Satelliting Into Major Tournaments
Not many of us can afford a $10,000 buy in to a World Poker Tour or World Series of Poker Main Event. It’s every poker players dream, but it’s just not feasible to think you’re ever going to play in one, right? WRONG! Just like anything else, you have to have a plan, a strategy, even a formula to achieve your goal. Put it on paper and follow it. Be dedicated to your strategy, just as if you were playing in a sporting event. Here is a formula I call the 3 P’s.
First, map out your plan. Satellite tournaments are easy to find. Many Nevada and Atlantic City Casinos offer satellites, as well as larger Tribal Casinos. Research all the available satellites that you can play in. You should be able to find good satellites that will put you in a $10,000 WPT or WSOP event if you win for anywhere from $100 to $200. You can also win your way into these tournaments for as little as $25 at some Casinos. Create a schedule for yourself based on your available time and money. Can you afford to play in one $50 satellite per week? Create a game plan that you can stick to and then get going on it. If you can play in 52 satellites in the next year at an average of $50 each, that would be a $2,600 investment. Even less if you can end up in the money on some of them, which you should if you have any chance of playing in a WPT or WSOP event.
The next step is to practice. Before and between satellites you must practice. When you practice, you learn from your mistakes. Practice allows you to test theories, learn techniques and develop playing styles. The internet is an incredible tool for practice that was not available to players in the past. On the internet you can play 3 or 4 times the hands in the same amount of time as a live player. Someone who practices online can now have the experience of 4 years of live play in a year. While you are practicing (or after if you are playing live), take notes. Write down a good play that you made that worked. Write down a mistake that you made. These notes from your practice sessions will add up and you will have a large database of information to use for the next step of your plan. Ed Macauley, a former basketball player said it best, “When you are not practicing, remember, someone somewhere is practicing, and when you meet him he will win”
Preparation is the key to being a good poker player. I’m going to repeat that again, because it is so important. Preparation is the key to being a good poker player! If you are not willing to prepare and to study, then you might as well end the dream now. To be a top player you MUST memorize odds. It will not work out if you just have an idea of your chances. You have to know your chances of getting a card, flopping a set, or losing on the river in every hand you play in. Only when you know your exact chances of winning a hand, can you decide whether to play it or not. You have to consistently play hands you should win and fold hands you should lose and you can’t do that if you don’t know your exact chances.
So, get going. Use the above strategy as a basic guide and expand on it. Get serious about your play, make a plan, practice, prepare, and turn yourself into a tournament winning machine.
