A number of leading online poker web sites now offer “Double or Nothing” Sit N Go single table tournaments as an alternative to the standard games where only the top three players cash. In “Double or Nothing” full table games, there are usually ten players – five of whom will double their initial stakes, and five who will finish with nothing and have to try again.
The best way of approaching “Double or Nothing” games is to play the early rounds ultra-tight. Position is everything in these games and, unless you are seated late on the table with a premium hand, the golden rule through the early levels is to preserve your chips rather than taking any risks. If the action is folded to you all the way around the table, you can try to nudge the blinds into folding but be prepared to fold yourself if you do meet any resistance. This is a good time to develop a table persona of being a very tight player and will help as the blinds increase in size.
>> Play Double Or Nothing SnGs at Full Tilt Poker <<
In many of the “Double or Nothing” games, an ante is introduced after only a few levels. Although this is of benefit if you are tempted to steal a pot, try not to break that tight table image too soon – particularly if you have the chip leader or a short-stacked player behind you. Throughout the middle rounds you should still maintain a high opening hand selection and will have identified the players who have adopted a similar tight strategy to you. Lean on these players occasionally when you have something to back it up, and build your chip stack with regular small gains.
As the bubble approaches, the poker strategy adopted above should see you in a mid-position with shorter-stacked players only prepared to fold or shove. You too should use this ploy to pick up what are becoming valuable pre-flop pots and take advantage of that tight persona you built up earlier. If you are well stacked, avoid calling players who shove before you – even if holding aces. There is no point in taking the risk to eliminate the final one or two players – let the others do the work for you – and avoid limping into pots at all costs. If your cards are not good enough to raise with, fold them.
Because of the exceptionally tight nature of the early rounds of a “Double or Nothing” SnG, many players choose to multitable these games – playing up to six at a time – and you can use this to your advantage if you prefer to focus on just one, as multitablers´ attention may frequently drawn away to another table. If you do choose to multitable these SnGs yourself, try to avoid the ones which have the same “regulars” entered, so as you can concentrate on playing against players not so familiar with the format and who may be prone to play too loose.
Related posts: