To Tourney or Not to Tourney

Much of my early poker experience came from the tournament scene. I played live action in the casino for about a year before I discovered small buy-in tournaments for women. I had a bit of a bias against these ladies-only events, figuring if we are to play the game we should be able to play it against anyone. But because these tournaments were inexpensive and usually available around my schedule, I jumped in and played. Besides, I wasn't ready to take on some of the grizzled regulars who'd been at the game for more years than my entire age.

I learned a lot from the ladies-only experience, particularly how to be fearless. Much of the competition was weak or average and there more for the fun or to spend some time in the casino without losing much money. Not that every woman at the tables fit those categories. The ones who constantly showed up at the final table were seasoned players who were serious about their game.

It didn't take me long, however, to become bored with these games. Even with small fields they tended to go on for a long time. I persevered however and when I thought I had enough experience, I graduated to the open contests.

But the ennui of the early tournament action didn't dissipate. I found myself doing well in the early going but getting bored as time went on. While I made some decent scores in these games, I just couldn't sit for the four-plus hours it took to finish a tournament so I gave them up.

The biggest advantage about tournaments, however, was the limited expense. Buy-ins were small, between $10 and $50. Rebuys usually meant some extra expense but after the first few entries, I stopped making them.

Now what I realize about tournament action is that it's a great place for online players to get their feet wet. If you are a beginning player or a player with limited experience, your initial deposit to an online cardroom can disappear quickly. Your choice of limits, the competition (most assuredly people who have been playing online), and the probability that you'll make mistakes (of course you won't play mediocre hands), you could find yourself almost broke in short order.

But online you can find many, many tournaments for small buy-ins. You can get into a weekend tournament at www.planetpoker.com for as little as $2.00 or as much as $50.00. At www.pokerstars.com the buy-in dips to $1.00 on certain days but there are daily contests well worth looking into Sites such as www.ultimatebet.com offer freeroll tourneys as a reward for live action.

Also, my investigation indicates that many of the low-limit tournament players are, like many of the women I competed against in my early tournament days, are weak, average, timid, and shy. Not all of them fit these categories, of course, but many do. And that can work to your advantage.

Naturally, if you've been thinking about playing online, your first move should be to find the best promotion‹the one that gives you bonus cash for your initial deposit. This will help stretch your bankroll even further.