Key Factors:

• What is Your Goal?
• Planning For the Long Term
• What Game do You Want to Play?
• What is Your Skill Level?
• ‘Play Down’ to Your Deposit Amount
• Making The Most of Deposit Bonuses

What is your goal?

Are you looking to play online poker for real money for the first time to just have some fun for a few hours and maybe get lucky and win some money?  Or have you been studying poker strategy, and you want to be a long term winner?

Just For Fun

If you are just looking to have some fun and try to make a quick buck or two gambling, then deposit whatever amount you feel comfortable to lose.  The minimum poker deposit at most online poker rooms is between $10 and $50, but if you have enough money that losing more is acceptable to you, then do it. This decision is all about your personal comfort level.  But you should set a ‘stop loss’ and stick to it.  A stop loss is a maximum amount that you are willing to lose.

Taking It More Seriously

I am going to assume for the rest of this article that you are a more serious poker player who is learning, or wants to learn, to become a winning poker player.  If you fall into this group of poker players, then continue reading for a guide on how to determine how much money to deposit.

Planning For The Long Term

All of the deposit and bankroll advice given in this article is aimed at giving you the best long  term chance to establish and keep a poker bankroll.  When in doubt, be conservative.  If you want to play a certain limit, lean towards having too big of a bankroll.  If you have a certain amount to deposit, lean towards playing too small of limits.  If you go broke, you can’t play anymore.

All of the advice here is aimed towards you wanting to establish an independent long term poker bankroll.  If you have other money that you don’t mind depositing if you go broke, then disregard this entire article.  But if you want to establish and maintain a poker bankroll that you don’t ever have to add any of your own money to, then be careful and take the advice below seriously.

What game do you want to play?

This is the first and most important question you need to answer before you decide how much money to deposit for online poker.  The bankroll you need is very different between $10 tournaments and $100 buy-in no limit cash games.  Here ae some very general bankroll guidelines that can help you determine how much you should deposit and what limits you should play.

• No-limit cash games: 20-30X the buy-in amount.  You should keep an absolute minimum of 10 times the buy-in for the stakes you are playing, but 20-30 times is mandatory for long-term sustainability.  If you are playing $50 buy-in no-limit cash games, you should deposit a bare minimum of $500, but $1000 to $1500 should be your goal for a sustainable bankroll.
• Limit cash games: 200-500X the big bet amount.  Your minimum deposit for playing limit cash games should be no less than 200 times the amount of the big bet of the game you want to play.  If you want to play $3-$6 limit cash games, you should deposit at least $1200, but you should strive for a bankroll of $1800 to $3000 (300 to 500 times the big bet).  There is more volatility in limit games than no-limit games.  You should also play with a bigger bankroll if you are playing short-handed limit games, as the swings in six-handed or less limit poker can be extreme.
• Single table sit and go tournaments (STT or SnG): 50+X the tournament buy-in.  You should deposit a minimum of 25 times the tournament buy-in if you are trying to build a bankroll to play sit and go tournaments.  You should aim for at least 50 times the tournament buy-in.  If you want to play $10+1 sit and go’s, you should deposit a minimum of $275, and you should try to keep at least $550 in your bankroll to play at this level.
• Multi table tournaments (MTT): 100+ X the tournament buy-in.  You should deposit at least 25 times the amount of the tournament buy-in you aim to play.  This is still very risky though.  Multi table tournaments are very high variance, and it is not uncommon for an excellent tournament player to go 25+ tournaments without a cash finish, let alone a final table appearance.  You should aim to have 100+ times the buy-in amount in your bankroll.  If you are playing $10+1 buy in multi table tournaments, you should deposit at least $275 and try to keep a bankroll of at least $1100.  Multi table tournaments can be lucrative, but the bankroll requirements are very high.

What is your skill level?

The above suggestions are just that: suggestions. If you are a losing player, it will not matter how much money you deposit for online poker.  You will lose it.  All of the above figure assume that you are at least a moderately winning player.  The better you are, the less you can have in your bankroll.  The more conservatively you play, the less you can have in your bankroll.  Players that are more aggressive have bigger swings, and need more money to get through the downswings.

Since you asked ‘How much money should I deposit?’ this is probably one of your first online poker deposits, which means you are probably a beginning to intermediate poker player.  You should err on the side of being more conservative and you should deposit as much money as you are comfortable with.

‘Play Down’ to Your Deposit Amount

If you only have $200 to deposit at an online poker site and you want to play no limit cash games, you can just play at the limits that will give you the best chance to play for a long time.  This may be less than you were hoping to play for, but one of the best attributes of a successful poker player is self control and patience.

If you only have $200 to play no-limit with and you are an intermediate poker player, you should start out at $10 buy-in cash games.  This gives you a 20 buy-in cushion to play with.  You can do the same ‘reverse math’ for any game using the recommendations above.

Making The Most of Deposit Bonuses

One last factor to consider when deciding how much money to deposit for online poker is the first deposit bonus at your preferred poker site.  If the poker room offers a 100% up to $600 initial deposit bonus (like Full Tilt Poker), you want to deposit $600 if possible.  You only get one shot at your deposit bonus, so you should make the most of it.  If you have the money and it fits your plans, then you should take advantage of the full deposit bonus amount.

There’s no need to get carried away though.  If you want to deposit $100 to play some small tournaments, there is no need to deposit $1000 to take advantage of Sportsbook Poker’s $1000 deposit bonus.  You have to ‘earn’ the bonus money, so playing at small stakes wouldn’t even release the full $1000 to you.  For more info, visit my page on poker bonuses.

Join Full Tilt Poker to Get a $600 Bonus

It’s quite unfortunate, because pocket pairs can be some of the most profitable hands that you can possibly play in the game of no limit Texas Holdem, but only if you know how. Allow me to give you a quick guide to playing small, medium and big pocket pairs in Texas Hold’em.

Let’s turn those pocket pairs into winners…

Small pocket pairs.

These are the pocket pairs that most people have trouble with (22 – 66). They look great before the flop, but when the flop comes down with all those over-cards, your pair doesn’t look so attractive any more. What are you supposed to do?

From my experience, the only thing you are looking for with a small pocket pair is to hit a set (three of a kind) on the flop. If you don’t hit your set, be happy to let the hand go and move on. Trying to play a low pair with a bunch of over-cards on the flop is never fun, and it is likely to prove to be unprofitable for you.

But wait there, is it profitable to play pocket pairs with the intention of dumping them when you don’t hit a set?

Yes, it’s very profitable to play this way. If you hit your set, there is a very good chance that you are going to take down a very healthy pot, as many players overlook the possibility of their opponent having such a strong hand. So if your opponent catches a decent hand like top pair or two pair, you can expect to get paid off handsomely a lot of the time.

It’s even profitable to call up to 5 or 6BB raises with a small pocket pair to try and hit that set on the flop, simply because they pay off so handsomely when you do hit.

All you have to do to play small pocket pairs profitably is bet strongly when you hit your set and let the hand go when you don’t. It’s as simple as that.

Medium pocket pairs.

Medium pocket pairs (77 – TT) look a lot more promising than their small pocket pair counterparts, but I always lean toward playing them in almost exactly the same way. There is a smaller chance of seeing so many over-cards on the flop with a medium pair, but they can still be very tricky to play unless you have a set.

However, as opposed to resigning myself to just calling raises as I would with a small pair, I am more inclined to bet out to take the initiative in the hand with a medium pair. I’m not always expecting to be comfortable when that flop comes down, but taking the initiative in the hand gives me more opportunities to win it, even if the flop isn’t too favourable.

Nonetheless, as always the primary goal is to hit a set. This is not to say I’m always going to let the hand go if I miss, but I’m not going to be prepared to fight for the pot if I come up against any significant action.

Big pocket pairs.

Big pocket pairs like JJ, QQ, KK and AA are much more fun to play than any other pocket pair, just as long as you do not make the fundamental mistake that many players do:

Do not slow-play big pocket pairs.

At the end of the day, you only have one pair before the flop, and the chances are that you are only going to have one pair on the flop too, so there is no reason for you to sit back and allow other players to catch up with you. Start betting strongly and make sure that the other players are paying to see the flop, turn and river. Calling the big blind before the flop with AA is a horribly horrible play.

If there are no over-cards to my pair, I am going to bet out strongly to make sure that other players are paying for any potential flush or straight draws. It will be perfect if we run up against an opponent that has hit top pair, as we can expect to take home a nice chunk of money.

If an over-card hits on the flop when I’m holding JJ, QQ or KK, I am inclined to make a continuation bet to take the pot there and then. If I get called I will re-evaluate my situation, but an over-card is not a sign to clam up and run away from the hand.

1. A round of Seven Card Stud begins with all players posting an enforced bet, known as the ante. The ante is generally one third to one half of the lowest limit. For the purposes of this rule set, we will refer to a hypothetical game with the limit $2-4. In this game, the ante would be $1.

2. After the antes are posted, three cards are dealt to each player. The first two are dealt face down, and are called hole cards. The third is dealt face up for all to see, and is called the door card. Immediately following the deal, the player with the lowest ranked door card must most a mandatory bet called a bring-in. The bring-in is most often one third to one half of the lowest limit, but can be set to any amount. In our game, the bring-in would be $1.

3. After the bring-in has been posted, a betting round occurs. Betting begins with the player to the left of the player who posted the bring-in. This first round of betting is known as third street (since three cards have been dealt thus far). As in all forms of poker, players have three betting options: call the bring-in (match the bet), raise (add another bet), or fold. Raises on third street must be in increments matching the lowest limit of the game. In this case, bets would be made in $2 increments.

4. After third street betting is complete, another card is dealt face-up to each player. A betting round follows the deal, this one being known as fourth street. Betting in this round and all rounds following begins with the player who has the highest hand showing. The betting structure in this round mirrors that in the previous, with one exception. Since there is no enforced bet on fourth street, if there are no bets behind on a given player’s turn, he may check his hand- passing his turn without folding, and without betting.

5. Once fourth street has ended, each player is dealt one more card face-up. Another round of betting ensues, known as fifth street (see a pattern here?). The options available to players in terms of betting actions remain the same, but the betting amounts change. On fifth street, minimum bets double, and are made in increments matching the highest limit of the game. In our $2-$4 limit game, bets on fifth street would be $4. This limit structure continues on all streets going forward, until the end of the game.

6. Once fifth street is over, each player receives a final face-up card. Another round of betting begins, known as sixth street. Betting structure on sixth street mirrors that of fifth street.

7. After betting is complete on sixth street, players are dealt their last card of the game, face-down. A final round of betting occurs, the structure of which is identical to the previous two rounds. This last round is known as seventh street, or perhaps more popularly, the river.

8. Upon completion of betting on the river, any players remaining must compare their hands. As in other forms of poker, the player with the highest five card poker hand wins the pot. This is called the showdown. Once hands are compared and the pot has been shipped to the winner, the round of Seven Card Stud is complete.

HORSE poker is played as a rotation game. In a tournament, the game being played changes with the passage of each blind level. For instance, when the blinds are 20/40, the game may be Omaha 8. When the blinds rise to 25/50, the game will change to Razz. In a cash game, the game changes when the table completes one full orbit (when the dealer button moves from the dealer’s position, and back around to him). The table may play Holdem for one orbit, and then the game would change to Omaha 8.

In a full round of HORSE, the first game is always Holdem, and the last is always Stud 8. Although players can leave at any point in a cash game, and tournaments may not necessarily end with a round of Stud 8, the flow of the game rotation always follows the H-O-R-S-E pattern.

The betting rules of each game follow those of the respective games themselves. Meaning, players need to know how the rules of each game variation in order to play HORSE with success. Below is a rundown of the basic rules of each variation played in a round of HORSE.

Texas Holdem

In Limit Holdem, each player is dealt two hole cards, which are to be used in conjunction with five community cards to make a five card poker hand. The betting in Texas Holdem is fixed. The bet amount in the first two betting rounds is always the amount of the lowest game limit. For example, if the stakes or blinds are 20/40, the bet would be 20 chips. The betting amount in the last two rounds doubles to the amount of the highest stake, in this case, 40 chips.

Omaha Hi-Lo

In Omaha 8, players receive four hole cards, and are required to use two of them in conjunction with any three of five community cards dealt to make a five card poker hand. Betting in Omaha 8 is identical to Holdem. Omaha 8 is a hi-low game, meaning players can either aim to make the best low five-card poker hand, or the best high hand. If two players reach showdown and have a low and a high hand respectively, the pot is split between them. If one player has both the best low hand and the best high hand, he will win the entire pot.

Razz Poker

Razz Poker is identical to Seven-Card Stud, except for the showdown value of players five card poker hands. In Razz, players aim to make the best low poker hand, rather than the best high hand. High hands have no value in Razz – you must always remember that you’re aiming to make a low hand and only a low hand while you play.

Seven-Card Stud

In Seven Card Stud, each player receives seven cards over the course of the game. Three cards are dealt face-down, and four face-up for all to see. The betting in Stud is fixed; the bet amount in the first two betting rounds is always the amount of the lowest game limit. For example, if the stakes are 20/40, the bet would be 20 chips. The betting amount in the last three rounds is the amount of the highest stake. In the case of our example, the bet would be 40 chips.

7 Card Stud Hi-Lo

The mechanics of Stud 8 are identical to those of Seven-Card Stud, except for the showdown value of hands played. Stud 8 is a split game, like Omaha 8. Players can make either the best high hand or the best low hand to win. If two hands show down the best high and low hand, the pot is split between the two players. If a player makes the best high and low hand at once, he wins the entire pot.

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Reaching the money in a sit n go tournament is very exciting as it means that you have made it to the money. No matter what type of sit n go you’ve entered, single or multi-table, you can at this point relax that your input of money will be returned. Just by reading your own reactions to having made it this far you can make great strategy for your approach to the final moments to a game that might have been the focus of your attention for the past hour.

Money Guaranteed

Being too relaxed at the end game play could be a mistake yet it is so very common that players loosen up around the final table. After having played it tight throughout the game it seems that just knowing that there will be a money return is enough for the participants to take risks they might not have taken earlier on. You should, of course, enjoy the fact that you’ve made it this far but good strategy means keeping your head cool till the very end. This attitude will give you a better chance of winning so try and keep your thoughts off the money guaranteed.

Learning from the Masters

Watching the big finals in the World Series of Poker and similar events is what makes many people want to play in sit n go tournaments and try to emulate the same play in a fast version. While you can never apply the same game you’ve seen on TV as a whole on your sit n go tournament you can certainly learn a lot by watching the professionals play. If this is your strategy for becoming a better player in the final round you better make sure that you understand the entire game well so that you can understand the final game play that you are watching.

Using Software

For the serious poker player it could be well worth to try out poker strategy software. There are different kinds of strategy tools available online. You could either use a simulator and play games and learn to apply strategy hands on or you could use a program that will give you suggestions while you are playing for real. To some these tools are excellent while others find them disturbing.

Patience

It is true that a cool head will help you achieve better results but if you’re sitting on a large stack of chips then use them! In the end game play you don’t want to give the flop to the other players cheap so keep on raising. To make it to and through the final you’ll need a lot of patience. Understand that it might take you many games before you even reach the bubble and even so you might be stuck there for a while before you start making it to the final tables. Important general poker strategy is to keep on trying even after the bad games.

Now that you are ready to start winning some sit and go tournaments, click here to download Full Tilt Poker; The best poker room for sit and gos.

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What characterizes the bubble-part of the sit n go game is that it usually has around 4 players left around the table and the general feeling is one of trying not to lose. A smart player will keep his head cold at this point and use good strategy in order to enter the final as a winner. How you played the parts of the game leading up to the bubble will influence how well you will do in the end but you will also take into consideration who you are playing against when making up your game play.

Time for Looser Play

Once you get down to 4 to 5 players you can start to loosen up your previously tight play. You should have taken notes on your opponents during the game and with this information you should stand a better chance to beat them at the bubble. When people start getting nervous of losing you have your chance to sharpen up your game. This is the time to be more aggressive and ride on the other players’ fear of losing. Don’t be afraid of raising as this will put good pressure on your opponents.

Stack Play

At the bubble the big stacks will try to eliminate the small ones. The small and medium sized stacks are usually trying hard just to survive and this means that they will be willing to give up the blinds. Good strategy at this point is to be well aware of position and learning to read the size of the stacks correctly. If a small stack is coming up behind you, you better make sure that you can play for all of their chips if you want to limp a hand.

Using Strategy Wisely

If your opponents are all beginner players you better not get too much into strategy. Strategy for bubble play many times assumes that your opponents are also applying strategy to their games. A good strategy could completely back fire if your opponents don’t have enough knowledge of smart bubble play. When you observe your opponents during the game also take note of how well they are observing the table. If they seem to be mostly concerned with their own cards you need to take this into consideration for your upcoming moves.

Almost at the Final

With 4 players left around the table you have reached what some call the most crucial part of the sit n go tournament. The player that is eliminated at this point will suffer a greater loss than players that go at earlier stages since the last three players are sure to win money. If you are sitting with the shortest stack at this point you need to move fast. The rest of the players are waiting for you to bust so you should even consider moving with any two big cards.

Continue reading part five in this series; End Game Sit and Go Strategy.

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When you enter a sit n go the middle part of the tournament can easily blend in with the early game. The fact is that strategy is quite similar for these two faces of the game but you still need to keep in mind just what attitude you should have as you enter the mid-section. Having some basic strategy for you Sit n Go play could make the difference also for a beginner player. Just being aware of how the game builds up will give you great advantage and let you understand more advanced techniques for winning the game.

A Crucial Stage

The strategy that professional players give for the middle stage of the sit n go tournament is not uniform. Some will advise you to continue the tight play you kept in the early stage of the game while others say that this is the time to start acting more aggressive and get into bluffing and the likes. Your game play will of course depend a lot on what hand you have but don’t forget that it is crucial to build a stack at this part of the game. Try to stick to informed bluffs meaning only bluff the players that you’ve recognized as weak from the early part of the game.

Being Aggressive or Not

In the middle stages of the sit n go game you will experience the rising pressure of the blinds. You will need to understand how to recognize the game and your position in it. You shouldn’t bluff large and short stacks because they are more likely to call. If you see that the other players are aggressive you should model your strategy based on this. An aggressive player is very likely up to stealing blinds and then you would be wise to raise and not just call.

What Hands to Play

In general it can be said that hands with connected suitors aren’t enough to do well in the middle stage of the sit n go. This doesn’t mean that you should only raise with aces on hand but do keep in mind that high cards will give you a better position and the stakes are too large at this point in relation to the player’s stack for low hands to be played.

Get in Shape for the End

Remember that you will need chips also in the final stages of the game. It is enough to build an average stack in order to stand a good chance in the final but if you can do even better that is recommended. This will be influenced by how you choose to play and this is where many players say that a more laid-back attitude will pay off better than the aggressive style.

Continue reading part four in this series; Bubble Play Sit and Go Strategy.

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Sit n Go games are extremely popular in online poker rooms for many reasons. People watch the big tournaments on TV or live and in the mini format, Sit n Go, they get a chance to emulate the professionals and perhaps make it to their level as well. There are basically two different types of Sit n Go, turbo and non-turbo. The difference lies in how fast the blinds increase but the strategy for early and mid-play is pretty much the same in both the formats.

Observe

It cannot be stressed enough how important it is to keep an eye on your opponents. All serious strategy includes this and it begins right there in the early game. If you manage to see patterns in how your opponents are playing you can make great use of this information not only at the final stages of the game but also in following tournaments where the same players might appear again. Make use of tools like notes where you can write down your observations for later use.

Playing it Tight

Good strategy for the early game is to be cautious with your chips. You need to make it to the end and although a sit n go is usually played out within 60 minutes you will want to make the chips you have last the full hour. The idea is to make maximum use of minimum input. This means that you won’t put chips into the pot with a weak hand. Should you end up with a very strong hand you don’t need to be scared of pitching the chips in but this hand should be one of aces, kings and/or queens.

Looking Ahead

In the early game you need to focus on making it to the middle game. It is not good strategy to only think of the final as you must pass the different stages with a well thought out game. A tight player stands a better chance to do well in mid-game as well. Don’t get too creative and if you are playing multi-tables make sure that you can do so and be focused in all of the games. If you play it too aggressive you might end up losing too many chips to ever make it to the end in any of the games that you are busy in.

What Not To Do

In the early game you don’t want to make too much noise at all. Even if this can make the gaming a bit boring you will see that it was well worth it as you reach the later stages. To engage in blind-stealing just for the fun of it is very stupid and you should stay away from such gaming. If you entered with higher investment you better make sure not to give value to any connecting cards as you will want to play it tight on safe bets.

Continue reading part three in this series; Middle Game Sit and Go Strategy.

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The following guides to Sit n Go strategy was professionally prepared by an expert player from Compatiblepoker.com.

Easy for All Levels with a Little Guidance

Sit n Go tournaments have many advantages both for beginner and experienced poker players. Depending on your skills you can use the sit n go as a great tool to build your bank roll and no matter how well you play you will be able to reach even higher levels through many and fast games. If you are up to it you could be playing several sit n go games at the same time and you can easily find a buy-in that suits your bankroll and temperament.

Knowing Where to Play

If you are a beginner player you will want to find a poker room that offers sit n go games with low buy-ins and preferably a table with as few players as possible. Skilled players looking to build their bankroll will better benefit from more players around the table assuming that they will be fish contributing to the pot but not doing much to raise the level of the game. Before you decide where to play it is a good strategy to read up on some reviews of the best poker rooms. You want to make sure to play in a place with good traffic and many sit n go games starting at tight intervals.

Making Wise Buy-ins

You can find sit n go tournaments with a buy-in as low as $5 and it is also possible to enter with over $5,000. When you decide how much you should allow for buy-ins you need to understand how to use your bankroll. Even if you are a very good poker player you need to make sure to have a bankroll that can support bad games. Calculate how much you can afford loosing and don’t make bigger buy-ins than what can fit into the budget you make up. If you win that’s great but stick to your original plan and you will benefit better from the successful games.

Use the Tools available

When you join a poker room you will immediately be informed about all the great tools that are available to you during your gaming. You might think that they are all just technical nonsense but don’t be too fast to disregard what could indeed improve your gaming. With a tool like the note function you can take notes on how the other players are acting. If you see a pattern to certain player’s game you will have an advantage by remembering this when you meet them again. Likewise, records of your own games will give you a chance to review and improve it.

Playing at many Tables

During the early stages of a sit n go most players should be able to manage more than two tables at the same time. Make use of the multi-table function but don’t overdo it. If you are active at 2-3 tables at once that should be enough to keep you busy without getting confused and there is no shame in sticking to just one game at a time.

Continue reading part two in this series; Early Game Sit and Go Strategy.

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