Big Blind Poker Tourney

There is a revolution taking place in tournament poker right now in the form of the big blind ante. Started by players in ARIA High Roller events, the concept has expanded to the world’s largest brands and tournaments. The debate on how to best implement the big blind ante has been a major discussion among the poker community on social media. I'm 50/50 on the new big blind only ante. Game goes a lot faster because the dealer doesn't have to keep reminding every one ever time. If your table is short handed, the same amount of blind money is still going in. The short stacks seem to hang on a lot longer since they are not paying an ante. With two blinds, the small blind is posted by the player immediately clockwise from the button, and the big blind is posted by the player two positions clockwise from the button. With more than two.

What are poker blinds ?

Based on the limit of the poker game the player to the left of the dealer’s button (small blind) and the player two to the left of the dealer (big blind) are required to place mandatory bets in the pot before cards are dealt (Small blind has to put half of the big blinds amount). These bets count toward the first round of betting. So if the pot is not raised pre-flop, small blind will only have to put half a bet to call and big blind has the option of raising or just checking.

In a poker tournament, blinds go up gradually. This is to ensure that the tournament finishes on a timely manner. (the higher the blinds get the more players tend to get eliminated).

1. Ten Big Blinds and Under. Poker is real easy now. With this stack, you can play unexploitable poker. Using Independent Chip Modeling and the Nash Equilibrium you can solve every situation with your stack size and hand versus however many random hands are left to act behind you.
2. The 10 BB (Big Blind) Rule – For Tournament Play Somewhere around these parts is a primer called the “ 100 BB Rule ” denoting a convenient point for reloading one’s chips during cash-game play. Here you’ll learn about the “10 BB” rule, which is completely unrelated to the other.

Blinds usually go up after predetermined periods of time. (for example every 15 or 20 minutes).

Big Blind Poker Tourney Tournaments

Two main factors determine blind structure of the game:

• Starting chip amount
• How long you want the tournament to last.

Poker Blind Structure Tips

• The first big blind should be 1/50 of the starting chip amount. (or the starting chip amount should be 50 times the starting big blind). So if everyone starts with 1000 in chips the first big blind should be 10/20.
• Blind period is the time each blind lasts:
• Typical tournament blind periods are 10, 15, 20, 30, or 60 minutes.
• Blinds period should be the same for every blind.

• The faster the blind period is the faster the tournament ends and the more luck involves. So it’s a good idea to have slightly longer blind periods at your house game. 15 or 20 minute blind periods are good choices. Blinds in online websites tend to go up faster. This is because online poker action is much faster than live poker.
• Blinds typically double after each round. If the first big blind is 10/20, the next one should be 20/40.

Calculate Blind Structure

Follow these simple steps to create blind structure that best fits your game:

• Decide your starting chip amount.
• Divide it by 50. This should be your first big blind.
• Make your final big blind (when the tournament should finish) equal to your starting chip amount.
• Arrange the middle level blinds so that they gradually increase from your first big blind to the last one. It is best to keep the first couple blind periods low.
• Add the period (times) together. If it seems too long takes couple levels off the chart, and if it seems short add couple level to the chart.

Sample Tournament Blind Structure Chart

Following is a chart of recommended blind structures based on different starting chip stacks :

Somewhere around these parts is a primer called the “100 BB Rule” denoting a convenient point for reloading one’s chips during cash-game play. Here you’ll learn about the “10 BB” rule, which is completely unrelated to the other. The 10-BB rule applies to tournament play, not to cash games, and it describes that level that a short-stacked player will reach when it’s time to consider an all-or-nothing shove.

Big Blind Poker Tourney Brackets

Jesus Says Put it All In

The rule, popularized by former World Series of Poker champion Chris “Jesus” Ferguson, states in general terms that if you have less than ten big blinds left in your tourney stack, and you plan on playing a given hand, then you’re probably best off just jamming all your chips into the middle, even if you hold a monster such as pocket aces or kings.

Remember Fold Equity with 10 BB

Beginning players tend to think that this level is far too high, but they’re ignoring a concept called “fold equity”. Fold equity is what you create whenever you’ve raised a pot; the “equity” is the cumulative value of the chances that all the other players might fold. Limping in or min-raising has two flaws which defeat the purpose of the move, besides losing all chance at creating that fold equity:

Don’t Let them Catch you

First, you’ve invited other players into the hand for free or for cheap, thereby increasing the chance that your own hand will be beaten, or “cracked”; second, it’s such an obvious ploy that players with any experience at all will become immediately suspicious of the move. Better to jam the pocket aces or kings with the same aplomb with which you’d jam K-Q or A-9 under the same circumstances. As Ferguson described it, the fact that every jam is done the same way hides the quality of the hand itself, and you’ll get more calls when you do have those aces or kings and sorely need that double-up.

10BB is for Larger Fields

Why ten big blinds, as opposed to five or six? In extreme short-handed situations, such as the final stages of a turbo sit-n-go, one can argue that slightly lower levels might work better. The 10-BB rule, however, is best designed for large-field tournament player, when other stacks at the table may have 20, 30, or 50 or more big blinds. If you’re the short-stacked player, you want to make your opponents realize that attempting to knock you out could put a dent in their stack, if but a small one. Also, the blinds and antes in middle to late stages are often worth capturing in and of themselves, especially in proportion to your meager stack.

You Got No Choice Now

If you let yourself dwindle down too far, to, say, five big blinds, then opponents are free to take a shot at knocking you out for cheap, realizing that they have little additional risk. Poker is not a risk-free game, but if you let yourself be blinded off to nothing, you’ve made it so for your foes. Sure, poker has its “chip and a chair” stories, but those are the exception, not the rule. You need to make a stand for your tournament life before you reach that point, because the big money’s at the top of the ladder, and a short stack has to grow to win.

Author:Joseph Falchetti (twitter)
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