Preparing for a Tournament

Nobody should enter a poker tournament without preparing for it.

Winning tournament players know this. It's something I have learned over the years. Here are some of the preparations I practice and recommend to you.

First is the matter of physical strength. You should be physically strong and competent when you are competing with other poker players at a top level.

This may mean exercising with weights in the privacy of your room, or exercising in a gym or health spa at the casino.

Exercise frees the oxygen in your brain. It helps you think clearer and see things better. It is a definite plus for your poker play.

You should practice the game in private. This means dealing out hand after hand of the game you plan to play. Deal yourself a hand and deal out hands to seven to nine other people.

This will help acquaint you to the types of hands you will be receiving and how to play them. Nothing beats experience, whether in life or in poker.

Continue your exercises after the tournament has started. Practice deep breathing exercises in your chair at the poker table. When you use the rest room, drop down and do 50 to 100 pushups. Remember that pain makes gain.

Don't play too many hands. Limit the number of hands you play, and play aggressively when those hands are strong.

Try to double your stack of chips every 30 minutes. It is important to build up your stack to make up for the increase in blinds.

Use practice bluffs in off-beat situations. Sometimes make a bluff when you are in deep position and have seen only one of your cards which hopefully is an ace.

Those chance raises with improbable hands throw off the opposition. If they cannot put you on a hand, they can't beat you.

When the flop is bad -- a pair or three of a kind or perhaps three to a flush -- and you are first to act, bet strongly. You may win the pot right there.

Don't ever go all-in, even if you have the nut hand. Save that for the final table.

When you make the final table, be aware of who has the smallest stack of chips. Those are the first players to be eliminated. When they are gone, any hand that contains an ace is powerful.

Stay fresh. Take bathroom breaks where you can splash your face with cool water and exercise to keep the oxygen flowing.

Always think, 'I have the best seat at the table. I am the best player in this room.'

As long as you have a chip advantage at the final table, think twice when the other players wish to chop the prize money. You are there to win, not share the profits. Remember that. Let the games begin.

Author: Geno Lawrenzi Jr.

(Geno Lawrenzi Jr. is an international journalist, magazine author and ghostwriter and poker player who lives in Phoenx, AZ. He has published 2,000 articles in 50 magazines and 125 newspapers. If you want to share a gambling story or book idea with him, send an email to glawrenzi@gmail.com ).