Dara O'Kearney (Satellite Specialist) - Ask Me Anything about satellites/knockouts

[filippfilm]

Hi Dara! What goal should I set before the tournament to get into itm?

 

[Dara OKearney]

Hi Dara,

WSOP Circuit $250 satellites to $1,700 Main Events have a considerably slower structure than other satellites. It can take several hours to get to the seats. Would you recommend using a more typical (MTT style) gameplan for the early to mid stages than in a more ordinary satellite structure?

Hi,

In slower structures I recommend going the other way: playing even tighter early on as you can afford to wait for better spots to accumulate a stack with less risk. This has the additional advantage that you will establish a tight image and will have more fold equity when you most want it later on when the shove or fold phase starts (at least against opponents who are paying attention).

Thanks for your question!

 

[Dara OKearney]

HelLo Dara!!!
i have been playing a lot of the satellites of party poker the last few days to get in the irish opEn// mAin evENt/
i have been playing with a Dara today and yesterday??!?
could that be you???
if so i would really like to talk to you...

i really want to play ghe irish main event///
thankss for your answer!
Gaspard

Hi,

Yes, that would be me, I play using my real name on Party in those satellites!

 

[G7S777D]

from centroll to wpt 3200€//

Hi Dara and thank you for your reply!!


i would really love to have some advice from you since you are a pro specialized in mtts and sats!!!

i am trying to get a bankroll big enough to play the big events and i want to do it from centrolls...
but what a battlefield!
right now i play the wpt centrolls, yesterday it went well, i got 3 tickets of 3,3€!
the furthest i went was to 33€, still have to do go to 320 and the have one of the 15 tickects to enter the wpt!
what an adenture, my question is have you ever got to such a big event from centroll ???
i also play sats like 1,1 sat to like 11€ mtt like ninja or terminator which are fields that i like!
but when i battle to go through the sats i arrive a bit tired to the actual tournaments and the last three i always got busted with AA allin preflop against JJ, QQ ...
could you tell me from your experience if my strategy is correct and after how many mtts should i check my ability reward!
right now i didn't do any final table at those 1500 players mtt!
i would like to have at least 1500€ bankroll to consider really start...
considering anything more advanced, my aim is to have enough bankroll online to sponsor my moves in real live tournaments like wpt and pay travel expenses etc//
like being self sponsored and online mtts is great fun and experience to me!

does any of this makes sense to you???
in fact i would love you to help me know where i am at and evaluate my skills and strategy to get there!
well i hope you can get me a hint or two and understand what i am going through!
well good day to you then and wish you fun at the tables///

from Meyrueis, france
Gaspard

 

[Tony0]

Recently bought your satellite book and read a dozen pages yesterday. I am a beginner of poker started playing 2 months ago.

Entered a freeroll on stars, SCOOP afterparty tickets, higher level you finish bigger ticket you get. So I played it like a series of satellites where once you bubble one level you get a freeroll at the next level.

Finished ~30/12000, 5th level $109 buyin.

This was mostly thanks to the very useful tip in your book of being able to fold everything if you are more places inside the bubble than people outside of it.

I would not have realised how safe I was without that knowledge and played more hands, busting out much earlier most likely.

I am delighted with my instant 18x return on the cost of your book. Thank you.

 

[Dara OKearney]

Hi Dara, my question would be mainly regarding partypoker's tournament dollar satellite format, I suppose you are familiar with it. (Although pretty similar to a normal sat I guess.) 60% of the time in the last weeks, I find myself eliminated as the stone bubble. Regardless if it is 10 players registered, 20, or 50, I am almost always one of the big stacks in the early and mid-game by taking down pots pre, and post-flop, and then when blinds start to double and it's late-stage push-fold game, I often get card dead, blinded down and can rarely push enough hands and so my position in the mtt gets downgraded to being bubble. What tips do you have in general, or in adjusting pushing and calling ranges? For example how do you adjust, open shoving and calling ranges if 5 places pay equal, and you are A, 6th out of 6th, or B, 5th out of 6 but basically equal stack to 6th, with having only 0,5-2% more , lets say 0.1bb larger stack for us? This spot just happens unbelievably often with me and I am on the losing side of a flip after pushing 80% of the time after I push on PartyPoker tournament $ sats. Any tips in general or specific? What should I analize and improve in my satellite MTT game, what to look for to do better in these sat. bubble spots? Variance is eating my roll away everytime lately with these spots, but I am sure there are also mistakes in my play to look for ! Thank you.

The overall strategy is you want to shove more often than call off. When it comes to shoving, fold equity is key. You're much better off shoving 32o from the small blind into a tight big blind than AQ utg with a few players behind who can call you without hurting their own chances too much. The further down the pecking order the more you need to shove (conversely if you're 1/6 or 2/6 you may not need to shove anything). On the call side, you always have to be super tight with one specific exception: if you're 5/6 or 6/6 and the other four have a lot more chips (so you and the other shortie are competing for the last seat), you should call the other shorty's shove with any hand that is ahead of his range. But you still have to be very tight against the big stacks. To give a concrete example, if the shorty shoves from sb T9o is probably a call in the BB, but if the big stack shove AK is usually a fold.

Thanks for your question!

 

[ErrolCartwright]

If you could give 5 tips to amateur poker players that want to start making an income of at least 500 dollars a month, what would they be?

 

[Dara OKearney]

Hi Dara,

I would like to hear your advice on how i can balance my sessions/days playing satellites and tournaments, should i just have sessions lets say morning sessions playing satellite only and evenings for the tournaments, or maybe a a whole day for either, i find myself sometimes having multi tables with a couple of satellites and a couple of tournaments running at the same time, strategies mix and i struggle.

Your advice is much appreciated
Thank you

Hi Hunter,

That's a very interesting question which I don't think I've ever been asked before. The short answer (as so often is the case with poker) is "it depends". My own approach has changed down the years. In the early days when I was learning poker I liked to concentrate on one format at a time, so I had sessions that were just satellites, and when I was playing normal mtts I didn't play satellites at the same time. A lot of my students find a similar approach works best for them. For example, a lot of sites have satellites on a Saturday for the Sunday tournaments, so they play just satellites on Saturday and just normal tournaments on Sunday. Some sites run satellites in the afternoon for their evening tournaments, so you can split your session in two: first half satellites, second half mtts.

As you get more experienced (or better at multitasking) you may find it easier to combine different types, which I do these days. But if you do, I strongly recommend some method of organising your screen(s) so you know which format each table is at a glance, like satellites on top half, normal on bottom. I use a three screen set up with satellites on the left, normal mtts in the middle, and PKOs on the right. That way when I'm looking at the left screen I'm thinking like a nit, whereas when it's the right screen I'm a maniac, and the middle screen somewhere in between

Thanks for a very interesting question!

 

[seraxel]

Hi Hunter,


As you get more experienced (or better at multitasking) you may find it easier to combine different types, which I do these days. But if you do, I strongly recommend some method of organising your screen(s) so you know which format each table is at a glance, like satellites on top half, normal on bottom. I use a three screen set up with satellites on the left, normal mtts in the middle, and PKOs on the right. That way when I'm looking at the left screen I'm thinking like a nit, whereas when it's the right screen I'm a maniac, and the middle screen somewhere in between

!

Changing the graphics of the table color and background is great for this too, if the site offers custom options.

 

[Evan Jarvis]

I'd just like to say that Dara's book is fantastic

After reading thru it I won not 1, but 2 Venom Sattelites (on my next 2 entries)

First win was in a $95 mega satty paying around 30 seats ($2650 value)

Second win was in a $95 satty paying 13 seats ($2650 value)

The guerilla maths and concepts introduced really are a game changer for this format.

I didn't memorize the exact ranges offered in the book, but having exposed myself to them a few things over gave me the intuitive sense of just how wide I could push in some spots, and just how wide some other regs would be pushing in said spots too.

This was a big lessons for me because i'd always assumed everyone was just playing super tight in satties near the bubble, but there's much more to it than that.

Thanks for putting together a great work Dara, certainly a book that will make many students many monies!!!

P.S. I cashed the Venom for about $8200 on my first entry... pretty good ROI starting from a $90+5 satellite

 

[scullkr]

Hi Dara,

I enjoyed your recent appearance on Chasing Poker Greatness. In particular well done on nicely navigating your explanation of the conflict in Northern ireland! I only recently got to enjoy playing PKOs after reading the book as my online poker options are limited. A few questions if you don't mind:

1. ignition/Bovada just started spreading PKOs- bounty is usually 1/3 or 1/4 of the buy in eg $30 buy in with a $10 bounty or $125 buy in with a $25 bounty. How much lower should our Bounty Discount be roughly? With the 1/4 bounty in particular, at what Bounty Factor would our ranges be affected?
2. Re bankroll management in PKOs do similar rules apply as normal MTTs? Do the increased variance and bounties earned essentially cancel each other out?
3. Any specific differences in play I should consider on the predominantly 6 max Winamax PKOs? They play pretty wild and I haven't had quite the success I had imagined so far with deep runs, often finding myself priced in with multi way pots.

 

[Dara OKearney]

Is there ever a situation where it would be advisable to limp from early position in a PKO. If say there is a very short stacked player with a juicy bounty in late position?

Hi Dayzer,

Yes, there are many such situations, usually involving a juicy bounty. For example, if you're on the button and the BB is short with a big bounty, if you raise and they fold you can't win the bounty, but if you limp they can't fold so yoot chances of winning the bounty are greatly increased.

Thank you for your question!

 

[Bhzrd588]

Hi Cardschat,

I am Dara O’Kearney, known as Doke online. I am an Irish poker professional tournament player, with over $1 million in live earnings and more than $3 million in online MTTs, not to mention 8 PocketFives Triple Crowns.

I am perhaps best known for being a satellite specialist. I have won over $1 million in online satellites alone and have just written a new book on this subject called Poker Satellite Strategy:

Away from the tables I am the co-host of the Global Poker Award winning Chip Race Podcast and sponsored by Unibet Poker. Prior to poker I was an ultra marathon runner

Cardschat have kindly agreed to let me do an Ask Me Anything thread where you can ask me anything at all about satellites and tournament strategy. This will be on an ongoing basis, I’ll be checking in most weeks starting this one to answer your questions and to begin with I will be around tomorrow to answer the first batch.

Also this month I will give a free copy of my book on Apple iBooks to my favourite question, once a week for the next four weeks.

AMA


Dara

What's your secret in one sentence?

 

[Dara OKearney]

Hey Dara!

Just wanted to let yo know that I picked up the satty book last weekend and I think it's fantastic!

I thought I had a good handle on satties but boy was I mistaken!

Thank you for putting it together, and also thank you for putting together this epic thread! Brilliant stuff mate!

Thanks Evan! Means a lot coming from you

 

[Dara OKearney]

Hi Dara!

I reread your satellite book right now and stumbled again on your sentence from page 14. I'm from Belarus and not clearly understand this: "The number of times your cash is much more important than your ability to crush the field, so that means reducing the number of times you bust but not taking needless risks." Can you explaine this more wide?

Hi, this is basically my way of saying that cashing is the only goal in a satellite. This makes it different from a normal tournament where the higher you finish the more you win. This means in a normal tournament you're trying to win as many pots as possible, and it can feel good when you're building a massive stack and crushing everyone. But that's a dangerous feeling to chase in a satellite where you are just trying to survive to the cash: it can be addictive and make you take unnecessary risks.

Thanks for your question, I hope to visit Belarus some day!

 

[Dara OKearney]

Hi Dara! What goal should I set before the tournament to get into itm?

In a normal tournament, the only real goal you should set should be to play each hand as profitably as possible, but in a satellite your goal is to get to the target stack (the amount of chips that should be sufficient to get you a seat), and then to maintain that stack.

Thanks for your question!

 

[phantomshark]

Was playing in a satellite, on the bubble, 1 more person needed to be knocked out for the rest to get a ticket. I was in the BB as the second largest stack. A short stack went all in, then the shortest stack also went all in, and the largest stack called. Last to act in the big blind, I open folded AA and the entire table basically went nuts on me, saying I was wrong to do so. Was I? The only way the tourney continues is if the short stack wins, and if the short stack won the next shortest stack would have been under 2 BBs, and I didn't want to take the chance that the big stack would beat me when I had very little chance of not cashing by playing passively.

 

[Dara OKearney]

Hi Dara and thank you for your reply!!


i would really love to have some advice from you since you are a pro specialized in mtts and sats!!!

i am trying to get a bankroll big enough to play the big events and i want to do it from centrolls...
but what a battlefield!
right now i play the wpt centrolls, yesterday it went well, i got 3 tickets of 3,3€!
the furthest i went was to 33€, still have to do go to 320 and the have one of the 15 tickects to enter the wpt!
what an adenture, my question is have you ever got to such a big event from centroll ???
i also play sats like 1,1 sat to like 11€ mtt like ninja or terminator which are fields that i like!
but when i battle to go through the sats i arrive a bit tired to the actual tournaments and the last three i always got busted with AA allin preflop against JJ, QQ ...
could you tell me from your experience if my strategy is correct and after how many mtts should i check my ability reward!
right now i didn't do any final table at those 1500 players mtt!
i would like to have at least 1500€ bankroll to consider really start...
considering anything more advanced, my aim is to have enough bankroll online to sponsor my moves in real live tournaments like wpt and pay travel expenses etc//
like being self sponsored and online mtts is great fun and experience to me!

does any of this makes sense to you???
in fact i would love you to help me know where i am at and evaluate my skills and strategy to get there!
well i hope you can get me a hint or two and understand what i am going through!
well good day to you then and wish you fun at the tables///

from Meyrueis, France
Gaspard

Hi Gaspard,

I actually started in freerolls online (I never deposited) but I think I was a lot luckier than you at the start (I came second in a field of thousands on my second night playing) and it was a lot easier back then. However, it's still viable to grind up, if you have the time and patience. For me, the key skill you learn at freerolls is that irrespective of the stake level, you should always play your best and try to work out the relevant optimal strategy. That's something which has helped me a lot in my career. My friends sometimes tease me for not being able to switch off and fool around at lower buyins, but I take pride in the fact I always play my best (or at least try to) irrespective of the stake levels.

Keep plugging away, and thanks for the question!

 

[G7S777D]

frOM partypoker To pokerstars//

HelLo Dara,
thank you very much for your answer!!
for your advice is best, and I think the same way about the Game, whatever the stake...
is to play our game, whatever whAt//
unfortunately i had to shut my account on partypoker for as belgian they wouldn t let me cash out/// so back on the pokerstarsfield...
and i weirdly feEl there that when you enter a tournament from sat, well those Very Good Hands don t realLy apPear anymore// /
hmmm , i am a mathematician so probs get realLy clear to me...
noTHing likE live pokER...
hOpe to seE you one dAy in those strong events///
alL the best of luck to you ////
Gaspard

 

[BlademasterX]

Hi Dara.
Thank you for doing this. Quick question: how many tables do you play at once? Personally, I find it really difficult to do more than two, and one is probably best for me. Otherwise I find that I make too many errors and don’t get the feel for the players if I’m scattered all over the place. Notes help, but there’s only so much you can jot down.

All the best

 

[Dara OKearney]

Recently bought your satellite book and read a dozen pages yesterday. I am a beginner of poker started playing 2 months ago.

Entered a freeroll on stars, SCOOP afterparty tickets, higher level you finish bigger ticket you get. So I played it like a series of satellites where once you bubble one level you get a freeroll at the next level.

Finished ~30/12000, 5th level $109 buyin.

This was mostly thanks to the very useful tip in your book of being able to fold everything if you are more places inside the bubble than people outside of it.

I would not have realised how safe I was without that knowledge and played more hands, busting out much earlier most likely.

I am delighted with my instant 18x return on the cost of your book. Thank you.

That's awesome: well done and thanks for letting me know!

 

[Masster74]

Jackpot freerolls 0.01 needed Masster74 pokerstars

Can someone help me get into tournament plz

 

[Dara OKearney]

If you could give 5 tips to amateur poker players that want to start making an income of at least 500 dollars a month, what would they be?

What a great question!

After some head scratching here is what I came up with:
(1) In the beginning spend at least as much time studying as you do playing. Consume all the free content you can and if you can afford it buy some good training content and solvers
(2) Game selection is vital. Find games you can beat by enough to make it a realistic goal. There's no point picking a format where the best players in the world are making 1c a game unless you can play 50,000 of them in a month
(3) Don't go the staked route unless you have no other option. If you're a winning player, giving up to 50% of your profits away to a backer makes no sense long term
(4) Bankroll management is also vital
(5) Don't underestimate the importance of a strong mental game. Variance is the thing that makes poker both profitable and difficult long term. It's easy to maintain good habits and discipline and play your A game when you're running well, but you need to be able to maintain high standards when it's not going well

Thanks for your great question!

 

[garibe]

I dont have any questions (yet ). I bought your book on satellites after reading a bunch of the posts here. Decided to do that after I got myself involved with it without thinking.

I just started my read, but I am happy that a lot of unconscious deicisions I made during the games I got the ticket were actually pointed out in the beginning of the book.

I noticed after playing several super micro satellites that a lot of players DO play the late stages like it should be EV instead of ICM decision plays. I dont even feel bad being a super Nit lol

Thanks for the great answers and help to us beginners!

 

[belladonna05]

Inquiring twitter minds want to know.....
https://twitter.com/padraigpoker/status/1418525446208167937?s=20