When I first started playing rebuy tournaments, I thought that you needed a bunch of money to play them. Over time, I have learned that you don’t have to have deep pockets to do well. There will always be the fanatical rebuy nut trying to have the most chips, as well as the nervous player trying to make it with 1500 chips, but you can be successful by playing smart and investing the right amount of money.

I feel the need to state something that 99% of the people reading this already know. The most important rules of rebuys are:

1. You HAVE to do the initial rebuy.
2. Never quit before the add-on period.
3. The add-on is mandatory unless your stack is big enough to break the table.
4. Have enough money to reload a few times if you have to.
5. Be prepared to see some horrific beats.

I will argue these points with anyone, but I think most people are in agreement on them.

I think many people who start playing rebuys don’t have a real plan for the rebuy period. Without a good strategy, it is easy to get mixed up in the rebuy frenzy or get so frustrated that you just give up. I also notice that many players like to gamble way more than I do to get a big stack. I used to do the same thing, but I gradually started to realize that unless you are in a small tournament (like the $109R), a massive stack doesn’t guarantee you anything. We are ultimately trying to make money, and I would rather be a bit more frugal with my investment. Saving some money here or there can really add up over time. Just think, if you saved yourself $20 a day (the cost of a double rebuy in the $11R), that would add up to $7300 over the course of the year. I have seen some great players blow $400 during the rebuy of the $22R, and they would have to finish in the top 20 just to get their money back. I am not afraid to mix it up in the rebuy period, but I want great odds or a good chance of winning. Using this strategy, I have won a few rebuy tournaments and been deep in many others. I have also been top 10 in chips many times at the break having only invested the initial rebuy and add-on, so there is hope.

So what is a good strategy for rebuys? Should you just get your chips in with anything suited and any pocket pairs? What about waiting to play with premium hands? Is there such a thing as post-flop play? The strategy all depends on what tournament you are playing. I routinely play the $20K ($3.30R), $55K ($11R), and the $22R on Stars, as well as the $33R on UltimateBet. I want to at some point add a few of the rebuy tournaments from Full Tilt and Absolute Poker.

$3.30R – $11R on Poker Stars – These are filled with bad players, a decent number of lunatic rebuy players, and a small but deadly group of solid players. My dream table has at least one or two lunatic players who are going all-in with all kinds of starting hands. With so many players in these tournaments, I am not looking to be the chip leader after the rebuy period, but I am looking to get a healthy stack. I will open shove with basically any high PP or AK. At this level, people are pretty loose, resulting in you getting a call most of the time, so an open shove is justified. There is no real reason to see the flop, since you are not likely to fold your good hand anyway. I am not a big fan of playing AJ and lower unless I found someone at the table shoving almost every hand. I want chips, but I don’t want to just toss money down the drain.

If someone shoves first, I am calling with premium hands only, unless it is near the end of the rebuy and I need chips, at which point I might call with suited connectors or middle pocket pairs. I try to avoid reloading (double rebuy) more than twice if I can, so if I haven’t had to reload yet and it is near the end of the rebuy, I might call a shove with a marginal hand like 10Js, looking to get some chips. I have hit the final table with the bare minimum (5000 chips) after the add-on period, so having a huge stack isn’t required but does give you some room to play a bit.

If more than one person gets all-in and I am still under my targeted two reloads, I will tend to call with any premium hand, middle pocket pair, or any drawing hand like a suited connector, knowing that if I get lucky, I might take down a pot worth more than 10,000 chips. I rarely will play any small PP unless I get desperate or I can see the flop cheaply.

Once I get to around 10,000 chips, I play relatively tight and am not looking to get all my chips in unless I have a really good hand, since it’s hard to get back to 10,000 chips if you drop back down. I like to play more flops and get in cheap if I can with good drawing hands. After the add on, I just play sound poker and don’t get over-involved in hands when the blinds are still low. I am looking to survive and slowly build chips, so there is no reason to get into races or risk my stack at this point unless I have a good read on someone. Just remember that many of the players at these levels are not super advanced and won’t fold big hands, so if I hit a flop hard, I can take down some huge pots.

$22R on Poker Stars – When I play this tournament, I have to change gears a bit for several reasons, since it now costs at least $62 (plus $40 for every double rebuy). Because it is a bit more expensive to play, the other players also start to play more conservatively. Open shoving is no longer a standard move, and the table dynamics will ultimately dictate my play. I need some strong evidence that I am going to get a call before shoving with a good hand, but most of the time I will just make the standard raise. On occasion you will get seated with one or two rebuy maniacs, and at this point the open shove now becomes the best option. Another time to try it is at the end of the rebuy period where people start to get desperate to get chips. You will be surprised by how often people call at this stage, looking to get chips before the break, and I even do it from time to time if I haven’t reloaded yet.

Post flop play can be tricky, since people will not be afraid to shove on you if they smell weakness. If the pot gets to be pretty big and multiple players are involved, I love to shove with big drawing hands, since many times everyone will fold, and if they do call, I can take down a huge pot if I hit my card, but if not I can just reload. I also like to play more hands to try and catch a big hand, and this is why you have to be wary with big pocket pairs post flop. Many of the other people are also seeing more flops, and your big pocket pair’s value diminishes with more people in the hand. Another factor many people forget is that you are less likely to get away with a big bluff, since people’s calling ranges are pretty big, so I tend to shy away from bluffing unless I have a number of outs.

$33R on Ultimate Bet – I really like this tournament with its smaller field, slow blind structure, and optional double add-on at the break. A double rebuy to start is also an option that some like, but I only do the single rebuy at the beginning. I am not going to get into the math, but I figured that with it costing roughly $210 extra a week (7 tournaments) for that extra rebuy, it wasn’t really worth it, and I am doing well enough without it.

As for the play during the rebuy period, it is pretty close to a regular tournament for whatever reason, and I rarely see someone shoving with marginal hands. The same person who is shoving left and right in the $22R on Stars will usually play a tighter game on UB. Open shoving is not common on UB, and since it rarely leads to a call, I basically don’t do it. Since the double add-on is offered at the break, I can usually have 10,000 chips without really doing much, and since there are a decent number of people who don’t rebuy or add-on, this ends up being a better than average stack with the smaller field size. Another great thing about this tournament is the chance to play with some of the best online players out there.

Rebuys over $100 – I have covered the rebuy tournaments that I frequent, but I have ventured into the $109R and $215R on Stars a handful of times. I took some rough beats, and it cost me a decent amount, but I hope to play more in the future. I am not at the point where I can play the $109R regularly, but I give it a shot every now and then, and after every time I play, I get the itch to come right back. The small field size and great payout draw people to it, and I see so many people trying to make the initial 1500 chips work, so there is ultimately a few thousand dollars of dead money from the people who took a shot and didn’t reload. If you play this rebuy or any other rebuy, you have to be prepared to at least do the initial rebuy and the add-on. Without that, your chance of actually winning is slim to none.

Other rebuys – The structure of other rebuys will most likely fit into one of the tournaments I listed above, but since I can only play at a certain time of the day, I miss out on many tournaments. I would love to play the $55R, but it just starts at the wrong time for me. I know the $10K guaranteed $33R at Absolute Poker plays similarly to the $33R at Ultimate Bet. I have not yet had the chance to try out the rebuys on Full Tilt, but I plan on it soon.

I have only been actively playing rebuys for a short time, but they are the best value out there for the smart player. I hope I convinced a few people that you don’t need to reload 10 times every rebuy, nor do you need to be the chip leader to do well. I have been in the top 10 in chips several times in the $22R and $11R without investing much, and I have made it deep many times after coming out of the break with a 5000 chip stack. For those of you who want to invest $50 into the $3R, please keep it up, and for those that don’t want to rebuy, you are truly welcome! If you want to do well without killing your bankroll, though, just play smart!