Steve Badger is fond of saying that if you’re a losing player, you need an infinite bankroll. If you follow the no limit Texas holdem SnG strategy in this article, it’s unlikely you’ll be a losing player. But you still need enough of a bankroll to avoid what they call risk of ruin, which is the chance that you’ll catch a losing streak that will wipe out your bankroll before you can win enough to catch back up to your positive expectation.

The standard guidelines I’ve seen on discussions in various places on the internet is that you need between 20 and 30 buy-in’s at whatever level of sit and go you’re playing in. So here are the bankroll requirements at the various levels of play. (We recommend avoiding the $5 + $1 because the house rake is twice as much at that level, and the play at the $10 + $1 level isn’t enough to warrant paying the extra vig on the entry fee.)….  Read rest of article at Unknown Poker

By SamENole
When Adam asked me if I’d be willing to write a monthly article for pocketfives, I originally had some concerns.  Having graduated from college more than a year ago, would my writing skills be up to the task?  As a player who plays on instinct and habit, would I really be able to put my style into words?  Lastly, what topics could I write about?

by David Grey
Most players are aware of the significant advantages that come with having a big stack in a tournament. When a player has chips, he can attack and pick up pots by forcing those around him into a corner where they have to make tough decisions. Those who have short stacks are always vulnerable to attack by those who have managed to accumulate lots of chips.Why can the big stacks be more aggressive? The answer may surprise you. In tournaments, the more chips you have the less each individual chip is worth, making it easier for the big stacks to throw more into each pot. It’s a strange concept, but one you should understand. To illustrate the point, say that you have 100,000 in tournament chips, and you lose 20,000 in a pot. You’re not going to be happy about the loss, but that setback is not nearly as devastating as losing 15,000 from a 30,000 stack.

When you have a lot of chips that aren’t worth much, you can be…. Read rest of article at Full Tilt Poker

By Gavin Smith
You’ll be seeing a lot of me on next year’s World Poker Tour broadcasts. So far in the 2005-2006 schedule, I’ve made three final tables. I won the Mirage event, finished third at the Bellagio and fourth in Tunica. When you see a broadcast that features my play, you may be left scratching your head, asking, “Why the heck is that guy playing those cards?”There’s no question that I do play an unconventional game. But, there is a method to my madness.

I play a style that’s usually referred to as “small-pot poker.” Using this approach, I’m looking to pick up a lot of small pots by applying a constant level of pressure to my opponents. Pre-flop, I raise frequently, especially in position. My raises are small, usually around two-and-a-half times the big blind, as opposed to the customary three or four times the big blind. I’ll raise with a huge variety of hands - everything from big pocket pairs to “junk” hands, like 6d-4d, or 5c-8c.

Usually, I’ll miss the flop when I raise with junk. In fact, two-thirds of the time, I won’t make as much as a pair. But here’s the thing…. Read rest of article at Full Tilt Poker

In this article, I will present general strategies you can use in big tournaments, meaning hundreds and sometimes thousands of players, such as freeroll tournaments for example.. These strategies apply to “normal pace” tournaments. By that, I mean a typical structure found in tournaments where the blinds start low, and the blind increments from level to level are not excessively steep. Also, the total time between level increases is average (10-12 minutes or so is common). These strategies do not apply to “turbo” tournaments where the blinds increase very quickly and by a lot.

Starting Strategy

Because this is a slower pace tournament, I will advise you to take your time when you first start out. Semi-conservative play is good at first. You’ll notice that what tends to happen in the first 10 hands of any big freeroll tournament is that a lot of people go all in. Some go all in because they have an ace in their hands and hope to get lucky. Others my have a pair and try to win big. Some people just go all in no matter what they have and hope to win the “first hand lottery”. You don’t want to be involved at this stage because too many people call. Remember that in general, you only want to be…. read rest of article at MyPokerCorner.com