There are two basic types of Single Table Tournaments: Standard SNGs and Turbos (we’ll sidestep super turbos for now).  Each SNG type has its advantages and disadvantages.  Here are some of the pros and cons to help you decide which type of Sit ‘N Go you want to play.

Standard SNGs

Standard Sit ‘N Goes have a relatively slow blind structure, and are popular on just about every online poker site, but are especially common on Poker Stars.  The exact time between blind increases varies from site to site.  In fact, a Standard SNG on one site might be considered a Turbo SNG on another.  Generally, however, the blinds raise every 6 to 10 minutes in a Standard SNG.

Pros

1. The slower blind structure allows players more time to wait for good hands and pick their spots.  Good post-flop players will have a little bit more of an edge in this game because the slow blind structure gives players more time with a larger stack.
2. The return on investment for Standard Sit ‘N Goes is usually higher than it is for Turbo Sit ‘N Goes.
3. There are more new players in Standard Sit ‘N Goes.  When new poker players decide that they want to play Sit ‘N Goes, they usually try Standard Sit ‘N Goes first so good players should have a significant edge at the lower and middle limits.

Cons

1. Standard SNGs take about 10 to 20 minutes longer to play than Turbo Sit ‘N Goes which can have a significant impact on your hourly rate.
2. The slower blind structure means players will have many options available to then in a given situation (bet, check/raise, slow play, all-in, etc.).  More options means more decisions and the more decisions you have to make, the fewer games you can play because you’re spending more time analyzing important moves.

Turbo SNGs

Players used to think that strong poker players had a higher edge in Standard Sit ‘N Goes than they did in Turbo Sit ‘N Goes but that’s not necessarily true.  The two games favor different skill sets.  A superior post-flop player will do better in a Standard Sit ‘N Go, but someone who can play perfectICM(independent chip model) strategy can have a significant edge in Turbos, especially on poker sites which are known for fishy gambling type players, like Party Poker.

Pros

1. Turbo Sit ‘N Goes are much faster than Standard Sit ‘N Goes.  The blinds usually raise every 3 to 5 minutes.  That means you can play a lot more Turbos per hour which can increase your hourly win rate.
2. It’s easier to massive multi-table Turbos because your decisions are usually limited to shove, fold or call a shove.  There’s very little post-flop play once you’re 15 – 20 minutes into the tournament.
3. A lot of inexperienced Sit ‘N Go players try to play Turbos without a solid understanding ofICM.  These players try to play their normal Sit ‘N Go game and get destroyed by players who make unexploitable shoves.

Cons

1. Turbo Sit ‘N Goes generally have a lower ROI than Standard Sit ‘N Goes.  You’ll have to decide if the ability to play more games per hour is worth the hit your ROI will take.
2. It’s difficult to exploit other players who studyICM.  It basically comes down to who is better at putting his opponent on a range.

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Neither SNG is “better” than the other.  They just favor different kinds of players.  If you’re good at playing post-flop, you’ll probably have more of an edge in a Standard Sit ‘N Go, but if you can spot unexploitable shoves that others miss, Turbos might be the way to go for you.

Experiment a little and compare your ROIs and hourly rates.  Your profits will ultimately tell you which Sit ‘N Go is best for you.

Most People Overplay Pocket Jacks

When low limit players see pocket Jacks they only see one thing – paint.  To these players, pocket Jacks are the same as pocket Queens or Kings.  It’s a hand to be played fast and furious; a hand to be played to the felt if necessary.  But this balls-to-the-walls method of playing pocket Jacks can get you into trouble fast.  Consider this:

Pocket Kings are roughly 82% to win against a random hand preflop.  However pocket Jacks are 77% to win against a random hand preflop and pocket Tens are only 2% less than that.  If you play your Jacks too fast, you’re giving an edge to your opponents.

Jacks Are Vulnerable

When you play pocket Jacks, you’ll face an overcard on the flop about 57% of the time.  That means that almost half of the time you’ll have the unenviable position of deciding whether or not your opponent is holding a Queen, King or Ace.  If you decide to bet and your opponent calls, you have another tough decision on the turn – especially if the turn is also a Queen, King or Ace.

Moreover, your opponent might sense your concern and start representing the scare card and force you to fold.

How Should You Play Pocket Jacks?

Jacks are good enough to be played strong preflop.  You should raise them from any position at the poker table.  You might even re-raise with pocket Jacks if you’re in late position and the initial raiser is a loose player.  However calling a re-raise with pocket Jacks is a mistake and frankly, it’s a mistake that the majority of low limit players make.

Even if your pocket Jacks are the best hand preflop, you’ll have a difficult time taking them to showdown.  As I mentioned before, you’ll face an overcard on the flop 57% of the time and be forced to fold your hand.  The other 43% of the time you’ll have to decide whether your re-raiser raised you withQueens, Kings or Aces.  In short, you’ll be in a needlessly difficult spot.

Pocket Jacks should be played with restrained aggression.  Play your hand strong, but fold your hand if someone else shows strength in turn.  Jacks can be a powerful hand, but they can’t take a lot of heat.  By paying close attention and folding when necessary, you can limit your losses with pocket Jacks and therefore make them more profitable.

I always lose with pocket Queens.

Or

I never win on site X.

 These myths are obviously ridiculous and smart players will dismiss them as losing players making excuses for why they lose.  But there are some poker myths that even winning players believe.  Here are four poker myths that could be costing you money.

Don’t Bluff Multi-way Pots

The logic seems sound enough.  The more players there are in a pot, the harder it is to get them all to fold.  But there’s a problem with this advice.

Most players will give a lot of credit to a bet in a multi-way pot.

If you’re cultivating a tight image and find yourself in the right situation, you can win a decent multi-way pot with a modest bet.

I’m not suggesting that you bet every time you’re in a multi-way pot, but learning how to bluff multi-way pots can be very profitable.

Super-tight is Super Right

I blame Phil Hellmuth for this one.  In his book Play Poker Like The Pros, Hellmuth said that if tight is right, then super-tight must be super right.  Hellmuth suggests playing only the top 10% of hands.

While this advice may have been good 4 or 5 years ago, it’s not that great today.  Players following Hellmuth’s advice will get very little action on their hands and when they do get action, they’ll usually be facing a hand that has an overpair crushed.

Even low limit players are savvy these days.  You have to mix your game up some or the online regulars will tear you to pieces.

You Gotta Make Big Bluffs To Win

I’d blame Tom ‘Durrrr’ Dwan for this one except the “big bluff” myth was thriving long before Dwan placed his first bet.

It’s true that you have to bluff with a certain frequency to maximize your win rate.  Ed Miller and David Sklansky have been big proponents of using a theoretically optimal bluffing frequency for a long time, however most players bluff too frequently.

The majority of your bets should be value bets.  You should add just enough bluffs in your range so that your opponent cannot profitably call your bet either way.  For more information on theoretically optimal bluffing frequency, see The Theory of Poker or No Limit Hold’em Theory and Practice.

Bet Small With Monsters To Extract Value

I see this all the time in cash games.  Someone has a monster hand and they bet small to keep their opponent in the pot.  These players should be trying their damnedest to get all their money in the middle.

A lot of players think they’re being deceptive by betting small with their big hands.  That’s not how you use deception.  You should be betting your small hands and bluff big occasionally to disguise the times that you really do have a big hand.

So how do you build a pot?  You do it by betting big and overbetting the pot occasionally.

Still not convinced?  Consider this example:

You’re in a 1/2 game with JT.  The pot is $95 and you have been the aggressor throughout the hand betting every street so far.  The river just came down and it’s the Ten of diamonds.  Here’s the board:

JT26T with three diamonds on the board.  You think your opponent would have either called on the flop and turn with a strong Jack or the flush draw (which he just made).  You have $135 left and your opponent has you covered.  Do you bet $65 for value or shove all-in?

Let’s say you get called 80% of the time when you bet $65 and only 40% of the time when you shove for $135.  You still make more money by shoving.

EV Betting $65   = $52

EV Betting $135 = $54

That’s an extra $2 in EV even though your opponent will only call half as often.

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There are a lot of myths in poker and the most dangerous ones are very believable.  Changing your beliefs about the four myths above will certainly make you a better poker player.

There are online casinos that have free games players can enjoy which provide them with the chance to win real money. However, when a player is looking for this type of casino they want to be sure they read the fine print provided on the site so they know the games are really free and the money they can win is real money. These casinos will generally offer some free games and some real money games, but all of the games can provide players with a whole lot of fun.

Many online casinos offer players bonuses for joining, or for making deposits. By taking advantage of bonuses that offer players free casino credits just for joining, a player can play games without spending their own money and this means risk free gaming. When players win money without putting their own money up, they can continue to use that money to play even more. This allows that player to have the chance to win more and more money without putting their money up.

Online casino players looking for those risk free online casinos still want to be sure the casino offers them a wide range of other benefits that will add to the players enjoyment. Risk free gaming is a wonderful way to go for players that can’t really afford to spend money in order to play the online casino games. There are a lot of players that wouldn’t be able to play any of the online casino games if they had to put up their own money in order to do so. No risk casinos can offer some of the best casino games on the Internet and players want to hold out for those casinos.

There are several differences between limit and no-limit (aside from the obvious).  From the way you bluff to the hands you play, they’re different.  Here are some of the differences between the games to help you transition from one to another or just to decide which one you’d rather play.

Tight-Aggressive Is Right Vs. Aggressive Is Right

You can’t be a loose-aggressive player in limit Hold’em and still expect to be a winning player.  It’s not going to happen.  However, there are several very successful no-limit players that are great at playing a loose-aggressive style.

In no-limit Holde’m you can win your opponent’s entire stack on any given hand.  Hell, you could win multiple opponents’ stacks on any given hand.  With odds like that, you can make loose calls with poor hands and hope to get lucky.  Limit Hold’em isn’t so forgiving.  There’s a cap to how much you can win and you can never win enough money to make loose calls profitable.

Can’t Kill Drawing Odds Vs. Total Pot Control

When you’re playing limit poker, you can’t control your opponent’s odds.  If there’s a draw, your opponent probably has the right odds to chase.  No-Limit is a different story.  If you have a big hand and see your opponent on the draw, you can defend your hand with your entire stack and destroy their odds.  In other words, you have total pot control.

Put As Few Chips In The Pot When Losing Vs. Put As Many Chips In The Pot When Winning

As I mentioned before, you’ll usually have odds to chase in Limit Hold’em even when you’re behind.  The goal in limit Hold’em is to put as few chips into the pot as possible while you’re chasing.

The focus in no-limit, however, is more on getting paid than damage control.  When you have a big hand in no-limit, you have to focus on getting your opponents to commit as many chips as possible so you can go all-in.  This dichotomy makes no-limit a much more aggressive game.

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While limit Hold’em is mostly about damage control, no-limit is about cramming and ramming.  Not everyone is suited for both games.  In fact, most people find that they do well with one and poorly with another.  Well rounded players, however, like to be able to play both.  The trick to playing both successfully is to know their differences and adjust your game accordingly.  When you’re first starting out, however, you need to find the game that you’re most comfortable with and make that your primary focus.  Once you find the right game and hone your skills, you’ll see your profits soar.

Here’s what I mean:

Know the Most Profitable Times to Play

You’ll make more money on certain days and at certain times.  For example, professional Sit N Go players know to steer clear of SNGs on weeknights between 6 and 10pm eastern time.  For whatever reason, it’s just less profitable to play during these times.

Your tracking software will help you determine what time is the most profitable for your poker roll.  Tournament players can also go to Sharkscope.com to find out when they’re most profitable.

Know What Limit You Should Play

Logic dictates that when you face better players when you play higher limits so your win rate should go down, but logic doesn’t always hold in this instance.  Going back to our Sit N Go example, many players will tell you that there’s a limit that they just can’t beat even if they usually play at a higher limit.  For example, I know of a good Sit N Go player that regularly crushes the $30+3 level, but can’t play profitably at the $10+1 level.

In any case, you’ll often find that you do much better at a certain limit.  Use your tracking software to determine what limit that is and play there more often.

Know How Many Tables You Should Play

Once again, logic misleads us.  Logically your win rate should be higher when you play fewer tables, but this isn’t always the case.  A lot of players have a hard time playing just one table because they get bored and start making stupid moves.  These same players make a killing when they 6 and 8-table because there’s plenty to keep them busy.

Experiment with multi-tabling to find your sweet spot.  Poker tracking software like Hold’em Manager will help you determine how many tables is optimal for you.

Know How You Perform In Different Positions

Almost all players will show more of a profit as they approach the button, but not all players will use that information to their advantage.

One of the most common mistakes in no-limit cash games is being too tight on the button.  You should steal liberally with almost any two cards when the action folds to you.  If you don’t believe me, check your poker tracking program.  I’ll bet almost every hand shows a profit for you on the button.  Analyze your play and find spots to squeeze out extra profits.

Hunt Down ATM Machines

Sometimes it’s hard to notice weak players when you have 8 or 10 tables up.  You know you’re winning money, but you don’t know who that money is coming from.  Check your poker tracking program once a week to see which opponents are giving you the most money and put them on your buddy list so you can sit with them more often.

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Poker tracking isn’t only about tracking your opponents.  You need to track your own play as well as the trends of the poker room.  Use the information you find wisely and you can drastically increase your win rate.

            I wake up every evening

            With a big smile on my face

            And it never feels out of place.

            You’re still probably working

            At a 9 to 5 pace

            Wonder how bad that tastes.

It’s easy to imagine that the song writer was a poker player.  After all, isn’t the appeal of playing poker professionally that you can wake up whenever you want, play whenever you want and never have to work on a schedule?

Unfortunately poker isn’t like that – at least – not for people who play it for a living.  Like Brian Roberts (Flawless_Victory) said on 2M2MM, “You show me a person who gets R&R from playing poker and I’ll show you a losing player.”  Winning poker is work and work comes with a schedule.

However, just because you schedule your time doesn’t mean you have to lock yourself in a 9 to 5 grind.  In fact, grinding 9 to 5 is a terrible idea because you miss out on the best times to play.

The Best Times to Play Poker

If I were to make a full-time poker playing schedule, it would be Wednesday through Sunday from 6 p.m. to 2 a.m. eastern time.  Why?  ‘Cause that’s when the fish are out.  Since PokerTableRatings.com went online, players have a wealth of information available to them.  One important piece of information is average pot size and the data shows that the average pot size grows largest between 6 p.m. and 2 a.m. Wednesday through Sunday.

That timeframe is undoubtedly the best time to play poker from a purely empirical standpoint, but is it the best time to play poker from a psychological standpoint?

It depends.

I’m lucky.  I worked in the restaurant industry for years and a 6 p.m. to 2 a.m. schedule works perfect for me.  I’m naturally alert late at night and can think clearly and make good decisions.  But that’s just me.

There is, so I’m told, another breed of human out there known as the “Morning Person.”  These morning people can get up at 5 a.m. and are bright-eyed, bushy-tailed and ready to take on the world.  These people are sharp and alert early in the morning and tend to be groggy and sluggish when it gets late.  If you’re a morning person, it doesn’t matter that the pot sizes get larger late at night.  You’ll make more mistakes in larger pots because you’re not thinking clearly.  Stick with your strengths and play early.

When Should I Play?

If you’re not sure when you play best, you should try playing several thousand hands in a range of different times.  A good tracking program like Hold’em Manager or PokerTracker3 will help you break down your win rate during different timeframes.  After a while, you’ll start to notice that you win significantly more during certain hours.  Obviously you should make an effort to play in that timeframe every day.

Don’t Force It

Some poker players are machines.  They can play multiple tables for hours on end without sacrificing their win rate.  Other players can only focus for an hour or two before they fall into a rhythm and start playing robotic poker.  Know your limitations and take breaks when necessary.

The question is where should you start?  There are so many books to choose from that it’s hard to separate pure gold from pure trash.  Here’s a list of must-read poker books to help you on your way.

The Theory of Poker

The Theory of Poker was written by David Sklansky and is considered the bible of poker.  This book is required reading for any first-time poker player.  It’ll teach you basic concepts like pot odds, implied odds, reverse pot odds and more. In short, it will tell you everything you need to know to understand the game of poker.

All more advanced poker books build on Sklansky’s The Theory of Poker.

Sit ‘N Go Strategy

Sit ‘N Goes are great.  They give you lots of experience for a little investment. Not to mention the fact that they’re much easier on your bankroll.  Colin Moshman’s book Sit ‘N Go Strategy teaches you how to be a Sit ‘N Go winner regardless of the level of the blinds.  This book tells you everything you need to know from what starting hands to choose to advanced theories like the Independent Chip Model.  It’s everything you need to become a winning Sit ‘N Go player.

Harrington on Hold ‘em Series

Okay so I cheated a little bit.  The Harrington on Hold ‘em series is actually three books, but they could be the best three poker books you’ll ever read.  It’s full of practical information to make you a better tournament poker player.  Perhaps the best thing about these books is the practical questions it has.  In fact, the third book is nothing but questions designed to test your knowledge of the game.  If you want to be a winning tournament poker player, this series is all you need.

Killer Poker

John Vorhaus’s book Killer Poker, and in fact his entire Killer Poker series, shows you the application of theoretical poker knowledge.  His books are full of real-world examples that’ll help you grasp abstract concepts better.  In addition, Vorhaus’s straightforward style and sarcastic wit make his books fun to read as well as incredibly informative.

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Poker is a lot like golf in that it takes minutes to learn but a lifetime to master and it certainly would take a lifetime if you had to learn all of the nuances by yourself.  Fortunately we have poker professionals to guide us along the way.  Today, acquiring the knowledge of a poker star is as easy as turning a few pages.  If you are truly serious about improving your poker game, take a look at the four (okay, six including the other two Harrington books) that I recommended.  I guarantee they’ll make you a better player.

Many sites, including this one, offer players the chance to get a percentage of their rake back.  The amount of rake you get back depends on where you play.  Usually players can get back somewhere between 20 – 35% of their rake, though a few online poker rooms will offer as much as 60% rakeback.

Rakeback is vital for all professional poker players and it can drastically increase you’re hourly win rate.

For example, let’s say you play the $30+3 and $50+5 Sit ‘N Goes at Full Tilt Poker and your average Return on Investment (ROI) is 10%.  You average 6 games per hour.  Half are $30+3s and half are $50+5s.  Your total earnings average out to $26.40/hr.  If you work a 35 hour week, you’re making $924/week.  Not bad, but you can do better.

You paid $24/hour in rake to make your money.  If you sign up here at Poker-Strategy.org, we can set you up to get 27% rakeback at Full Tilt.  Once you have rakeback, you’ll make an extra $6.48/hour ($24 x 27%= $6.48).  Let’s see how that affects your income.

Old Income

$26.40/hr  x 35 hours/week = $924

Income With Rakeback

$26.40/hr. + $6.48/hr rackback = $32.88/hr.  x 35 hours/week = $1150.80

You’re earning an extra $226.80/week ($11,793.60/year) doing no extra work whatsoever.

The Drawbacks to Rakeback

The only drawback to rakeback is that you’ll start to feel the cost of the little freebies you used to get from online poker rooms.  Online poker rooms share the cost of processing fees, overlays and prizes redeemed using points with their affiliates.  Those affiliates, in turn, share the cost with their rakeback players.  The formula for your rakeback will look something like this:

Rake – Bonus – Overlays – Fees – Used Points = Net Revenue

Net Revenue x Rackback % = Your Rakeback Money

The monetary value associated with player points varies from one poker room to the next, so you’ll need to check with your affiliate to figure it out.

Here’s how this affects your bottom line:

Let’s say you play at Full Tilt and you want to use your points to buy Harrington on Cash Vol. I (10,000 pts).  Full Tilt docks affiliates $0.005 for every point used, so your rake would be reduced by $50 before your rakeback is calculated.

In other words, the book cost you $13.50 ($50 x 27%).  Make sure you’re willing to spend the money before using the points.

The above example applies to Full Tilt Poker.  Not all poker rooms deduct your points from your rakeback.  Feel free to email us to find out which poker rooms deduct your points and which don’t.

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Overall, the benefits of rakeback far exceed the potential drawbacks.  Feel free to contact us anytime regarding rakeback.  We offer the best deals anywhere on almost any online poker room you can think of.

There’s one maggot that dares to defy your supremacy.  You raised preflop, bet the flop and this insignificant punk re-raises you.  Little does he know that you have a decent hand.  You call with top pair/top kicker then your opponent goes all-in on the turn.

What You Think Happened

You think your opponent finally woke up and grew a pair.  You’ve been hammering the table hand after hand and now someone is playing back at you.  You have a good hand so you decide to call to show him you’ve got the goods and he’d better back off.

What Actually Happened

Your opponent stumbled upon a monster flop.  He called your raise preflop with a pair of 8s and hit a set on the flop.  He knew you were playing aggressively and decided to raise for a couple of reasons.  First, he wanted to show you he could play hard too and second, he thought you might re-raise him out of aggression.  You obliged by calling his raise and his all-in on the turn and ended up getting stacked.

What Did You Learn?

Your opponents aren’t playing back at you.  Low limit players tend to play straightforward poker.  Few have the skill to pull off a stone cold bluff when someone is showing aggression and the those that do have the skill won’t try it in a low limit game because they know they’ll probably get called anyway.

Your ego can be your biggest enemy at the poker table.  You think a player is pushing you around when he really just caught a good run of cards and you think a player is trying to bluff you with a re-raise when they’re really just trying to get paid off on their straight.  Sure your opponent might pull one over on you occasionally, but it’s not as often as you think.

I used to play with a sticky note on the corner of my computer screen that said, “Believe them.  They’ve got the goods” to remind myself not to challenge a player that was challenging me.  That little note saved me hundreds.

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Poker players are generally a prideful lot but their hubris is a tragic flaw; one that can be exploited.  Now that you know how your pride is costing you money, you can plug that leak and move on to improving other aspects of your game.