Early tournament play

Dear Antonio,

Are there any strategy maxims you adhere to in early tournament play? Also, what are the most common tells you notice other than betting patterns from novice players?

henton

Hey henton,

Here’s the best advice I know for early in a tourney: Patience is precious when chips are cheap. Don’t be in a big fat hurry to double up when doubling up won’t put you, really, any closer to winning, but you could bust out if you’re unlucky or wrong. As for common tells among the newbies, their biggest giveaway is just what they do. New players play pretty much by the book, so if they raise I give ‘em credit for a hand and plan my moves based on that. Also, they almost always follow Mike Caro’s formula that “strong means weak and weak means strong.” Any time I hear a newbie whisper the word “raise,” I know he’s got a monster.

· Antonio