180 Person Sit and Go Poker Tournament Strategy
180 person sit and go poker tournaments are a great, yet quick way to play in a poker tournament with a decent sized field to compete for a nice prize pool. While not nearly as big as many of the multi-table tournaments, the 180-person sit and go gives you the feel of a big tournament, while maintaining the speed and convenience of a sit and go tournament.
Early 180 player SNG Tournament Strategy
During the early stages of a 180-player sit and go, you will look to extract max value after the flop. During the opening rounds, the blinds are small and the antes have not yet started. It is most appropriate to limp/call preflop, as the blinds are not yet worth stealing. Look to exploit the willingness of your opposition to overplay their top pair hands. Be ready to turn the aggression on after the flop.
Strategy for the Middle Stages of the 180 player SNG
As the PokerStar blinds increase and antes begin, most players tighten up preflop. This is the prime opportunity for you to move some of your aggression to before the flop. Begin to focus on stealing pots, raising to take them down preflop. This adjustment in aggression will help you run over the weaker table, as you are going opposite the normal trend. A contrarian approach at the poker table is typically an effective strategy, and by being relentless preflop, you should be successful in amassing a sizable chip stack, which can carry you to and through the final table.
Final Table Strategy for the 180-man Sit n Go
The final table of 180-player sit n go tournament typically shows a substantial increase from 9th place money to 1st place. Keeping this in mind, you want to finish deeply into the final table. Be aware of extreme short stacks, being careful not to make any marginal plays until they are on the rail. Once at the final table, many players will open up the offense a bit, and play aggressively. This is a great time to get into the reraise or fold mentality. Again, be aware of the short stacks, and note that your opposition will be almost aware of them as you are. When appropriate, put your opposition to the test. Let them decide if they want to race, knowing that the player in seat 8 will be all-in on the blinds next hand. Players will tend to back down to the challenge knowing they can advance one level of pay.
By playing smartly in 180-man sit-n-go tourneys, you will have the opportunity to go deep and cash in these larger field sit and go tournaments.