Carbon Poker $100k Guaranteed Tournament Strategy

Every week, hundreds of people show up to Carbon Poker’s $100,000 Guaranteed, which is the site’s flagship event. And it’s no wonder why since there is so much guaranteed money involved. Assuming you’re interested in playing for the $100,000 prize pool on Sundays at Carbon Poker, here are a few pointers that you should keep in mind.

Play Strong Hands in Early Blind Levels

One of the most common mistakes with the Carbon Poker $100k Guaranteed is playing marginal hands in the early levels. This is especially the case with satellite qualifiers who try playing average hands from early position while hoping to see cards for cheap. The first problem with this is that it’s too early in the tournament to be taking chances with marginal hands, and the second mistake here is that you can get put into some awkward postflop spots. In any case, don’t play mediocre poker hands from early position when the blinds are not a factor – unless you’re very experienced in deepstacked situations.

Realize that it’s a Long Event

There’s always the temptation to panic when your chip stack starts falling below the average stack in a tournament. However, it’s also important to realize that the $100k is a fairly long event as far as online poker tournaments go, and there’s no need to rush anything just because your stack is below average. This being said, don’t try to force things with bad hands or when opportunities aren’t coming your way. If you keep making +EV plays without panicking, you’re more likely to come back and build a decent chip stack, rather than by forcing raises and bluffs.

Play Pairs and Connectors in Position

Those making the adjustment from short-stacked tournaments sometimes have trouble with what range of hands to play in position. In most cases, these players overplay A-T, K-T, and similar hands so they can steal small pots and blinds. And this is certainly a good strategy…..later on in the tournament when blinds are actually factor. However, you should stick with playing solid pairs and suited connectors when you’re in position during the middle and early stages. At this point, you should be looking to take a large portion of somebody’s stack – not overplaying hands in an effort to steal a small pot.