Beating Online Sit and Go Tournaments
It’s not a surprise that Sit’n Gos are very popular nowadays. You can buy in for pretty much every amount ranging from 1 Dollar to a few thousand. You just have to wait for your opponents and you’re ready to go. It’s not only a nice pastime but also a money machine if played properly.
Note that there are different Sit’n Go versions that must played differently: Winner Takes it All, Double-or-Nothing Sit and Gos. The following guidelines are for standard Sit’n Gos with a 50/30/20 payout structure.
Starting tight …
In the early stages of Sit’n Gos you should only play quality hands and avoid confrontations. The reason is that you can only loose at close confrontations. Let’s assume you move allin on the first hand with AK and somebody calls you with pocket nines. For sure it’s a coinflip but you’re giving away equity that goes to those opponents who only lean back.
So you should only play strong hands but if you play then aggressively. If you’re holding pocket Queens you should build a big pot preflop. If nobody calls your big raises or reraises it’s not that bad of a result.
… getting loose
Only when the blinds rose a few times and there aren’t many opponents left in the Sit’n Go you should play much more hands with much more aggression. A very good example is the bubble, the stage in the tournament where the next player that has to leave the table goes home with no money while everybody else is in the prize ranks. Everybody is scared on the bubble and is playing tight. That’s the right time for aggression! You can put a lot of pressure on your opponents and build a big stack that will help you to win the Sit’n Go.
You can make a lot of money playing Sit’n Gos. But you have to take care about the proper strategy. If you’re playing like a maniac early on you’ll lose in the long run. The right approach is to be selective and playing aggressively in the late stages of a Sit’n Go.
Popularity: 9% [?]
On March 30, 2009 Foxy Bingo wrote:
Good article. I play a lot of sit and go’s usually on pokerstars and I find that later on it is a good idea to loosen up and try some blind stealing. Especially around the bubble.
On April 6, 2009 EcoCard Poker wrote:
This is a solid article for the low and medium stakes, I can see some points I need to work on in my own game. I definately agree with the statement “you can make a lot of money playing sit and go’s” becuase you really can play so many a day it becomes a matter of tracking your “hourly wage” that you are making, assuming you are a winning player (and a lot of us aren’t).
On May 19, 2009 Full Tilt Referral Code wrote:
Great article. Winning sit and go’s is really about adjusting your style throughout depending on the blinds and the number of remaining players. I really like the super turbo’s at Tilt. You should try them out.
On May 19, 2009 Texas Holdem Download wrote:
Good tips for beginning level sit and go tournament knowledge. Sitngo’s are one of the easiest forms of poker to beat once you know basic strategy.
On May 20, 2010 Owen wrote:
Yeah, the best way to learn the basics about poker is in SNGs, playing tight early doors, then loosening up when blinds increase and the bubble nears. Research Independant Chip Modelling as well, a massive help with sngs.
On May 30, 2010 Easy Poker Sites wrote:
This is great way to prepare for final table play and even short handed poker a little bit. Definitely good for preparing for multi table tournaments… not so much for cash games.
On May 30, 2010 Credit Card Casinos wrote:
Sit n Go play takes a little bit more aggression, especially as you start to lose players. This takes a different strategy and you need to value your cards a little bit differently. You also need to keep in mind that these are the players you will need to beat… no more new ones coming in and you don’t switch tables… so use a strategy that will get you to the end.
On June 16, 2010 Sell PokerStars T$ wrote:
Sit and Go Wiz is a great tool for learning more about proper SNG strategy – you should add it to your review section. It’s pretty cheap, easy to use and very customizable.
On June 22, 2010 Boris Cooper wrote:
This is a solid article for the low and medium stakes, I can see some points I need to work on in my own game. I definately agree with the statement “you can make a lot of money playing sit and go’s” becuase you really can play so many a day it becomes a matter of tracking your “hourly wage” that you are making, assuming you are a winning player (and a lot of us aren’t).
+1
On September 23, 2010 SnG Strategy wrote:
This is what it is all about: Play tight early, play loose-aggressive late in the game. Many beginners make the mistake to play SNG the opposite way: They play loose at low blinds, and tight when it comes to the bubble.
Also note that for Double Up SNG’s, you have to call tighter at the bubble. While you can push all-in against regular players, you should almost never (only with Aces, maybe Kings) call an all-in except when you have very few chips left.
On September 29, 2010 Rakeback Bonus wrote:
Great article for low level sit and go tournaments. Keep them coming…