Play to grab a win, not simply to cash

Poker tournaments feature a top heavy payout structure where the final table give out about 10 times the lowest of payouts. So your mindset should really be reaching the final table, and succeeding several times to get to that point is really profitable than just cashing out.

Be the Agressor, not simply the caller

In all forms of poker, being aggressive and positive is a good attitude. When you are playing medium or small stack, the attitude of being aggressive is very important. Remember that you don’t want to be the one making the hard decisions.

Target inexperienced opponents and take their chips

There is still some risk playing with inexperienced players but you have to make sure that you take the chips from the fish. If you don’t take advantage of them, someone else at the table will. Once the chips are on a more experienced player’s stack, they will be harder to get.

The starting hand will be dictated by the stack you have

If your stack shrinks then you must adjust how you play your hand. Suited connectors and small pairs will be less attractive when you only have a medium stack since the odds will not be so favorable. The premium cards become really attractive especially when you are the one to act early and make most of the chips that you have.

Aim for the 1^st

When you reach the final table, there is nothing wrong for aiming for first place. Still the payout for the lowest place on the final table is still a small portion compared to the winner. Aim high and aim for the top.

Good luck!

A tight table features players that play very few poker hands and they also tend to just stick to the best cards they get before entering a pot. The number of hands they play can be as low as 10%. When they play their card expect that they will raise since the cards are most likely strong ones. They will not likely let go of the strong hand since they have waited for sometime to play.

It will be a lot easier to read tight players compared to loose poker players. Take note that it will be wiser not to call a raise from a tight player but be open to raise yourself when you want to build the pot. Most likely tight players will re-raise but also has a high chance of folding when shown enough strength.

You also need to consider your position on the table when playing with tight players. Study your position from the dealer button and the pre-flop raiser. A late position may be beneficial, allowing you to study your opponents more and see if they really have strong hands.

If you are seated immediately after the pre-flop raiser can be a bit problematic. You don’t want to be sandwiched between a guy that has a starting strong hand and another player who will most likely raise, a squeeze situating you run in to a lot more often in Pot Limit Hold’em than in No Limit, by the way. To act last will be your goal when you have a post flop raiser in a tight table.

“I had to win the first hand, though.”