THE POKER TOURNAMENT FORMULA, BY ARNOLD SNYDER

THE POKER TOURNAMENT FORMULA, TABLE OF CONTENTS
By Arnold Snyder
(Cardoza Publishing, 2006. Paperback; 368 pages. Available at Amazon and other bookstores June 27, 2006)
© Arnold Snyder 2006

INTRODUCTION (Or, Why a New Approach to Poker Tournaments is Long Overdue)

• Defining "fast" poker tournaments: multi-table tournaments where the blind levels last less than 1 hour.
• One-Size-Fits-All Strategies Won't Work
• Filling in the Information Gap for Live and Online Poker Tournaments

PART ONE: A NEW APPROACH TO POKER TOURNAMENTS

1. The Waiting Game vs. the Hunting Game
2. How to Play Texas Hold’em
• The Blinds
• The Deal
• The Common Poker Betting Actions
• The Action
• Hand Rankings
• The Flop
• The Turn
• The River
• The Betting Structure
3. The Patience Factor
• Poker Tournament Speed at a Glance
• Fast Tournaments
• Medium-Fast Tournaments
• Medium-Speed Tournaments
• Slow Tournaments
• The Value of Fast Tournaments
• Using the Patience Factor to Measure a Tournament’s Value
• Using the Patience Factor to Optimize Your Tournament Strategy
• Estimating the Patience Factor
• Comparing Real World Live and Online Poker Tournaments
• WSOP Tournament Patience Factors
• Patience Factor Adjustments
• Regular Las Vegas Tournaments and Their Patience Factors
• The Patience Factor Determines the “Skill Level”
• Estimating the Patience Factor for Online Poker Tournaments
• Regular Online Poker Tournaments and Their Patience Factors
• Are Online Tournament Strategies Identical to Live Tournament Strategies?

PART TWO: THE POKER TOURNAMENT STRATEGIES

4. Meet the Weapons: Rock, Paper, Scissors
• Cards (Paper)
• Position (Scissors)
• Chips (Rock)
• Rock, Paper, or Scissors?
• Maximizing the Value of Each Weapon in Fast Poker Tournaments
5. Position Basic Strategy
• Position Basic Strategy Preflop
• Playing Positions 1 through 5 Pre-Flop
• Playing Position 6 Pre- and Post-Flop
• Playing Position 7 Pre- and Post-Flop
• Playing Position 8 (the Button) Pre- and Post-Flop
• Playing Position 9 (the Small Blind) Pre- and Post-Flop
• Playing Position 10 (the Big Blind) Pre- and Post-Flop
• Multi-Way Pots
• How to Learn the Position Basic Strategy
• Tournament Simulation Software
• Practicing Against Real Players in Real Money Tournaments
• Post-Flop Position Basic Strategy 101
• Setting Up Post-Flop Position Plays
6. Card Strategy I: Hands and Moves
• The Value of Your Cards in Relation to Your Position
• Early, Middle, and Late
• Pre-Flop Card Strategy
• Don’t Ignore the Position Strategy
• Post-Flop Card Strategy
• Reading the Board
• What Are the “Nuts?”
• Betting on the Flop
• Top Pair on the Flop
• Second Pair on the Flop
• Nothing on the Flop
• Flopping a Monster
• Betting on the Turn
• Slow-Playing the Turn
• Playing the River
7. Card Strategy II: Outs and Odds
• Pot Odds Defined: Return on Investment
• Know the Pot
• Other Uses for Pot Odds
• The Concept of “Outs”
• Pot Odds with Two Cards to Come
• Implied Odds
• When Pot Odds Don’t Matter in Tournaments
• How to Practice the Card Strategy
8. Player Types in Fast Poker Tournaments
• Ace Masters
• Flush Masters
• Pair Masters
• Cagey Codgers
• Canasta Ladies
• Boat People
• Show’n’Tellers
• Ball-Cap Kids
• Wimps
• Oafs
• Put Each Player on a Hand
• Beware of Initial Impressions
9. The Fast Tournament Chip Strategy
• The Necessity of Building Your Stack Early
• The Chip Basic Strategy
• Mastering the Complexities of Chip Strategy
• Hand Selection
• Bet Sizing
• Bet Timing
• The Short Strategy
• The Very Short Strategy
• The Desperate Strategy
• Fast Play Fine Points for Short to Desperate Stacks
• Complete Fast Tournament Strategy for Playing Cards, Position, and Chip Stack
• When the Antes Kick In
• What If You’re Long on Chips?
• When Everybody’s Long on Chips
• You’re Long, They’re Short
• Playing Against a Big Stack
• Moving from Fast Tournaments to Slower Tournaments
10. Rebuys and Add-Ons
• The Principle of Return on Investment
• The Logic of Rebuys
• How Your Rebuy Strategy Affects Your Advantage
• The Value of Discounted Rebuys
• The Value of Rebuys for Skillful Players
• “Dealers’ Bonus” Chips
• The Single Rebuy Format
• The Multiple Rebuy Format
• The Add-On
• Rebuy Misconceptions
• Rebuying Near the End of the Rebuy Period
• Multiple Rebuy Strategies
• Rebuy Structure Decisions
• When You Must Lose Starting Chips in Order to Rebuy
• How “Pot Odds” Are Changed by the Rebuy Format
• Maximizing Your Expectation in Multiple Rebuy Tournaments
• Single Rebuy Strategies
• Profiting from the Rebuy Maniacs
• When the Rebuy Period is Over…

PART THREE: POKER TOURNAMENT FINE POINTS

11. Know Your Cards
12. Bounties
• How Do Big Bounties Affect Your Strategy?
• How Do Small Bounties Affect Your Strategy?
• Using Bounty Chips as Tells
13. Bluffing
• Early and Middle Position Bluffs
• Late Position Bluffs
• The Mini-Raise and Its Strategic Purpose
• Should the Small Blind Take a Shot at the Big Blind?
• The “Steal-Back” (the Most Successful Blind Position Bluff)
• Desperation Flush Bluffs
• Showing Your Cards after a Successful Bluff
14. Showing Your Cards
• Should You Show a Winner?
• Should You Show a Loser?
• Should You Show One Card?
• The One-Card “Reverse Bluff"
15. Table Image
16. Mistakes
• The Biggest Mistake in Fast Poker Tournaments (And Why You MUST Stop Making It)
• The Most Common Type of Mistake in Fast Poker Tournaments (Why Your Chips Are Disappearing)
• Mistakes When an Overcard Hits on the Flop
• Don’t Give Up the Lead
• Overcard Paranoia
• Go Easy on Yourself
17. Taking a Stand: The Strategic Importance of Sending a Message to the Bullies
18. Laydowns
• Would You Ever Lay Down a Straight Flush?
• Quads?
• Full House?
• Flush?
• Straight?
• Trips?
• Two Pair?
• Overpair?
• Top Pair?
• Second Pair, Third Pair, Bottom Pair, Overcards?
19. The Accidental Nuts: When Bad Cards Turn into Monsters
20. The Wolf Pack Instinct
• Strategic Factors Regarding the Feeding Frenzy on the Defenseless
21. Chopping It Up: Why It's the Best Strategy in Fast Tournaments
• Final Table Deals
• Sample Chops
• Getting a Fair Share of the Prize Money
22. Satellites
• How Super Satellites Differ from Regular Multi-Table Tournaments
• The Early Rounds
• The Middle Rounds
• The Late Rounds
• How Single Table Satellites Differ from Final Tables
• The Competition Defines Your Strategy
23. Last-Longer Bets—Everybody into the Pool!
24. Break Out of the Mold
• The Hold’em Mold Defined
• How to Break Out of the Mold
25. The Luck Factor
• Making Bad Luck Work for You
26. Cheating and “Semi-Cheating”
• Collusion with Other Players
• How Does Collusion Work?
• Chip Dumping
• Soft-Playing
• Final Table Dumping
• Chip Passing
• Auto-Dumping
• Card Switching
• Rebuy Dumping, or “Semi-Cheating”
• Cheating Online
• Bots
• Collusion Online
• How Does Online Collusion Work?
• How Much Does Cheating Cost You?
27. Tournament Skills Check List:
• Ten Crucial Questions
• Scoring

PART FOUR: THE MOST IMPORTANT THREE CHAPTERS IN THIS BOOK IF YOU WANT TO MAKE MONEY AT LIVE OR ONLINE POKER TOURNAMENTS

28. How Much Money Do You Need?
• The Logic Behind Bankroll Requirements …
• Coin-Flip Fluctuations on $1 Bets
• Standard Deviation for Poker Tournaments Based on Prize Structure
• Standard Deviation for Break-Even Players
• Standard Deviation for Skillful Players
• Accounting for the Number of Players in a Tournament
• Snyder’s Bankroll Fudge Formula
• Minimum Bankroll Requirements Based on Tournament Cost and the Number of Players in the Tournament
29. How Field Size Affects Poker Tournament Speed
• All Tournaments Speed Up as They Progress
• The Final Table Estimated Time of Arrival (ETA)
• Calculating the Field Factor
• Calculating the Speed Factor
• Testing the ETA Formula with WSOP Events
• Using the ETA Formula in Fast Poker Tournaments
• Estimating the Total Chips in Multiple Rebuy Tournaments
• ETA Formula Accuracy?
• Why Do You Need to Know How Fast a Tournament Is?
• Crunch Time: The Real Final Table Before the Nominal Final Table
• Predicting Crunch Time
• How Should You Play During Crunch Time?
• The Crunch Strategies
30. Conclusion: What I Can’t Teach You in a Book and How to Learn It

APPENDIX

1. Glossary
2. Recommended Books
3. Five Books You Must Read
4. Other Recommended Books (by topic)
• On No-Limit Texas Hold’Em Tournaments
• On No-Limit Texas Hold’Em
• On Poker Tournaments in General
• On Poker Satellites
• On Limit Texas Hold’Em
• On Poker in General
• On Onlinet Poker
• On Cheating ♠