POKER TOURNAMENT STRATEGIES - FREEROLL TOURNAMENT PLAY

Best online poker room tournaments: ABSOLUTE POKER

The typical Freeroll poker Tournament has hundreds of players and can go on for hours. Be prepared to take your time because at the end of the tournament only 8% of those players will walk away with some poker cash. In order to place in this top 8% you are going to need to know something about the usual freeroll play. Most people are looking to double up their stack fast and these types of players won't last too long in this type of tournament.

Let's say the 1st hand comes out and you are holding an A-7 off suit. Chances are you would take your chances with this hand, WRONG! This isn't a good hand in the early stages of a freeroll tournament. We are looking for stronger hands to start. Although the A-7 might pair up the A on the flop you don't have a sufficient enough kicker to see you through the betting process this early in the game. Chances are you may pair up your 7 with an A kicker, but are you confident with the 7's even if they are the high pair on board. In this type of hand you are going to have 3 types of players. A player who also hit top pair, a player who has hit any other mid to low pair or a player who has two painted cards in the hole hoping to hit their over pair.

The player with the painted hole cards may hit their hand or they may not but most likely they will see it through to the river increasing the bets along the way. Are you're 7's enough? I can't stress enough the importance of strength in the cards you play pre-flop in the beginning. Keep your strong A-K, A-Q or A-x suited or any pocket pair. Because your stack size seems large compared to the lower blinds at the beginning of a tournament you may be a little more reckless in your betting this is a mistake most inexperienced players make. Most times this will cost you more than you think due to someone pairing up a larger pair or being beaten by the bigger kicker. Keep in mind that there are 9 other players at your table in the beginning and they could be holding anything. Remember discipline is key in the beginning of a Freeroll tournament.

Inexperienced players make a lot of all-ins in the beginning to try an increase their stack size or steal the blinds. Don't be tempted enough to call with mid-pairs and lose. Don't let this kind of play get to you even though it can be annoying, stay to your own game plan and play it safe. Unless you are holding a flush or 2 pairs fold and wait for the right time to make your move. Don't second guess the loose players as it might cost you the game. Patience will give you the edge over these loose players and eventually they will make the fatal mistake of going all-in against your winning hand. Then and only then should you make the call and move all-in. Settle yourself mental into the long haul and eventually the game will even out. Until then you should make a decent amount of chips off your strong pre-flop hands.

Be selective of your bets. You don't need to risk 100 chips to make the 30 chip pot early in the game. There isn't enough to matter in the pot at this point to risk your stack. Let your cards guide you through the beginning and once you are farther into the tournament you can begin to use your strategies.

The next stage of a Freeroll begins when a lot of the less experienced players have been shown the door. Although you are getting closer to the money here are a few things to keep in mind. Carry through the all-in philosophy from the beginning of the game. All-in is a high risk move and nothing is guaranteed. I have made the mistake of moving all in with a flush A high on the turn only to loose to a full house of fives and fours. Talk about a wake up call. That is the bad beat of the century.

You can begin to play a little more aggressively at this point depending on your table position. Still the key to this component of a freeroll is to maintain your stack and slowly increase its size. Don't worry about your stack size compared to the other players at your table as that will just create stress you don't need. Don't make the mistake of calling when you shouldn't in order to catch a good hand and increase your chip count, over betting could kill your stack quickly. This is not the time to try and bluff your way to victory as it might backfire and you will end up heads up with an unexpected flush! Bluffing is the art of knowing the weaknesses of your opponents and if you sense a weakness then and only then do you strike. As the tournament gets tighter I have found that semi-bluffing can be an invaluable strategy. Throwing out a raise after the flop that is a little high can give you insight into what your opponents might be holding. Just push the envelope enough to test the waters, most often if your opponent bites he is holding something he feels is sufficient to win. Back off and walk away as this is not the time to bluff.

Keep your plays unpredictable at the table so that your opponents will have a harder time gathering a read on your style. A lot of players will lose a bit of their stack during this phase of a freeroll. This is the time to play a little more aggressively as the blinds are constantly increasing. Don't wait until your stack size has diminished enough to lose the tournament to the blinds. That isn't exactly they way you want to exit a Freeroll tournament.

The final stages of a Freeroll Tournament are when you have made the final 8%. Yes you are in the money now. The bottom half of the tournament players will make a pittance compared to the big money at the end. You will need to go farther if you want to pay your mortgage this month! By now you have probably invested a few hours into this tournament and a couple of bucks for your time isn't a lot of reward. Your goal is to make the final table. The blinds at this point are becoming very large and a simple mistake could send you on your way with a few dollars. Relying solely on your cards isn't going to cut it anymore as the blinds will eat away at your stack at an astronomical rate. Now is the time to bluff. Remember every one of your opponents is in your shoes as well and feeling the pressure too. Now is the time to capitalize on your opponents weaknesses and out play them. Try to avoid calling out the chip leader on a bluff as it will hurt your stack more then theirs if you are wrong. Don't become too cocky with the short stacked players as they are in desperate need of more chips and will move all-in more quickly. A lot of times the short stack will go all in with a mid-pair or high kicker with the hopes of getting you to fold. Play it smart if you are holding a mid-pair with a decent kicker and this call won't hurt your stack too much go for it. If your table position is good make a move on the short stacks, more often than not they are playing tight at this point to hold onto what's left of their small stack. You can easily push them out of the hand with a bluff raise if they have already checked. Pay strict attention to your opponents and capitalize on their weaknesses. Be aggressive but don't be sloppy about it, make sure you have the cards to back you up. At the final table remember it is not solely your job to knock out the short stacks, take your time and exercise the same playing style you used throughout the tournament as it obviously took you this far! Ultimately if you play your cards

right and enjoy yourself either way win or lose it should be fun and entertaining.

Below you will find a list of our recommended online poker rooms that offer Daily Freeroll Tournaments.

www.partypoker.com

www.Paradisepoker.com

www.absolutepoker.com