WSOP SATELLITES EXPLAINED

The World Series of Poker - Satellites

World Series of Poker (WSOP)

♠ What Are Satellite Poker Tournaments?

Everyone wants to be able to play in the WSOP. However, most of us don't have the $10,000 buy-in laying around that has been standard at the Main Event since 1970. Enter the satellite. Basically, satellites are poker tournaments in which each player pays a smaller buy-in for the chance to earn a seat at a larger tournament. For example, let's say that there is a single-table WSOP satellite. There will be 10 players participating who pay $1,000 each to buy-in to the satellite. Since the total prize pool will be $10,000, one WSOP entry will be given away to the winner of the single-table tournament. The poker room basically arranges this large skill-based raffle of sorts, and takes out its entry fee for organizing the event.

Most satellites are actually multi-table tournaments with even smaller buy-ins. These are usually held at online poker rooms, but are sometimes held at landbased casinos. The number of seats given away in each tournament can be figured out by simple math. Most of the time, the online poker room will display it in the tournament lobby. At a $100 buy-in satellite, they might say something like "1 WSOP Seat will be given away for every 100 participants.". That means that if 900 people enter, the top 9 finishers will get a WSOP seat. Unfortunately, that's only a 1% payout as opposed to the typical 10% payout in normal multi-table tournaments. A less economical, but more realistic, way of winning a seat is through larger buy-in events that cost about $500 to enter. While they're pricier, the payout will usually be upped to about 5% of the field.

Sometimes, you can find guaranteed satellites which can be a great deal. The poker room might set up a $150 buy-in event and guarantee that 3 WSOP seats will be given away. If only 50 people show up, they still have to give away 3 seats even though they would need 200 people to play to break even on the prize pool. These guaranteed events can give you great odds on your buy-in and allow you to battle a smaller field. To sum it up, satellite poker tournaments are a much more economical way for the everyday poker player to earn tickets to big events. Just be aware that you'll be getting worse odds than most tournaments.

♠ Basic Satellite Strategy

Satellite tournaments require a somewhat different approach in terms of strategy. If you're playing in a typical $100 multi-table event that only gives seats out to the top 1% of the finishers, you're going to have to play an aggressive game. If you've played tournaments for a while you realize that tight players don't win tournaments. With modern tournament structure, the blinds rise too quickly to reward overly patient players. Most often, tight-aggressive players who hit some premium cards and don't run into any particularly bad beats will survive until the money or finish near the bubble. The keyword is survive.

Tight tournament players simply don't pick up enough premium cards and don't play in enough pots to build a monster stack and cruise into one of the top places. There are exceptions for when you're getting hit over the head with the deck, but those times are few and far between. The fact is that to place in a satellite tournament, you're going to have to be picking up pots, confusing your opponents, and putting the hammer down on weak opponents. Many players in these satellites play tight... don't be one of them. Don't let yourself be blinded to death and remember that no-limit hold'em is more about playing your opponents than your cards. Pick up on the players at your table and learn who to avoid and who you can run over.

Side note: Keep in mind that this also applies to winner-take-all single-table events and I've seen many strategists advocate a super-aggressive style in this situation, but you can play a little tighter and still have a shot at winning it. There are plenty of maniacs who will do your bidding and bow out early on with weak hands. If you don't have a premium holding just reserve your chips until the blinds force you to get into the action and go after the larger stacks.

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