Here are some basic strategies for playing in the early position of a sit and go tournament.

When talking about early position, I am talking about the first three players to act following the big blind.

What you need to keep in mind in this early position is that you are forced to make decisions on your hand before anyone else. After each round of betting, you will be one of the first to act. How you are perceived will determine your success in this position. You want to take a strong stance at the table. If you are perceived weak, you will be attacked with raises.

Ideally, you want to get in to the hand, for as little as possible when
you do not have a premium hand. To be allowed to do that, you need to
create fear and uncertainty in your opponent. You need them to always
be guessing what you have. If you don’t, you will find you aren’t
allowed to limp in very often. You will be forced to put more in the
pot if you want to play.

What does your bet say about your hand?

When you call the big blind, you are saying you are curious about the
hand and just want to dabble a little. You are representing to the
table a weak hand. When you raise, you’re saying you have some kind of hand. The larger the raise you make, the better the hand you are representing to the table. In either case, this is the initial perception.

The important key here is that your hand doesn’t have to mean that at
all. As I said, you are representing a certain strength hand. Your hand
doesn’t have to be what it seems for you to choose a particular betting
behavior.

How much should you raise?

You can raise three to five times the big blind. You can raise the same amount regardless of how strong your hand is. A lot of your betting behavior is determined by the other players at the table. Whatever you do, don’t always bet big on pocket high cards, and small on small pairs. You want to keep your opponent guessing. It’s hard to put you on a hand if you change you’re betting behavior, or you’re always raising the same amount.

What hands should you play?

What hands you play depends on the table and your playing style. If the table is weak, play more hands. If the table is aggressive, play less hands and look to trap and bust your overly aggressive opponent(s).

Closing remarks

Take your time, be patient and get to know the table. The blind progressions are small and usually increase slowly, unless it is an accelerated/turbo format. Adapt your play to the table. You’re in the early position, three out of ten times. No need to get fancy with 2 3 off suit. There’s plenty of time to make your move. Stay unpredictable, and you’ll do fine.