How to play tournament poker

Tournament poker is different from regular poker. Say it with me, “Tournament poker is different from regular poker.”

I have played a good bit of tournament poker – mostly online, twice making the final two tables of the biggest regular online tournament, the Poker Stars Sunday Million. You may have even seen me on television – I was skilled and lucky enough to win a round on Fox Sports’s Poker Dome Challenge.

In other words, though I have yet to take home a World Series of Poker bracelet, I know a thing or two about tournament poker.

To play winning tournament poker, get your hands on two books – Kill Phil, by Blair Rodman and Lee Nelson, and The Poker Tournament Formula, by Arnold Snyder. These books focus on strategies for playing fast-paced no limit Texas Hold ‘em tournaments – and they will teach you that tournament poker is different from regular poker.

Tournament poker is a kill-or-be-killed reality that exists on an ever-changing landscape, so the key to using these books’ excellent advice is to learn from them and evolve your own style.

If I were starting out playing tournaments today, I would:

*Read books,

*Observe live tournaments,

*Play tournaments as a serious hobby,

*Never go pro (it is just too hard to make a living),

*Develop my own, unpredictable style of play.

Only the best of the best and the extremely lucky make an elite living in poker tournaments. Even some of the star poker players spend much of their time broke. Poker tournaments are quite fun, but my advice is only play them in your leisure time – and for the fun of the experience.

I hope to see you on the felt!