Can you play winning poker in freerolls? The short answer is yes. But here’s why.
Why Does a Freeroll Turn Into a Re-buy?
When you play in freerolls, you buy into the tournament at the same price as the satellite. (Unless it’s a re-buy tournament, in which case the buy-in increases as the tournament progresses.)
Tournaments with freerolls typically last for many hours, especially Multi Table Tournaments. Players in these freerolls have nothing to lose, since all they have to do is wait for the end.
When these tournaments are finished, players have a chance to win real money. And, this happens often.
How Common is it to Win GO Money in a Freeroll?
- As was mentioned above, most freerolls don’t last very long. But, what they do have is lots of players. Often, hundreds of players. Go big or go home with a lot of money in a freeroll. That’s the way it is.
- If you’re playing in a freeroll with only one table, your chances of winning go way down. It’s so much smaller and less interested in taking any risks. You’ll be at the mercy of a satellite game with hundreds of players. You may have to play tight or be willing to get knocked out in an hour.
What’s the Chance of Winning at LEAST a Tiny Poker Tournament?
- If you have a chance to play in a satellite game and get knocked out, you have about a 1% chance of winning a prize. The higher the buy-in, the less your chances of success. Not good.
- If you have the chance to play in a satellite tournament with buy-ins as low as a few dollars, your chances of being the big stack at the end increase. This means you have a much better chance of doubling your stack.
Where Can You Find Them?
- Online poker rooms are a great place to find online poker freerolls. You can start playing in low limit games. And these have the best chance of rewarding players.
- Satellite tournaments are popular and offer much better payouts. Some of the most popular poker rooms are PokerStars, Titan Poker, Full Tilt Poker, Caribbean Poker, etc. Every poker room allows their players to participate in satellite tournaments.
- The cost of these satellites can be as low as a few dollars. But keep in mind that you can spend a lot of money in a freeroll as well. That’s how they make money.
- Satellite Tournaments are popular, but so are rebuys. When a rebuy is available, it’s a chance for players to buy back in to a tournament. For example, a satellite may cost $1,000.
- The rebuy option is only offered for a limited time. Once you buy back in, you may only be paid out the topmost prize of $1,000. Even if you rebuy, the $1,000 prize is one of the highest prize available.
- The prize is followed by a added bonus. The most common type of bonus is the re-buy bonus. This is where the poker room will add to your stack the money you buy into the tournament. Sometimes, you may have to buy back in a second time.
The final step before entering is to pay attention to the game. You should be aware of who you’re playing against. You may want to wait to play if you have a really good hand. When I say that I play against the worst players, it may seem like an innocent statement, but there are often some very good players. And they are out there. Look for them. They will allow you to earn your way into the end of the tournament in a way that other players will not.
When your first attempt at the satellite tournament is halted because you’ve found better of a player. Remember, poker is a game of people sometimes. Sometimes, the best way to win money is to outplay the other players. You have to outplay other players to win the game. I always encourage you to play aggressively. When you’re successful, then you will have proven to other players that you can be quite methodical in your methodical approach. Then, you will be expected to one day win the poker tournament that will make you a poker superstar.
Good luck in your poker tournaments. Remember, the way you play determines whether you will win or not. When you’re methodical, you will win. When you’re not, you will lose.