Tournament Poker Strategy Articles
Popular Tournament Poker Articles
Four Doug Polk MTT Hands Reviewed by Two of The Best Tournament Players Ever
Doug Polk built Upswing Poker, but he’s still best known as a heads-up cash game specialist. That’s what makes his…
Push Fold Charts for Poker Tournaments, Plus More Advanced Strategies
Note: Updated February 2026. For the original article and charts scroll to the bottom. In the mid-2010s, the emergence of…
7 Poker Tournament Tips for Running Deep More Often
Poker tournament tips is, apparently, a pretty common search term on Google. I assume the searchers are looking for a…
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All Tournament Poker Articles
3 Tips for Crushing Jackpot Sit & Gos
Want to experience the excitement (and heartbreak) of poker tournaments without the huge time commitment? Then you should try some…
How to Crush Live Tournaments as an Online Player
Most online grinders find very little success when they take their first shot at a live tournament. We always talk about how TERRIBLE every live player seems to be, and then blame variance when we can’t beat them (or maybe that’s just me). The rules are […]
3 Poker Concepts Every Aspiring Pro Needs to Know
Poker used to be easy. It almost makes me sick to think about how much money was up for grabs…
Make More Money in Big Blind vs Small Blind Battles
Modern Short-Stack Play (Part 4) This is the fourth and final part of this article series about modern shallow-stack play…
How to Master Short-Stacked Small Blind Play in Blind vs Blind Battles
Modern Short-Stack Play (Part 3) I used to be pretty bad at shallow blind vs. blind play. I didn’t really know how to approach it – according to simulation tools, you could just open shove a ton of hands from the small blind, even with 20 big blinds, and make a profit. But then I’d […]
How To Combat Steals with a Tiny Stack
Modern Short-Stack Play (Part 2) For years, poker books, articles and training videos taught us that we can’t flat a…
5 Goals You Must Set to Succeed in Poker
Goal setting works. On the endless road to strengthen your poker game, giving yourself targets will help you become a…
The Ultimate Guide to Big Blind Defense
Modern Short Stack Play (Part 1) Over a decade of playing MTTs for a living, I’ve seen the game change…
Why Multi-Tabling Is Costing You Money
Multi-tabling is extremely common in the world of online poker. Many players will choose to sit at multiple tables at…
The Ugly Truth About Staking in Poker
You’ve heard of staking. Or at least you probably have if you’ve spent any time with poker players. Over the…
Daniel Negreanu is Stunned by Insanely Tiny Bet From Doug Polk (Hand Analysis)
“Who does this guy think he is!?” “Why do you get to criticize the great [INSERT OLD SCHOOL PLAYER HERE]?!…
Why You Should Play More Multi-Table Tournaments (MTTs)
When Multi Table Tournaments Brought the Fun Back Having recently given up poker as my full-time profession to focus on…
Stop Bleeding Money in Re Entry & Rebuy Tournaments
Not Your Grandma’s Freezeout Re entry and rebuy tournaments, also occasionally referred to as WEEEE!buy and WEEEE!Entry tournaments, are two…
How to Negotiate Final Table Deals Like a Pro
Tournament poker deals aren’t something that come up often, but when they do their effect on your bottom line is…
How To Adjust Against Any Player Type At Heads Up Hyper Turbos
Let’s examine the different player types we’ll meet at the tables, as well as look at some basic heads-up strategy…
Spin & Go Strategy with Doug Polk and Courtney Gee (Transcript)
Upswing Poker featured pro Doug Polk recently recorded a Spin & Go hand history review session with fellow Team #GrindNation…
Money Bubble Strategy: How to Set Yourself Up for the Win
How To Not Blow It On The Bubble Congrats! You did it! You’ve endured through days of that tournament, survived…
Should I Play Cash Games or Tournaments?
One of the most frequently asked questions you’ll hear from aspiring poker pros is whether to focus on tournament poker…
Out Of This World Satellite Tournament Strategy
Ok, ok, forgive me for the cheese-ball satellite joke in the title, I couldn’t help myself. I’ll make it up…
6 Traits That Will Help You Crush Heads-Up Hyper Turbos
In the first part of our introduction to Heads-Up Hyper-Turbos (HUHT) we outlined the pros and cons of this format…
Beginner’s Guide to Heads-Up Hyper Turbo Sit & Gos
Even if you’re married to cash games and tournaments, it’s hard not to fall a little bit in love with…
Poker Sit and Gos – Explanation and Strategy
SNGs – What Are They, and Are They Worth Playing? With so many different poker formats available, it can be…
Live Poker Tournaments – How Much it Costs to Grind Under the Lights
While it’s all good and well to sit for hours on end in your boxer shorts, staring at your computer…
ICM Poker Introduction: What Is The Independent Chip Model?
Long gone are the days where tournament poker was played by “feel” alone. The introduction of basic mathematical terms such as…
How to Maneuver a Tournament Short Stack
Monitoring your stack size is one of the most crucial elements of the tournament poker play and beginners often don’t…
REVEALED: Pot Odds vs Implied Odds
Pot Odds and Implied Odds When Facing a Bet To many tournament players’ chagrin, pot odds in poker do not refer to…
Why You Are On A Downswing
Variance is very good at tricking the human brain. Things that seem unlikely, highly improbable, or impossible happen all the…
How To Play Winning Poker
It doesn’t matter if you’re a recreational card player who enjoys a game once a month, or an aspiring pro…
How To Use Your Opponent’s Ego Against Them
Check your ego at the card room door. Language is a powerful tool, and it can be used for or…
Pro Tip: Don’t Always Continuation Bet
Many players new to poker learn that if they raise preflop and continuation bet the flop, they can often times…
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Enjoying the free strategy articles, but want to take your game to the next level? Upswing has a poker training path for you in the new Lab 2.0 to move from intermediate to advanced as you work beyond the Launch Pad and into the Mastery Path. Lessons are from some of the world's best coaches including Uri Peleg, Gary Blackwood, and Qing Yang. Lab 2.0 gives you a clear path to sharper and more profitable play.
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