You can win big money playing in online poker tournaments for relatively small stakes, but to be successful you will need to follow a few simple tips.

Tournament poker can differ dramatically from a normal poker cash game. So I've tracked down some of the best tournament tips from leading professional players to give you an advantage.


Early Stage Play:

  • Your play should be extremely tight – the blinds are small but you should be very picky about the hands you decide to play.
  • Only playing the following hands in early stages – JJ, QQ, KK, AA or AK suited.
  • If you fold you lose nothing. To call you must have a hand that you expect to earn money.
  • Don't bluff in the early stages – blinds are cheap and you'll get called often.
  • To build your chips early in the tournament just playing tight, winnable hands.


    • Middle Stage Play:

  • Try to play your regular game at this stage of the tournament.
  • Try and bluff a few blinds – you’ve played tight along the way so your opponents will be less likely to call you.
  • Your going to have to gamble a little at this stage, otherwise you could run the risk of being blinded out.
  • If your stack diminishes don’t assume you’re beat. Count how many blinds you can survive and make your move while keeping enough for later blinds.


    • Late Stage Play:

  • Use any chip power you have to lean on the small stacks, they won't risk chips on anything other than a big hand.
  • Be bold and take more risks.
  • Put pressure those with small stacks to go all-in if you have a decent hand.
  • Don’t get tied up in multi-way pots – you might have a good hand, but sometimes it’s better to let two others battle it out!