Poker Tournaments Basics: Main Types And Key Distinctions

By Author: Alexis Sloan
Total Articles: 1
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Online poker players have two main types of game structures they can participate in. The first type of poker game is the most traditional one - the ring game. As its name suggest, this traditional poker game is played with the players sitting around one table, where they place their poker bets and raise the stakes. The second type of poker game structure is the poker tournament, where players have the possibility to play poker online at one or multiple tables and win various cash prizes playing poker online against poker players from various parts of the world.

If you are well acquainted with the traditional ring games, perhaps it is time to take your online poker game to the next level. Yet, before you sign up to play a poker tournament, know the differences between a traditional ring game and a tournament. First and foremost, all players who sign up to participate in a poker tournament will have to sign up in advance and pay an entrance fee, or buy in. Each of these online poker players will start the tournament with the same amount of chips, usually equal to the buy in fee. Most online casinos will require players ...
... to open a separate account for their poker tournament funds. Tournaments will usually imply that the blinds be increased at a predetermined time and rate, and the all-in option is usually different from the one that is usually used during ring games. The winners of the poker tournament are determined by their ranking in comparison to the other poker players.

Once you are aware of the differences between these two structures, you can go on to the next phase: Choosing a tournament of poker online. In order to make your choice at this stage, start with familiarizing yourself with the two major types of online poker tournaments: Single table tournaments (STT) and multi-table tournaments (MTT). In a STT the main goal is to be the last one standing. At this online poker tournament you play against other players around one table, with the most important factor being time: Players will be ranked by the amount of time they managed to stay at the game.

On the other hand, MTTs are composed by various poker tables slowly eliminated as the weakest players leave the game. The strongest players will eventually end up at the same table, and the winners are ranked by the time they managed to stay at the poker game.

These poker tournaments can be played at different speeds. William Hill Poker, the top-quality online poker room, offers poker players Thunder Tournaments, in which players are required to make their move in only 12 seconds, which adds excitement to the game. However, if a player needs to make a tricky decision, he can use a dose of additional time known as a time bucket. These online poker tournaments are very attractive due to their relatively small blinds, and players can sign up for these online poker tournaments, as well as many others, through the lobby of the William Hill Poker advanced software.

About the Author:
Alexis Sloan is a professional casino player and reviewer. He has published many articles on online poker and other gambling-related matters.
For straight talking honest advice on online poker be sure to visit http://www.williamhillpoker.com/ for comprehensive reviews on the best poker online.