When we think of poker tournaments,we usually think of Texas Holdem. Texas Holdem has been the cornerstone of many major poker tournaments, perhaps most notably the World Series of Poker’s annual world championship event. Texas Holdem made its tournament debut in 1969 at the very first poker tournament held at the Second Annual Gambling Fraternity Convention.
The following year the “convention” was renamed the World Series of Poker and moved to Binion’s Horseshoe casino in Las Vegas. However, it was televised coverage of the WSOP in 1999 – featuring lipstick cameras that allowed viewers to see the players hole cards – that launched Texas Holdem tournament popularity into the mainstream.
Texas Holdem tournaments are drastically different from Texas Holdem cash games. Unlike cash games, when you buy into a Texas Holdem tournament, the chips you receive for wagering don’t represent the money you bought in with. Tournament buy-ins contribute to the prize money for top finishers in the tournament.
Everyone begins a Texas Holdem tournament with the same number of chips, and compete until someone has won all of the chips. Those who finish within the payout bubble win the prize allotted for the position in which they finish, rather than an amount equal to the number of chips they finish with.
As opposed to Texas Holdem cash games where players may join and leave poker tables as they wish, Texas Holdem tournaments are scheduled, and require a dedicated commitment of time. Even some professional poker players consider being confined to a seat at the poker table until they either win all the chips or lose their own chipstack to be too grueling, and shy away from tournament play.
Poker strategy also differs between Texas Holdem tournaments and cash games. With the chips representing position on the leaderboard rather than real money, tournament players are more likely to gamble their chipstack on cards they would normally fold to a raise. Also, the mere fact that tournaments run on a schedule will cause players to make bigger plays than they would in cash games. In this way, tournaments can be more exciting than cash games, with looser play and huge bluffs.
Only a small percentage of poker players have ever been able to make a living exclusively playing Texas Holdem tournaments. Cash games offer a more steady, reliable profit. And in Texas Holdem tournaments, it is nearly impossible to predict who will win; even the best poker pros have been beaten by amateurs in major live Texas Holdem tournaments.
Heads up play is also a very important aspect of Texas Holdem tournaments that many cash game poker players rarely encounter. The number of players at a tournament poker table steadily decreases as players lose their chips, inevitably coming down to a one on one match between the last two players standing. Players without heads up poker experience are usually at a disadvantage when they find themselves in this situation.
Despite the fact that many of the high profile professional poker players have been dabbling in Omaha, Texas Holdem tournaments continue to draw the highest online poker traffic volume. Every major online poker room features regular Texas Holdem tournaments in limit and no limit varieties, at every buy-in level.
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