Essential Poker Tournament Skill #1 : Adaptability

Adaptability:
n : the ability to change or be changed to fit changed circumstances

The ability to change your style to fit your current situation is a key skill for any good no limit holdem tournament player. There is no single style of play that is a perfect fit for all tournament situations. If you don’t change your style in accordance with the players around you, you are not likely to survive. Conservatives will be eaten alive by the blinds, overly aggressive players will likely bluff away their stacks, and calling stations will divvy up their chips to the players who get better hands.

In a no limit poker tournament, you must remain constantly aware of the current table situation. You should treat it like a boxing match. When people are swinging at you, you should be blocking or ducking. When everyone is letting their guard down, you should be making jabs. When a melee breaks out, you should be in the corner watching.

What does this metaphor mean in terms of changing up your style of play during a tournament? Let’s take a look at some examples.

• In the early stages of any tournament, you should generally be playing much more conservatively than normal. There is no real need to fight hard over small pots at this point, as the blinds are relatively small compared to your stack size. Of course, this doesn’t mean you should fold everything, just be much more selective about what you play and how you play it.
  
  
• When the table settles into a quiet spot (not many raises going on), make some raises from position and try to take down some pots.
  
  
• Pay attention to the stack sizes of the players behind you. When they begin to get desperate, you should be tightening up a bit. Don’t take as many stabs at the pot with mediocre hands, or you could wind up making a raise and being forced to call an all in with the worst of it.
  
  
• Be aware of your own stack size. Switch to aggressive mode when your chips are dwindling. You simply cannot afford to sit back on your heels while the blinds continue to rise.

Always being aware of your current table situation, and having the adaptability to make the appropriate adjustments to your game will increase your chances of success in no limit texas holdem tournaments.

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