| Limit Hold Em| Multi Table |
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Limit multi table texas holdem tournaments take an extreme amount of patience and well timed aggression to finish deep into any given limit tournament. The strategy for limit poker is very similar in the approach we take to sit-n-go limit strategy as a matter of fact, multi tournament strategy is an expanded form of sit-n-go strategy. Early Stages (50%+ of the players left in tournament) As in sit-n-go strategy it is important to keep one thing in mind playing ultra tight is mostly recommended. Remember, that you can’t bluff players out of a pot especially in the early stages where blinds are low. Play only hands from Group 1. The only exception to this as in sit-n-go strategy is that AX suited can be played to set the flop for drawing possibilities. We say for drawing possibilities because if an Ace hit’s the flop and you have a player or two betting into, your Ace alone is probably not any good at this stage of the tournament. If you hit two pair with your A6 suited does change things because you likely have out drawn your opponent and betting aggressive is recommended. Along with playing tight your other job is to observe other player’s betting habits. Observation might not pay off immediately, but remember that Texas Holdem isn’t just a card game it is a game that requires skills that allow a player to know what his/her opponents cards are. You will only get this information when it comes to limit poker if you are extremely attentive starting from the first hand of the tournament. Gus Hansen, a professional poker player, even uses a personal recording device because he knows how important observation is. Middle Stages (20-50% of the players left in tournament) Playing tight is still the recommendation, however, your play will be determined what your stack is at this point of the tournament. If you have a big stack it will be important to take advantage of shorter stacks by raising when they limp etc. If you have a mid-stack you will need won’t be able to take advantage of the short stacks as a big stack can unless the short stack is directly on your left, but you will be able to play hands in Group 2 that isn’t recommended for a short stack. If you are the unlucky individual with a short stack which is one that is less than 10% of the big blind it is time to pick a hand from group one and bet aggressively with it. However, play smart. If you get a hand like AK and the flop is 5,7,9, especially with more than one player in the hand with you, don’t give caution to the wind and bet down to the river to hit an A or a K. At this stage of the tournament your observations of other players will pay off as you will know now how to bet each individual on the table. Are they chasers to and after flops? What do they do when they hit their hand? Do they bluff? Late Stages (less than 20% of the players left in tournament) At this stage of the tournament you have played well enough to outlast a good majority of the players in the tournament. Your chip stack once again determines your play as it did in the middle stages. At this stage of the tournament the play is as close to no-limit as it will come because of the blinds are so high. This means that preying on shorter stacks becomes necessary as does knowing your opponents. Observations are definitely starting to pay off in this stage of the tournament. Final Table (Refer to our Limit Sit-N-Go strategy) Heads up play (Refer to our article on Heads Up Limit Strategy) |