There’s something appealing about brackets, leaderboards, tournaments, and the whole concept of competition. When asked whether he has a gambling problem, Michael Jordan said that he has a competition problem. There are stories about him postponing going to the field before he gets the $10 that he just won on a bet. This was in a period where his fees were counted in millions. In other words, it’s not just about money; it’s about winning.
Another thing worth mentioning is that, in some games, you’re limited to the collective bank pool of people playing against you. So, if four people (you being one of them) have $500 each, at the most, you could win $1,500. However, what if there were 100 people, each contributing $100? Let’s say that 1st prize gets 70% of the prize pool. This is already $7,000.
Still, a casino tournament is a broad term. It could mean a number of things. Here’s what tournament types there are, what kind of down payment they require, what kinds of prize pools they have, and who they are generally appealing to.
Table of Contents
Freeroll tournaments
The first type of casino tournament is the so-called freeroll tournament. This is a tournament with no entry fee. The player is guaranteed a tie by enrolling, but they can still win valuable prizes. Due to the nature of the game, these are usually poker tournaments.
The prize pool is usually not that big. Still, players can earn small cash rewards or in-game perks. They can win casino credit, chips, free rounds, etc. In a way, this kind of tournament is a perfect promotional event for any casino.
This type of tournament is so appealing to new players because they don’t have to put their personal resources on the line. They are also ideal for those looking to get experience in tournaments before depositing some serious cash.
The biggest drawback of these tournaments is that it may take a while until they start. So, you need to be on the lookout and sign up as soon as possible. If they’re online tournaments, their timing might not suit you (due to a difference in time zone), but you can always wait for the next one.
Freezeout tournaments
Freezeout tournaments are tournaments without a rebuy or re-entry. A player buys a specific number of chips at the start. Once they spend all their chips, they’re out of the tournament. This is sort of an elimination tournament, which makes it easier to follow.
Prizes for these tournaments vary greatly. While they can be modest, sometimes they are as much as hundreds of thousands of dollars. While most look for high rollers, they sometimes also accept beginners. If you can handle the down payment, you’ll be accepted.
Since these tournaments are more formal and better organized, they usually notify their participants in advance. There’s no general rule when these tournaments are organized. This means that they can be both on weekends and weekdays.
Tournaments with extended features
This tournament type has a large opening fee. However, you can make a repeated contribution and rejoin after retiring. This way, you can buy your way back into the competition. For this very reason, these tournaments usually have larger prize pools.
Now, to avoid exploiting this tournament’s rejoin model, the casino owners and managers are selective on who can enroll. This is why only seasoned players and high rollers are allowed to join.
To avoid any manipulation, these tournaments are usually held by big casinos and online casinos. The system and brackets are highly complex; however, players are provided with all the necessary guidance to follow them.
Scheduled tournaments
These tournaments are the most custom on this list. They can be scheduled at any time, and they are usually recurring. For instance, you may have daily, weekly, and monthly tournaments. This way, you can plan and schedule your time around them.
There’s usually nothing set about these tournaments aside from their prize money, usually correlating with the tournament frequency. You can’t expect a daily tournament to have the same prize pool as a monthly one. Also, the popularity and the number of participants may dictate this.
The reason why beginners love these tournaments is that they can plan their participation. If they’re not career gamblers, they need a structure to plan their week. Suppose you’ve ever wondered how does a slot tournament work; this is usually the way. While it’s not always the case, slot tournaments are usually scheduled.
Sit and go
Lastly, some slots and poker tournaments are ongoing, which is why the participant can apply, sit, and start participating in a matter of minutes. If it’s an online casino, you might have to wait until enough participants have gathered. In a real casino, the participants would also be an issue.
Still, with the volume of the casino audience and especially online casino attendance, this is never a major problem. At best, you’ll wait for minutes instead of hours, but it’s likely that you won’t have to wait even that long.
The biggest problem with this is the fact that any attempt to give an estimate on how much you can make this way is wild speculation. There are no rules. The size of the casino, buy-in, or general attendance will be deciding factors.
Wrap Up
At the end of the day, there are a lot of different casino tournaments. Some differ by games played, while others differ in their organizational format. The key thing is that you do some research on this topic so that you can interpret the tournament description. The last thing you want is to wait for the tournament where you can’t afford the buy-in. It is a good idea to read the terms of every specific tournament, just to be sure. Also, some tournaments don’t require a buy-in, which is why they can be helpful in getting some necessary experience.
