Cash Games vs. Tournament Poker

One of the most frequently asked questions is whether you might hear from aspiring poker pros whether to focus on tournament poker or cash game poker strategy or which one to choose.  

Well, both of them are good and viable options in today’s poker world. You can pick either one and be profitable with work & commitment.

There are two very different formats when you play card games online, with two different sets of skills required to be profitable and mindsets required to stay sane. No one should know your skill set and situation better than you.

So, here are some pros and cons of playing poker tournaments vs. cash games:

Pros of Tournament Poker

1.     When you win, you win big: While you might not achieve this often, winning first place will multiply your buy-in with a significant amount. If you’re playing high-stakes tournaments, it is possible to win a million dollars in two to five-day sessions. To do the same in cash game sessions is nearly impossible.

Some tournaments can bring the added value of fame and fortune. If you are into the next poker celebrity, then tournaments are pretty much your only chance.

2.     Play against recs, not regs: Tournaments attract a number of Poker TV shows, recreational players more than any other poker format. Recreational players generally think of poker more as an experience than as a profitable venture.

Gaining more experience is better for you. Playing a poker tournament against pros, are exciting as the hope and dream of making a big final table is more than enough to fuel the fire.

3.     Play high stakes against really bad players: while you might think that bad players won’t last long in tournaments, the high variance of short stack tournaments means the opposite is mostly true.

You can find yourself playing against a huge fish deep into a tournament when the relative stakes are huge.

Pros of Cash Games

1.     Freedom to choose your lifestyle: While in tournaments, you’re bound to a tournament registration, but in cash games, you can just sit and play as long as you want. Whether you want to pop online for a 30-minute session or grind for a 12-hour marathon, you can do it all in cash games.

2.     More room for analytical play: You don’t have to worry about any pay jumps and blind level increase, which means that you can focus on your deep stack post-flop game and exploit your opponents.

3.     A lot fewer swings: You will never find a dreadful downswings tournament player. As mentioned, it is possible for a good tournament player to have a losing year. A small run in cash games would also be impossible for a good cash game player, so long that the player puts in enough volume.

4.     Smaller bankroll requirements: while it is debatable whether a hundred buy-ins would be good enough for tournaments, 40 to 50 buy-ins is more than enough for a cash game grind.

Cons of Tournament Poker

1.     Variance: As alluded with some upsides, variance in tournaments can get ridiculous. They are described as ‘lotteries where the best players have more than one ticket’. While the variance brings a lot of pros, the swings, monetarily and psychologically they are just too much for many people. Live tournament players are regularly losing months, including years.

2.     Time consuming: You won’t be having any winnings until you survive a few players and enter the money. Even if you do reach the money, you won’t be paid properly for your time until late in the tournament.

3.     Big bankroll requirements: Bankroll requirements are for successful tournament players with very high stakes compared to cash games. As a tournament player, you will experience devastating downswings, and your bankroll won’t be strong enough to handle them.

Cons of Cash Games

1.     Regs: Stronger players tend to play with more cash because it requires a deeper understanding of the game. The freedom and lower variance cash games offer to attract smart people who are willing to put in a lot of work to achieve an ideal lifestyle.

2.     Grind: The lack of pay jumps also mean that you won’t go from rags to riches in a session. Some people wouldn’t see this as a con, but even the most dedicated grinders will become tired of cash games' monotony.  

3.     Massive paydays: Even the sickest cash game sessions result in only a 15-20 buy-in profit, and most good sessions will be more like +2-3 buy-ins at the most.

4.     Rake is high: In a good cash game poker strategy, particularly the micro stakes, prepare against the rake as well as the players. Here you will be raked for every pot you win, while in tournaments, you will only be raked once for each buy-in.

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