Tournament Poker Strategy Articles
Popular Tournament Poker Articles
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…
8 Quick MTT Tips to Help You Top the Leaderboard
The tournament grind is tough. You can go months without a solid score, all the while watching other players succeed…
All Intermediate Poker Articles
Jungleman Hits $825,635 Straight Flush vs Phil Ivey’s Quads (Analysis)
Half-man, half-machine, Steve Austin was the original six-million dollar man. With superhuman strength and speed, he battled evil for the…
Can She Fold a Full House Getting 7 to 1? (Analysis)
One of the many common cognitive biases is commitment bias. In short, commitment bias is our unwillingness to make decisions…
€1,115,207 On The Line…Should She Fold A SET? (Analysis)
The late Kenny Rogers famously sang: You’ve got to know when to hold ’em, know when to fold ’em. Know…
How to Play Flopped Sets in 8 Common Situations
Who doesn’t love the feeling you get when you flop a set? When it happens, all you can think about…
Late Registering Online Tournaments: How Late Is Too Late?
You’re starting to take tournaments seriously. You put a decent amount of time into studying theory / analyzing hands. But…
$22 Becomes $100,061 in Unbelievably Huge Tournament (Hand Analysis)
Who hasn’t dreamed of turning a small tournament buy-in into a fortune? Upswing coach Daniel “Daniel” McAulay actually pulled off…
How “Game Flow” Should Impact Your Decisions in Poker
People aren’t robots. Poker can be a very emotional game, which can cause even experienced players to lose control of…
How ICM Should Impact Your Play at Final Tables
You don’t want to be the person who blows a huge opportunity because of one avoidable decision at a final…
What is a Flush? And How Should You Play Flushes?
Making a flush can often result in winning the pot in a game of poker. One of the stronger hands…
10 Poker Infographics That Will Help Your Game
Infographics are a fun and effective way to learn, which is why we’ve created numerous infographics throughout the years. Today’s…
4 Valuable Pieces of Poker Tournament Advice for Beginners
You’ve played your A-game for hours and you made some hands when you needed to. Now, it has finally happened:…
Tourney Boss Hristivoje “ALLinPav” Pavlovic Joins the Upswing Lab Team
One of poker’s most prolific Twitch streamers has joined the Upswing Lab. Hristivoje “ALLinPav” Pavlovic is the newest member of…
Single-Raised Pots vs 3-Bet Pots: How Should Your Strategy Differ?
If you want to make as much money in poker as possible, you need to be well versed in the…
The Ultimate Guide to Squeezing in No Limit Hold’em
The “squeeze” play — 3-betting preflop versus a raise and one or more callers — was once a staple of…
[QUIZ] Can You Ace 10 Super Tough Poker Questions?
There are dozens of poker quizzes here on Upswing Poker. Over the past few days, my team and I sifted…
3 Questions to Ask Yourself When Facing a Bet
Learning poker in 2020 can feel overwhelming. The poker community is always buzzing about solvers and theoretically optimal play —…
3 Crucial Types of Poker Software for Serious Players in 2024
If you’re serious about poker, there are a few must-have types of poker software / poker tools. Whether you play…
7 Must-Read Articles That Will Help Your Poker Game
I’ve been running the Upswing Poker blog for over four years. In that time I have commissioned, read, and published…
How to Play Pocket Aces (5 Mistakes to Avoid)
After hours of looking down at hands like T♠ 5♣, it finally happens. You get dealt the beautiful pocket aces.…
10 Questions to Ask Yourself Before Exploiting an Opponent
As you’ve probably heard before: everything you do at the poker table conveys information. Anyone that has played live poker…
Patrick Leonard’s 4-Part Recipe for Poker Success
Patrick Leonard certainly knows a few things about success. The English poker pro and partypoker ambassador boasts a poker resume…
5 Tips to Stop Bleeding Chips from the Small Blind
The small blind is arguably the most difficult position to master in No Limit Hold’em. This position is particularly challenging…
10 Poker Mindset Mistakes to Avoid
Are mental game mistakes costing you money? In this article I’m going to discuss the most common poker mindset mistakes…
Amir Vahedi’s 3 Bluffing Tips from 2009 Stand the Test of Time
The evolution of poker strategy is fascinating. When I first started my journey into poker a few years ago, I…
5 Advanced Poker Strategies & Tips To Supercharge Your Poker Wins
Ready for some advanced nuggets of poker wisdom that will help your game? For today’s article, I dug through Upswing’s…
[QUIZ] Can You Beat the People of Instagram at Poker?
We love quizzing our Instagram audience with head-scratching poker scenarios. Their responses are usually a mixed bag. The top comment…
How to Avoid Getting Crushed After Defending with a Weak Hand
Most of you already know that you should defend your big blind a lot in tournaments, but do you know…
[QUIZ] What is Your Poker IQ Score?
How knowledgeable are you when it comes to the most popular “big bet” poker games? This 8-question quiz includes questions about No Limit Hold’em (cash games and tournaments), Pot Limit Omaha, and “big bet” poker theory […]
3 Key Hands from a Sunday Million Final Table
Ready to improve your strategy by getting inside the head of a truly great tournament pro? Keep reading. One of the coolest and most valuable Play & Explain series in the Upswing Lab is a full review of Moritz “Mo” Dietrich’s final table run in the PokerStars Sunday Million during SCOOP last year […]
(Quiz) Let’s Play a Final Table with $173,000 Up Top
Fortunes are won and lost at final tables, so it’s crucial you play well when you’re lucky enough to make one. To help you practice and improve your chances at a big pay day, you’re about to be presented with […]
Poker Training Course: Upswing Lab 2.0
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.
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.
More Poker Training from Upswing Poker
Browse our catalog of poker training courses. Whether you're a for fun/profit low stakes player, a tournament player, a cash game player, or rising crusher looking for advanced material, we have a course for you, including our brand new Upswing Lab 2.0 membership course and private strategy community.