Big Stack Tournament Strategy: Using Your Chips

## Big Stack Tournament Strategy Having a big stack in a tournament is a powerful weapon if wielded correctly. Your chips allow you to pressure shorter stacks, absorb losses without jeopardizing your tournament life, and accumulate more chips with less risk. Use your big stack to bully medium stacks who are trying to ladder into the money or higher pay jumps. Raise frequently, make their tournament lives uncomfortable, and force them into difficult decisions. Do not, however, get into unnecessary confrontations with other big stacks. Avoid the common mistake of becoming passive with a big stack. A big stack that stops accumulating chips loses its advantage as blinds increase. Continue playing aggressively, targeting the right opponents, and building your stack toward a dominant final table position. ## Tournament Rakeback Reminder Tournament buy-in fees count toward your rakeback tier at most rooms. When evaluating tournaments, factor in the effective discount from your rakeback percentage. A $10+$1 tournament at 40% rakeback effectively costs $10.60 after rakeback — a meaningful savings over thousands of entries.