Winning any money in a poker tournament is an exhilarating experience, but you find the real money in the top three positions. As an example, consider the data in Table 1, which shows the standard payout structure for a $40 PokerStars tournament with 500 players.

You can find the full standard payout schedule for PokerStars tournaments at www.PokerStars.com.

Table 1 The Standard PokerStars Payout Structure for a $40 Entry Fee Tournament with 500 Players

As the payout figures show, it doesn’t matter financially if you finish in 36th or 28th place.

It does, however, make quite a bit of difference if you finish third instead of fourth. The difference between fifth place and fourth place is only $300, but the difference between fourth and third place is $700, between third and second it’s another $980, and between second and first it’s a whopping $1,920. That’s a significant difference when your poker tournament investment was a $40 buy-in and $4 entry fee.

What’s the lesson? When you survive to the next payout level, such as making it to 36 th place in the tournament described in Table 1, and it’s a long way to the next payout increase, try to make a move to build your chips if your stack is below average. When your opponents can put pressure on you because you don’t have that many bullets to fire back at ‘em, you should be more willing to find a good poker hand and take a stand. If you’re only one or two places from the next increment, however, hang on for dear life.

Also recommended:

1. Achieving Goal Three: Making It into the Money
2. Achieving Goal One: Surviving
3. Achieving Goal Two: Increasing Your Chip Stack
4. To Quit or to Continue? Making a Right Decision in Texas Holdem
5. European Poker Tour – EPT