In chapter 17 of Advanced Texas Hold’em, David Hamms outlines a practical approach to online tournament play, emphasizing how strategy must change across tournament stages as blinds/antes rise, stacks shrink relative to the pot, and player behavior shifts.
Choosing the Right Tournaments as a Beginner
Hamms recommends that newer players start with small buy-in online tournaments to gain experience over many hands with limited financial risk. Early tournament fields often include loose, gamble-heavy players, and he suggests avoiding big confrontations with them unless you have a clear edge or strong read.
First Stage: Two Viable Approaches
He describes two broad early-stage styles:
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Tight survival style: Focus on top starting hands (plus some mid pocket pairs), avoid expensive draws, and fold quickly when the flop doesn’t cooperate.
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Loose-aggressive accumulation style: Play more hands to pressure weaker opponents and extract value after the flop—best suited for experienced players who can read opponents and boards well.
For less experienced players, he favors the tight approach early because blinds are small (so stealing them isn’t worth much yet), and busting or bleeding chips early reduces your ability to capitalize when premium hands arrive.
Key idea: early chips are valuable, and you want to double up efficiently rather than risk large chunks on marginal spots.
Tracking Opponents From the Start
A major focus is observation: Hamms encourages taking notes on opponents likely to survive into later stages—what hands they open, how they respond to reraises, how they bet post-flop, and what pressure makes them fold. That information becomes leverage later when blinds get big and “steal spots” matter.
Playing When You’re Short-Stacked Early
If you lose chips early, he advises tightening further, not loosening. Short stacks get targeted by bigger stacks, which can be good if you finally pick up a strong hand—multiple callers can help you rebuild quickly. The goal becomes finding the right moment to double (or triple) up rather than gambling with weak holdings out of frustration.
Middle Stage: Gear Shifts and Blind Pressure
In the middle stage, many weak players are gone, blinds/antes rise, and players begin shifting gears. Hamms defines “short-stacked” in practical terms: if you only have a few blind rotations left (around 10 big blinds), you need to look for a move—often an all-in or a strong steal attempt.
He highlights that players tighten up near payout thresholds (the bubble and pay jumps), creating prime opportunities to steal. After a threshold passes, aggression often returns—so you need to adapt quickly rather than stay stuck in one mode.
Stealing and Fold Equity
Hamms stresses that successful steals depend on:
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choosing targets carefully (often stacks that don’t want to risk their tournament life),
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understanding who hates calling big bets,
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and recognizing that raising into certain stack sizes can invite shove-responses.
He warns that stealing into big stacks can backfire because they can afford to “look you up,” while bullying a slightly smaller stack may succeed—but also risks them shoving because they’re already near commitment.
Chip Goals and Mental Discipline
Instead of obsessing over the chip leader, he suggests thinking in terms of tournament-wide chip economy—estimating what stack size might be needed for a final-table run. He emphasizes patience: you can move up the payout ladder when others bust, and big opportunities to double up often arrive later when pots are larger.
He also cautions big stacks: use your leverage, but don’t get reckless. Protecting chips is still survival, and over-bullying can lead to traps or unnecessary variance.
Late Stage and Final Table: Authority Raises and Shorthanded Power
Once in the money or at the final table, play often becomes more all-in heavy, since stacks are shallow relative to blinds/antes. Hamms recommends:
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valuing premium hands highly,
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raising strongly with your best holdings,
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stealing blinds frequently from late position when opponents are cautious,
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and respecting raise–reraise action because callers typically have real strength.
As the table gets shorthanded, he notes that big cards and pocket pairs gain value, and more confrontations become classic race situations (pair vs. overcards). Survival plus timely doubles is his repeated theme: hang around, let others bust, then climb with one or two pivotal wins.
He suggests practicing late-stage skills via sit-and-go formats and studying shorthanded play.
Online Tournament Structures: Faster Pace, Faster Decisions
Hamms points out that online tournaments often run on faster blind schedules than live events, which forces:
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earlier gear shifts,
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more frequent steals,
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and greater urgency once antes appear.
He recommends learning each site’s pacing by either playing low-stakes events tightly for experience or even observing tournaments and taking notes on when the field tightens, when aggression spikes, and what stack sizes look “healthy” at each level.
Main Takeaway
Chapter 17 frames online tournaments as a moving environment: early caution and observation, mid-stage adaptation and well-timed aggression, and late-stage survival plus authoritative plays when the blinds demand action. Hamms’ core message is to minimize avoidable mistakes, stay aware of structure and stack pressure, and put yourself in positions where luck can help—without relying on luck to fix poor decisions.