A Multi Table Tournament (MTT) is a contest where many players at many tables play until all but one is eliminated from play. The number of tables is reduced by moving players until there is only one table of players remaining. The tournament continues until all but one player is eliminated. Players are ranked by how long they can stay in and the prize pool paid out on a sliding scale amongst the top finishing players.

Cash poker relies on a player's patience and discipline when it comes to hand selection - there is no time limit, no reason to have to change gears. This is not true of tournament play. In a tournament, you will have a finite number of chips to play with and if you do not win some more from your opponents, the blinds and antes will take them all. You cannot simply pull up again as you can in a cash game. Not only are you locked in with no means of replenishment, but the blinds and antes increase as the tournament progresses, making it even more important to start winning some pots.

These criteria, limited chips and increasing antes, bring a whole new range of skills into the game when playing tournaments. Along with the usual need to watch and learn how your opponents are playing, you have to learn how to manage your chips.

This means knowing when it is to your advantage to commit chips to a pot and when it is not. This may sound a little strange - surely you only commit chips when you think you have the best hand? Well, yes this is true but there are times in a tournament when it is more prudent to give up a pot even if you think you have the best of it, and times when you really have to commit your chips even if you know you are taking a big gamble.

Allied to their own natural poker talent, it is the ability to recognise and exploit these times in both their own game and other players' games that make the great tournament players great.

There are a few things to remember when it comes to chip management :

The First Half-Hour
You cannot win a tournament in the first half-hour. This seems obvious, but it is surprising how little patience players can show in the early stages of a tournament, when the blinds are low and there is no pressure. A large stack early is of course advantageous, but taking unnecessary risks is not prudent. You cannot win the tournament in the first half-hour but you can most certainly lose it.

Big Blinds
How many big blinds do you have? In a tournament, 30+ big blinds is excellent, 20+ big blinds is good. Once you get down to 10 big blinds you are in need of winning some pots. Once down to 5 or less big blinds your next bet will be all-in! Using these chip counts as a rough guide, you can identify both your and other players' need to find a hand. Remember, winning the blinds just once per round is enough to keep your relative stack size constant.

Average Stack Size
It is helpful to know what the average stack is at all times, and also what the target average is for the final table. Depending upon the tournament and how far along you are, the average stack may be less than 10 big blinds, indicating that all players are likely to be under pressure.

Changing Gears
With the knowledge of how you are standing in the chip ladder and relative to the blinds, you can change your game to suit. It is not ideal to let your stack droop below 10 big blinds, so before that happens and while you still have a stack to play with, you should look for opportunities to steal and generally play more aggressively. Learn to recognise how different players react to their chip counts, e.g. a big stack may be playing very openly and aggressively, using their chips to bully, or they may be sitting tight, playing only premium hands.

Committing Your Chips
You will have to recognise when your chips are committed, or going to be if you play the hand. There will be a point of no return where it is not sensible to pass for the remainder of your chips - either pass the hand from the start or go all-in and make sure you see all the flop.

A Chip And A Chair
Never give up - if you still have a chip you are still in the game. I have lost count of the times I have been down to one blind or ante and gone on to win the tournament.

The Final Stages
Now you are in or near the money and the game is going to get short-handed. As this happens, you will find that aggression is generally the best policy, but always be aware of the stack sizes; short stacks will be more likely to have to call, big stacks can knock you out. Remember, every step up the ladder means either getting into the money or more money. And remember that the other players know this too.

In summary, tournament play can be great fun and can provide big prize money for a relatively low outlay.

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