Online Poker Satellites
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Most online poker rooms offer satellites and qualifiers in their tournament section, and these games are fast becoming some of the most popular ones surpassing scheduled tourneys as well as STTs.For those who may not know, online poker satellites are qualifiers to larger, more prestigious events (some of them live, some of them online) which also feature much bigger buy-ins. It was about 20 years ago that someone had first thought up the idea of a poker satellite. There were always people who would’ve liked to play in generously prize pooled tournaments had they had the money to buy into them. It only made sense to get a group of ten of these guys to play in a preliminary tourney which featured the tenth part of the buy-in of the main tournament. One of them (the winner) would then go on to play in the big one, because the ten buy-ins paid out by his opponents would be enough to pay his big buy-in. Of course, the house that organized the satellite would also make some money on it all, so the satellite buy-ins were slightly bigger than exactly 10 percent of the original buy-in.
With the advent of online poker, satellites have become wide-spread and extremely popular, because with the intricate satellite and sub-satellite system that every online poker room offers, everyone gets a chance to make it to an event he could only dream of otherwise. Some say, online poker satellites are partly responsible for the huge popularity explosion that poker has seen in around 2004. Remember that both 2003 WSOP Main Event winner Chris Moneymaker, and the 2004 Champion Greg Raymer, had earned their WSOP seats through such satellites. Despite their enormous popularity though, there are very few articles out there about satellite strategy.
The strategy that one needs to deploy in a satellite is sometimes radically different from what one may have gotten used to playing in regular MTTs. A large part of your strategic approach depends on how many seats or packages the satellite offers. There are two fundamental types of tournament players. One, called by experts the ”fox”, the other guy called “the farmer”. The fox is a player who’s not content with making it to the money, He does everything it takes to give himself the best chance for victory. The farmer, on the other hand, has adapted to surviving and to slipping into the money unnoticed time and time again.
If the satellite you play in only offers a single seat in the event of your dreams, being a farmer will do you no good whatsoever. You’ll have to be a fox, like it or not. Most direct satellites do offer several event packages though, and in such situations, being the farmer pays off better.
What exactly are the differences – strategically speaking – between a fox and a farmer though? Let’s take a look at the bubble for instance. That is the stage in the tournament when the elimination of a handful more players will mean the survivors reach the money. Most people tighten up on the bubble, to ease up a bit when it finally bursts. That means, play on the bubble will be tighter than usual, and people will generally be more willing to fold the better hand when faced with a raise. At this stage, farmers join the crowd and they tighten up. Foxes, on the other hand, seize the opportunity, recognize the value and they risk knowing that there is money out there ripe for the picking.
World Series of Poker Satellites at PokerStars
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PokerStars is once again leading the online poker community sending at last count over 500 players to the 2008 World Series of Poker. Every year PokerStars offers up some of the best satellite tournaments available to online players to this prestigious event.
This year PokerStars.net will continue with its $12,500 prize package to the satellite winners, where $10k goes towards entry to the Main Event and $2k may be used for traveling expenses. However, PokerStars does not stop there in making sure your 2008 WSOP Main Event is as good as it can get.
Satellite winners will also receive their hotel stay at the Palms paid for as well. This covers hotel costs from July 2-9th. If you chose to wear PokerStars.net gear, then your accommodations are paid through July 15th If you are a Supernova Elite VIP players at PokerStars your rooms will be automatically upgraded.
Players will also be eligible for bonus payouts from PokerStars. A $50,000 bonus will be paid to players who make a TV table and are wearing PokerStars gear. And a $1,000,000 bonus will be paid to any PokerStars qualifier who makes the final table of the 2008 WSOP Main Event.
So head over to PokerStars to qualify for this years Main Event before it is too late.
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PokerStars Satellites
