I believe a tournament is won before the final table has been seated. It is important to develop strategies that are going to put you in position to win, and isn’t that what we are all trying to do? As the tournament progresses, let me state the obvious: you must accumulate as many chips as possible. When the tables become short handed, I like to switch gears and become more aggressive by trying to take down as many uncontested pots as possible.

About six months ago, I was playing in the $20 Rebuy at Pokerstars. I happened to be seated with Sheets for the last few of hours of the tournament. We had both average stacks with 30 people left. However, when the game began to become shorthanded, Sheets completely dominated me and everyone else at the table. It seemed as if he raised every hand. He very rarely got raised, and if he did, everyone was going all in because they were so frustrated with his constant pressure.

This strategy creates another huge advantage, because Sheets was controlling the action and was only going to call someone’s all in if he was priced in or he had the best hand. When the tables would fill, Sheets would slow down, but as soon as the tables became shorthanded again, he reverted to raw aggression and picked up so many blinds and antes that he went into the Final table as the chip leader. I went into the table being an average stack, and I finished in 4th or 5th. Sheets went on to win the tournament after absolutely dominating the final table. It was amazing to watch him switch gears constantly, adjusting to each table.

After watching Sheets in this tournament, I realized that in order to win a tournament, you must put yourself in position to win before the final table. I began to switch gears and become more aggressive during the late stages of the tournament, and my results have improved dramatically. Picking up as many uncontested pots as possible is a huge advantage because the blinds and antes are so significant when approaching the final table.

Another advantage that you will have is that by raising so many hands, you are going to get paid off when you have a legitimate hand. If you are short-stacked or have someone like GBMantis or ActionJeff to your left, it is going to be extremely hard trying to raise a lot of hands, because they will repop you just to do it. You must be willing to adjust your game according to how your opponents are playing. If your opponents are just trying to move up the money ladder and aren’t playing to win the tournament, you need to take advantage of that.

I have progressed from making final tables to winning tournaments, and I believe the reason is that I continued to work on my short handed game. I hope this article was interesting for pocketfivers. This is the first poker related article I have ever written, so any advice or constructive criticism would be appreciated. Best of luck to everyone at the tables!