If you have watched no-limit Texas Holdem poker on television, then you have certainly seen the poker tournament in action. If you are among the many who watched Jamie Gold win the 2006 WSOP on ESPN, or if you have seen other poker professionals compete for big prizes, you may also have generated some interest in playing in poker tournaments.

The nice thing about poker tournaments is that anyone, regardless of bankroll or skill level, can play in them. Winning a poker tournament is another matter entirely. If you’re just starting out playing in poker tournaments, one thing you need to understand is when to bet.

For a straightforward player, betting means you believe you have the best hand and want to get paid for it. However, using this as your betting strategy will not win you many poker tournaments, as players will simply fold when you bet if they do not have very strong hands, and you will not win enough chips when you win to stay ahead of the rising blinds. For a skilled tournament player, betting can mean a variety of different things.

Betting because you like your hand (for value): You can, of course, bet simply because you think you will win the pot, and want to get as much money in that pot as possible. If you are betting for this reason, you should endeavor to bet the most money you can that will get called by an opponent. You do this by observing what size bets opponents are willing to call, and by a pattern of betting behavior that suggests to opponents that they have a good chance to win when they call your bet, that’s good poker strategy.

Betting to thin the field: If you have a strong hand pre-flop, like a big pocket pair, you have a hand that is good but not as likely to improve as other hands. In this case you may put in a bet that will force players with weaker hands to fold. If you do this, it limits the range of hands you need to put opponents on after the flop, and should make your decisions easier. If you have made a substantial raise pre-flop with AA and been called, you are almost certainly ahead when the flop comes 8 3 2 of mixed suits. If you simply limp in, there’s no reason why the big blind can’t be sitting with 3 2 in his hand, which could spell disaster

Betting to bluff: You don’t need good cards to win. If you sense weakness in your opponent, it’s a good time to bluff. You need to bet enough so that your opponent will not call just in case you are bluffing or in the hopes that they will catch a good card, but if you bet too much, opponents may become suspicious, since you will often want a call if your hand is genuinely strong.

Betting to discourage draws: If you think you have a good hand but that an opponent may easily catch a card that will beat you, you need to bet enough so that calling you is not profitable to the opponent. If you bet the right amount, your opponent will either fold, allowing you to win chips without a confrontation, which is always desirable in a tournament, or they will risk chips against you when you have an advantage, a good situation in all poker games.