You can now play a satellite for just about every tournament imaginable, from online poker tournaments with $50 buy ins to the much-ballyhooed $1 million buy in Big One for One Drop at the 2012 WSOP. In short, satellites are almost always available for big-ticket tournaments (live or online) and are available more often than not for tournaments. We have a fantastic selection of tournaments on offer, in all types of poker and with buy-ins to suit all players, including many tournaments with guaranteed prize-pools. Details of upcoming tournaments are shown below. Download and launch the poker client for further information and to register for one of our excellent value poker tournaments.

Satellite Poker Tournaments

Satellite poker tournaments have become increasingly more significant as the number of players have increased over the years. The reason for this is because many of the high priced poker tournaments now have online and live satellites in which to gain entry. Only a few years ago there were merely a couple of hundred players in the high stakes events. Now those numbers continue to grow due to the influx of online qualifiers via satellite.

Another reason why satellite poker tournaments are so popular is because they are inexpensive. Typically a satellite tournament will cost 10% of the buy-in for that particular poker tournament. This means that you are getting a tremendous bargain whether you are in a multi-table satellite or a single table satellite. Satellites also change your approach to the game as well. The idea of survival is even more apparent in these kinds of scenarios than most.

Lastly, satellite poker tournaments are a tremendous way to help you manage your bankroll. They also have the potential to have a huge impact on your bankroll should you go on to win the big tournament. Just ask Chris Moneymaker.

Online Poker Satellite Tournaments

Now that we have explained the benefits to playing satellites I am going to go more in-depth in how you should approach them to maximize your edge.

Single Table Satellites

Single table satellites are just that, they are one table satellites with 9 or 10 players that usually pay 1 or 2 seats into the main event. This means that you are going to see some extremely aggressive play and you need to play these tournaments to win them. There is definitely an approach to playing and winning these kinds of satellites. The typical poker strategy you may use in a normal poker tournament does not apply here. Aggression is extremely important even to the point of taking a big flush draw with 7 players or less left to position yourself to finish in one of the top two spots. I do not encourage slow play in these tournaments for obvious reasons. You are not going to be the only one that is hungry for a shot at the big money.

Tighten up early and allow other players to bounce around and get knocked out unless you are picking up premium hands. The real satellite play doesn’t start until things get short-handed at 6 players. Then the more astute players get more aggressive and pick up the blinds and antes if there are any. This is extremely important at this stage because the structures are usually so fast it becomes an all-in fest because the levels are only 10 minutes or less. You also need to open up your hand selection when you are short handed as well. If you are not a very good short-handed poker player then I would stay away from single table satellites. Conversely, if you are comfortable playing a fast structure with 6 or less players then you will likely do well in single tables.

Multi-Table Satellites

Multi-table satellite poker tournaments are my favorite. Why? Because they usually pay out multiple seats into the main event and I can usually put myself in position to win one of those seats if the cards break even. Most of the larger online poker tournaments on various sites get the majority of their players by running these low cost high reward satellite poker tournaments.

The approach taken in these kinds of poker tournaments is a little different than in a single table format. First, you do not have to “win” the tournament and that takes a certain amount of pressure off. However, this does not mean that you can be lackadaisical in your approach. You still need to accumulate chips as the tournament progresses. Unless you have a monster stack with only 1 or 2 players left before winning your seat you are going to need to be smart.

My approach to these kinds of tournaments is a little different. Instead of laying back and waiting to open up as in single tables I prefer to play a lot of hands early in hopes of accumulating lots of chips. Once I do so and hit the break with a better than average stack I will usually slow down a bit unless my table is so passive that it would be detrimental to do so. I also try to stay away from players that can seriously hurt me unless I have the nuts. Again, the idea here is to get the seat and not necessarily to win the poker tournament.

Ultimately, you have to find the platform that fits your game best.

Curtis Mayfield III

The beauty of poker lies in various types of tournaments that bring all kinds of rewards for the best participants.

One of the most lucrative tournaments among online poker players is the so-called “satellite tournament“.

Essentially, satellite tournaments do not offer money as the final prize.

Instead, they provide an entry for another tournament which usually requires a much higher buy-in. This is a perfect opportunity for people who play poker and are on a budget to experience the atmosphere of big live poker competitions.

In this article, I’ll cover some of the burning questions related to satellite tournaments and explain their very nature. Some of the things you’ll learn about them are:

Should You Play Satellite Tournaments?

Contents

• How to Apply for a Satellite Tournament?
• Pros and Cons of Satellite Tournaments

Before you even buy yourself a seat at a satellite, you need to ask yourself the following question — what do I want from poker?

There are many reasons why people play poker. Some want to earn real money, others want to test their skills, and some just want to have fun.

If you are looking for a quick buck and poker is your side hustle, don’t bother applying for satellites at all. Even the fast-paced ones tend to last longer than usual, and the final prize is not even cash. Although you might end up winning a pile of money if you do well in both the satellite and the target tournament (which was awarded via the satellite), you need to devote a lot of time and energy without earning any cash in between.

On the other hand, if your goal is to have fun, test your poker skills, and meet new people, then satellites are a perfect opportunity for that. In that case, make sure to read on how to apply for a satellite.

How to Apply for a Satellite Tournament?

First of all, you need to find an online poker platform that offers a satellite tournament. Make sure to check out our selection, as several sites we feature include this type of competition.

Once you select a platform, navigate to the poker section (if a platform offers other gambling sections), and open an account.

Next, select your preferred payment method, use it to deposit money, and browse available satellite tournaments. Please take into account that some sites simply don’t have any contests of this kind available at the moment, which doesn’t mean they don’t offer them at all. In other words, you might need to check some sites from time to time in order to “catch” a satellite tournament.

You need to pay attention to several essential things when choosing an ideal satellite tournament.

# The Final Prize

Make sure that the final prize is a seat at a tournament you can actually attend. Many players apply for satellites that take place in some areas that are geographically far away from them. If you are in the US and the tournament is in the UK, make sure that you can afford to go there. Winning a satellite and not being able to make it to the tournament which was awarded to you as a prize is simply depressing.

Some prizes include a paid plane ticket and accommodations, while others just pay for a seat at the target tournament. That’s a very important thing to check, especially if you are on a budget and cannot afford flying half the world to play a high buy-in tournament.

# The Buy-in Amount

Some satellites have higher buy-ins, others come at a more affordable price. It’s up to you to make a selection based on your poker budget and your personal preferences.

What I’m trying to say is that you shouldn’t pay a higher buy-in price for a satellite that awards a seat at a tournament that you don’t even want to be a part of.

Best case scenario — you get to pay a very small prize and win a seat at a tournament you’ve always dreamed of playing.

# The Duration

You want to make sure what type of tournament you play in terms of duration. Some last for quite a while, others, such as super-turbo ones, are pretty quick. If you are confident about playing the turbo ones — go for it. On the other hand, if you don’t have experience playing such quick competitions, try finding normal-paced ones.

# Other Specifications

Finally, you need to pay attention to other important things that you would consider when applying for any tournament, such as type of poker (< href='https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Omaha_hold_%27em'>PLO, Hold’em, and so on), stack sizes, level duration, additional awards, and more.

Tips and Tricks for Playing Satellites

Let’s take a look at some important tips & tricks that can enhance your satellite experience:

• Look for tournaments that offer more than one entry — as previously mentioned, some satellites award more than one player with an entry to a bigger competition — the more, the merrier.
• Do your best at the start, then focus on staying in the game — satellites that award many entries to a tournament are great because you can relax once the bubble bursts and you make it to the list of awarded players.
• Take your chances — turbo and super-turbo satellites do not allow players to think about their actions, meaning that the element of luck plays a more important role, so feel free to play aggressively and take your chances.
• Seek an alternative — satellites are not for everybody and, if you think that you are not fit for playing one such competition, make sure to explore other options on poker sites. There are various other types of tournaments out there such as MTTs, progressive knockouts, free tournaments, deep stack tournaments, and more.

Pros and Cons of Satellite Tournaments

Although they seem like a perfect opportunity for players to earn their seat in one of the bigger tournaments, satellite qualifying competitions do have a couple of disadvantages as well. Let’s take a look at the pros and cons of this type of poker contest.

Pros

The primary advantage is that you get to invest a small amount of money and earn much more than that if you do well in the high buy-in event. There have been several cases of players qualifying via online satellite tournaments and making a pretty good run in the live ones.

Therefore, getting a chance to take part in a high buy-in event is perhaps the second most important advantage of online satellite tournaments.

Finally, satellite tournaments feature both professional poker players and complete beginners. It’s an opportunity to test your skills in this game against all sorts of players.

To sum up, these are the main advantages of satellite tournaments:

• Small buy-in/huge potential reward
• Opportunity to play in high buy-in contests
• Opportunity to improve your poker skills

Cons

Satellite Poker Tournaments Online Poker

Many poker players simply don’t like the fact that there are many steps that they need to take in order to get the final reward. In other words, satellites are so popular that sometimes thousands of players apply for them, meaning that it takes time before the whole thing is wrapped up.

In order to speed things up, many online poker rooms opt for turbo and super turbo tournaments. Many players who like to take it slow might not enjoy the speed with which these contests unfold.

Therefore, the two main disadvantages of satellite tournaments are:

Satellite Poker Tournaments Online Games

• There are too many steps
• Some of them are too fast