Your best advice

[buhler26]

I have earned an entry into a no-limit hold em freeroll tonight at UB. Only the top 5 spots earn anything, and there are like 760 people entered in the tourney. My main game is limit cash games with an occasional limit tourney.

I'm looking for some quick advice for tonight's tourney. What should my mindset be in the early, or middle stages? What's your best tips on making the top few spots in a big no-limit tourney? Thanks!

[Brad F.]

Be pretty damn aggressive early and often. You've gotta win some chips in a hurry, and in my opinion, you can't wait around for monsters to take risks in these tourneys. Don't be afraid to go all-in more often than you would in any other tourney. The best thing you can do is try and get your money in as a favority more often than a dog.

These are tough tourneys to play, but you don't want to just be hanging around with an average stack for 3 hours and then get 10th. Take risks early, and if you are out, you're out. I really just think of it as I need to get chips quick or get out quick.

Those are just some real elementary guidelines.

Brad

[ryachris]

My advice after having some success in large tourneys with very few paying spots is to pick your spots carefully. DOn't limp for almost any reason, only if it is real cheap with middle high suited connectors for example. Everyone will be very loose, so you will be called a lot.

any good hand needs a substantial raise from you preflop, say AJ 3 or 4x BB enough to get rid of the drawers, but if someone goes over the top, you can fold quickly and give them credit for at least AQ or over pair.

Get your chips in with the best hand, and if you have nuts, in this tournament setting, slowplaying will be golden, on the other hand, bluffing will be a lot harder to sell

Ryan

[jackdaniels]

I would say put your chips all in pre-flop with AA, KK, QQ and AK - you will likely get called - so no reason to be fancy and try to trap. If someone else raised already, go all in with any of those 4 hands. If you are at the 50-100 blind phase and no one has enetred the pot yet, push with any PP as well as AK; if someone is already in the pot - revert back to the above.

Once you ahve a comfy chip position (which you will or be broke playing this way), you can start playing some poker.

Oh, good luck [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]

[Bernas]

Read

eMarkM's post

[fnord_too]

Be more willing to gamble early.

Steal blinds late.

If you get to < 11ish BB, you only preflop plays not in the blinds are push or fold (you can get tricky with AA or KK, but I usually just push those, too and hope someone calls.)

If you get down to 4BB (and that is considerably below average), push very liberally when it is folded to you.

If you have > 13ish BB, make 3BB or 3.5 (bet pot) your standard pre flop raise first in. Add 1BB per limper (or just bet pot).

If you want to reraise a "standard" preflop raise (with no cold callers in between), 3X last raise is a good working figure.

All the other things I am thinking of are had to sound bite, so I will leave it here.