Poker School · lesson 6 of 7 · 4 min
Two different games wearing the same cards.
The structural difference
| Cash game / Tournament | |
|---|---|
| Chips | Cash: worth their face value in money. Tournament: worth nothing until you finish in the money. |
| Blinds | Cash: fixed. Tournament: rise on a clock and eventually swallow the average stack. |
| Leaving | Cash: any time, with whatever is in front of you. Tournament: when you bust or it ends. |
| Rebuying | Cash: any time. Tournament: only during a rebuy period, if there is one. |
| Getting paid | Cash: every pot. Tournament: only the top tenth or so of the field. |
What that changes about how you play
In a cash game the blinds never chase you, so you can wait for good spots indefinitely. In a tournament waiting is itself a decision, and eventually a losing one: rising blinds mean a stack that does not grow is shrinking.
Tournament chips also stop being worth a fixed amount near the money. Busting out costs you more than doubling up gains you, which is why good players tighten up on the bubble and loosen once it bursts.
Start in cash games or small sit and gos. Big-field tournaments have the most exciting prizes and by far the longest stretches of losing.
