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Small-Ball Poker Tournament Strategy – How Can Small-Ball Benefit You?

Discusses The Advantages Of Pot Control In Poker Tournaments
A Small-Ball Poker Tournament Strategy

Small Ball Poker describes a playing style that emphasizes managing the size of the pot to accumulate chips without the risk of going broke. Many players employ this style in their poker tournament strategy, Daniel Negreanu being one of the best known.

The small-ball poker tournament strategy has many advantages. These include the ability to gain information over several betting rounds in order to put your opponent on a hand. Secondly, by not risking big all-in confrontations players can reduce the chance of going out of a poker tournament due to a bad-beat or mis-read of an opponents holding.

Small Ball Poker Strategy - Keeping The Pot Small Starts Pre-Flop

Keeping pots small in poker begins on the pre-flop betting round. This is due to the fact that on the flop, turn and river bet sizes are usually a proportion of the pot. Let us look at and example that assumes deep stacks, here the big blind is 100 chips and we track the pot size with 2 players where all bets are called (ignoring the blinds for simplicity):

 

Pre-flop Raise:

After Half Pot Flop Bet:

After Half Pot Turn Bet:

After Half Pot River Bet:

250

1000

2000

4000

300

1200

2400

4800

350

1400

2800

5600

400

1600

3200

6400

 

As you can see, increasing the pre-flop bet by just 150 chips leads to a pot size jump of 2400 by the river. Keeping the raise small pre-flop has risked less chips, those times you find yourself behind in the hand you will still have a enough chips to make a comeback!

Small Ball Poker Strategy - Controlling The Pot With A 'Check'.

Pot control in small ball poker often requires checking at some point during the hand. This is most important when you are in a ‘Way Ahead / Way Behind’ situation. An example would be holding a pocket pair when an ace flops. Here you are either favorite in the hand (your opponent holds a lower pair) or drawing to just 2 outs for trips (when your opponent holds an ace).

If you continuation bet on the flop and are called a small-ball approach would be to check behind from position on the turn. You have actually achieved two objectives. Firstly keeping the pot small to lower your risk when behind. Secondly you may induce a river bluff from an opponent with hands you can beat. If you had bet out you could easily have faced a re-raise you did not want to call. The small-ball approach has kept your risk low and given you an opportunity to win more chips when you are ahead.

Small Ball Poker Strategy - Hand Reading Over Several Streets

Small-ball poker strategy enables you to narrow down your opponent’s holding over several streets of betting. For example you can assess their possible hand in relation to the flop based on their reaction to your bets, then reassess from their actions on the turn. A bigger bet on any street which is met with a re-raise not only covers a big proportion of your chips – it may lead to you having to call without too much information on your opponents real holding. Is it a bluff? Does he hold a monster? Small-ball allows you to answer these questions before you go broke!

Finally, small ball poker tournaments strategy can keep you in the game longer. Compare playing many small pots to taking 3 big all-in situations. Even if you go all-in while dominating your opponent (for example A-K vs A-J) you need a lucky parlay of wins to still be in the game after just 3 attempts. Small ball poker allows you to accumulate chips while minimizing the risk of busting out of the tournament.

Best Poker Sites For Small Ball Strategy Have Smaller Blind Increases Early

#1 – Full Tilt Poker: The 2nd largest online poker site are a favorite among tournament players due to their wide selection for all poker bankrolls. The blind increases are shallow compared to many other sites with extra levels such as 20 / 40 and 30 / 60. This gives you plenty of scope to make good poker decisions – and thus to show a bigger profit than your inexperienced opponents. What is more your bankroll will get an instant boost with the best available 100$ to $600 bonus with our bonus code SNG600 – We recommend the excellent tournament schedule to all readers - check out Full Tilt Poker for yourself today!

Best Poker Sites For Small Ball Strategy - Full Tilt Poker
100% to $600 Match Bonus With Referral Code SNG600

 

#2 – Ultimate Bet: One of the original poker sites and one of the fishier US-Friendly Poker sites to this day. UB start the blinds incredibly low with 5 / 10 chips and 1500 starting stacks, the slower increases again giving you more room for maneuver. What could be better than tables full of fish? Well, we can start with the huge 111% to $1100 sign-up bonus… and then add the huge number of promotions that UB run… did we mention the fish yet??!? Use bonus code SNGPLANET to claim the maximum available amount when you check those profitable tournaments at Ultimate Bet for yourself today!.

Best Poker Sites For Small Ball Strategy - Ultimate Bet
111% to $1100 Bonus Code = SNGPLANET

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