Online Casino Tournaments: A Beginner's Guide

Before you participate in online casino tournaments, learning more about how casino tournaments work in the UK online gambling industry is recommended. Our team of experts focuses on the theoretical and practical aspects of casino tournaments to accomplish our goal – to teach you before you start.

We will offer the theoretical tools to achieve good outcomes from your tournament sessions.

Types of Online Casino Tournaments

As the online gaming industry grows, operators must offer something attractive to players, so they choose to design more and more casino tournaments for all types of players.

Operators will offer several different kinds of these tournaments, so it’s good to know what you’re signing up for in advance.

Below are the main competition types you’ll see, no matter the game.

Prize Pot Tournaments

This kind of casino competition offers players the chance to win a share of a prize fund that increases based on how many competitors get involved.

The more significant the player pool, the bigger the potential payout. These tournaments will usually have the most significant potential prize fund.

Fixed Pot Tournaments

Similar to prize pot tournaments, these competitions allow players to compete for a cash prize fund.

However, the two differ in how the fund on offer is decided. In this case, a pre-chosen figure on provide won’t change based on how many people buy in.

So, even with a low turnout, the pot will be higher than in a prize pot tournament with the same number of players.

Free Tournaments

Gambling platforms have long been known for offering top casino bonuses and free bets to newly registered and active players.

These tournaments are an extension of that. You won’t be required to deposit real money to participate when competing.

How Online Roulette Tournaments Work

If you’re a roulette player, you can find numerous tournaments where you’ll compete against other roulette players.

Reliable casino operators offer special Roulette bonuses, such as welcome bonuses for newly registered players and other rewards for frequent players.

Tournaments involving roulette will most often take the form of a last-man-standing competition.

Players will all begin with the same value of chips, and the last person left with chips, or with the highest value of chips after all, spins are complete or the set time has elapsed, will be the winner.

Numerous online gambling platforms organise this type of roulette tournament monthly. These will take the form of around a week of qualifying heats, followed by a grand final at the end of those heats.

As such, this means you will have specific times you can participate. Some, however, will run them as an almost daily competition.

Online Roulette Competitions Inside Tips

1. Each player will start with the same value of chips.
2. It would help if you spun every round – you can’t sit one out.
3. Keep an eye on the re-entry period – you can buy back in if you lose all your chips.
4. You won’t need to worry about house edge, as you’re playing against others.
5. Avoid large-stake single-number bets if you have a healthy number of chips – you’re more likely to lose them quickly.
6. Take your time! If there’s time on the clock, use it to try some strategies with small stakes.

Online Slots And Video Slots Tournaments

There is no doubt that slots are the most played game among players, especially in online casinos.

As such, finding slot tournaments as a regular feature at most legitimate UK casino websites is not unexpected. These competitions are also viral, so seeing them run daily is not unusual.

Several slots online casino sites will also organise tournaments for video slots. The rules will be much the same as in a standard slot event, but video slots will often include in-game bonuses, such as free spins and no wagering bonuses, prizes which will add to your credit and help you as you attempt to finish top.

Rules for Slots Tournaments

Online slot tournaments operate in a similar way to roulette. You will begin with the same value of credits as the rest of the players, and the game aims to end the competition with more credit than the rest of the pack or see everyone use their credits before you.

The game will have a set timeframe for a spin or a particular number of spins.

It’s essential to keep an eye out to ensure you’re not nearing the end of the game to avoid getting caught out. You will have to stake something every round, too.

Card Games Tournaments

Many people hold card game tournaments to the standards set by James Bond in Casino Royale. These games are now more accessible than ever, thanks to online casinos, but there are still specific methods and regulations to remember.

For instance, card games can occasionally have a head-to-head component, which adds complexity in contrast to all the tournament kinds.

You’ll face off against an opponent in a head-to-head match to eliminate them from the tournament and advance to the final.

Casino Poker Tournaments

Although it comes from a US state, Texas Hold ’em is the most popular variant of poker played in online tournaments in the UK. This game type is available at nearly all of the major operators.

In sit-and-go tournaments, you may enter and exit at your convenience, giving you a great deal of agency. This is why you may find this kind of event happening all day at many providers.

The World Series of Poker (WSOP) hosts many tournaments annually, some of which provide access to live events, catering to the most skilled players in the industry.

Knockout Phases

As mentioned previously, one of the critical ways that poker tournaments differ from those involving casino games like slots is the phases of play that you can progress through.

Ultimately, tournaments with a knockout stage operate the same way most sports cup competitions will.

There will often be a starting group or heat for qualification to the competition proper in the form of earning a ticket.

Then, similarly to the football World Cup, after each confederation’s qualification competition is decided and the group stages have concluded, players will be pitted against each other, and the aim of the game will not go out until the big prize is on the table.

Buy-ins

There’s more to consider in a tournament for card games like poker than for other, more straightforward game types.

You’ll read about buy-ins often, ultimately the starting point for any tournament.

Most poker tournaments require you to put money forward at the beginning of the game to enter.

This is essentially what you’re staking on the tournament, and it will be pooled together with other players’ buy-ins to form the prize pool, minus the casino’s fee (the rake). So, the bigger the buy-ins, the bigger the potential winnings.

Can You Participate in Free Casino Tournaments?

Biggest Prize Won In An Online Casino Tournament

One reason many people play in online tournaments, outside of the ease of access, is the possibility of winning more considerable sums of money than at typical games.

In 2020, a Brazilian going by the screen name AAAArthur won a whopping £1.2 million from an £18.6 million prize pot.

This may not have been the highest prize fund ever (it’s third), but the tournament only required around £200 as a buy-in, making it one of the biggest wins ever recorded.

Most Popular Tournaments: Which Games Topped The Charts

Remember:

1. Manage your budget – ensure you can afford the buy-ins and any possible re-entries
2. Use free rollers or free entry tournaments to practise and develop a strategy.
3. Diversify! Branch out and try several games and variants to find your perfect game.
4. Always watch the clock – time is essential in tournaments, but you should also make your only play while it’s fun.
5. Develop an exit strategy. You should limit yourself to the amount you can afford to lose.