Paying attention to detail is very important when playing an online poker tournament. In addition to constantly observing all aspects of the game itself, you should also keep a close eye on four major events in your game.
Look at the table
Keep an eye on the players and try to tag them according to their style. Identify your opponents and find out if they are aggressive, tight, paying or loose. Knowing who you are playing against is a great advantage when choosing your starting hands.
Look at the average chip stack
The big advantage of online casinos tournaments is that you can easily check your average stack of chips by looking at the tournament lobby. This number is very important, because if you can keep your stack relatively close to or above average in chips, it will be easier for you to dig deeper and less worry about falling short.
Knowing that you are close to the middle stack gives you a chance to relax and not get involved in too many hands. If you are constantly paying to try and become the chip leader, you may soon find yourself in a dangerous shortstack situation.
See short stacks
Psychologically, short stacks in a tournament cause so-called chip anxiety. It’s all about rushing and folding or getting chips to avoid the terrible fate of being blinded. Short stacks tend to go all-in with lower quality hands and are often the result of constant bad beats.
Unless you have a very strong starting hand, this may not be a smart choice, as the short stacker may perceive you as weak and see it as an opportunity to bet all of your chips.
Keep track of your position
Generally, certain hands are best played in certain positions. You have to let your position dictate the move you want to make with your starting hands. For example, if you have a small pair in early position, you may not want to get into the pot, as your limp may induce a more aggressive player to rise to take the pot.
On the other hand, if you have suited connectors in late position, limping is good because you will act later after the flop. Action in late position after the flop is beneficial simply because you get to see what your opponents are doing in front of you.