pots. Lastly, you are also now cultivating a looser image. So when you do pick up AA or KK, you are much more likely to achieve a double up coupe.
The question of when to defend your blinds is far more complicated, but the three main factors to consider are.
. Pot odds (again) - In the above scenario, you have to call only 2400, and the pot size is now 8100 (2400 in blinds, 900 antes, and an opponents bet of 4000). You are getting over 3 to 1. If you feel your opponent does not have a premium pair, then many hands warrant a call e.g. K2 v JJ will show a profit!
. Post flop value - Should the flop be K92 can you make more money from your opponent? If you trap check, will he move all-in recklessly? If so, this also adds to the value in calling a raise from your Big Blind.
. Your opponent - Is your opponent weak after the flop? Having called his raise with K2, the flop comes 567. You know that your opponent only raises with high quality cards and hates this flop. If you move all-in from first position, will he call for his remaining 8000 chips? Even great players such as Phil Helmuth will rarely call in this situation if their original raise was with AK or AQ. If you are 90% sure the opponent will not risk his stack without Aces or Kings, go for it. This is one of the rare poker scenarios where it could be argued that first to act is the better position.
Your current stack size - If it will cost 2400 to call the raise, and your stack size is only 7400 then you just can't do it. The raise will cripple you too much. Passing will allow you another round to find a better situation. Conversely, if you have a stack of 40,000, then the 2400 does have any affect. The potential post flop value will often dictate that you should call.
As usual, it's all about doing the right thing at the right time. However, you do have to do something, because the top 10 hands just don't arrive often enough to provide all the ammunition to win tournaments.