Why Play Tournaments?

In a cash game a bad day can end up costing you a bundle of money. In a tournament game you will only lose a set amount at most. Players who play bad or get unlucky in a tournament will only lose their entry fee at most, while players who do well can take home marvelous cash prizes that make the fee worth it.

Because tournaments allow players to play a lot without risking as much money, new players often are attracted to the style of play. Without worrying about their cash, they can play poker against the better players at a casino and have a good time. This allows newer players to concentrate more on the actual game of poker and less on the losses they may or may not incur in one hand.

Another advantage to the tournament style of play is for people who like to know they won at the game. In cash games you can play a game for the entire night and walk away with the same amount you had before you began. Not in tournament games. In most cases you will either go home with much more than you came in with, or lose it all and get eliminated while playing.

Most players consider the bets tournament game to be the type that allows players to bet in a no-limit style. In this game players can put all their chips in on one hand that they best feel can win them more chips. There is still a minimum bet that each player must make, but as you see there is no ceiling on high a bet can be. This allows players to play the game of poker with more strategy, planning bets just right to get players to call or fold on particular hands.

No-limit Hold ‘Em is a game offered in cash games form, but for newer players it is best played first in a tournament game. As mentioned before, you can lose an entry fee by losing a tournament. You can lose much, much more playing a cash game and losing. When and if you do lose all the chips given to you in a tournament, the game is over for the night for you and you will have to leave the table. You can’t buy back in, in most cases, like in a cash game. Overall, tournament games are a good choice for players who want to be aggressive and play poker their way without worrying about big losses on one night.

Free Rolls
A very popular event that occurs for many online players is a freeroll tournament. These tournaments are set up similar to real games, but do not cost money to enter.

Much like normal multi-table games, freeroll tournaments get a huge following. Different online venues will have different ways to enter these tournaments. Most poker venues use freerolls to attract and keep players at their site. Many do not require a player to deposit cash or play for a certain while, they are available instantly for free!

As mentioned above, some poker rooms offer freerolls to players who stay with the same site or venue for a while. The invitations to this sort of event is usually based on how long a player has been playing at the same venue.

Even other venues may use freerolls solely as a method to get newer gamers. In this situation, a poker room would only allow new players to play in free tournaments.

As mentioned before, some poker sites are nice enough to let players who deposit nothing play for free and win money to play with. These are getting rarer by the day though, so if you see one jump on board!

If you are worried about the cost of online poker, freerolls are a great way to start up your online career for no cash. As always, make sure you know the specific rules of the game before playing. Rules vary from venue to venue and should always be read.