Slot Machine Tournament Strategy
Before you enter any slot machine tournament it is important to understand how they work. While there are a lot of variations the basic principals remain the same for most tournaments both offline and online. In this article we discus the basics such as how to enter tournaments, how the prize pools work and the order of play.
The tournament starts with buy-ins. This means that you pay an entry fee to join the tournament and have a shot at winning. Some tournaments are free and others are comped in which case the casino is essentially paying the buy-in for you. The amou8nt of players and the cost of entry will determine the prize pool.
Here are our 7 tips for playing slot tournaments: 1. Hit the button as fast as you can. With many slot tournaments, like the $5,000 Tuesday Lucky Slot Tournament happening this Tuesday and every Tuesday at Grand Sierra Resort, you have a set time to play. The more times the reel spins, the more chances you have to increase your score. Tips designed to Enhance Slot Tournament Play October, 2020 - Slot machine tournaments can be found at just about every online casino. In these tournaments, participants on a totally even playing field, with.
Let's say you have 100 players who all pay $50 to enter. This gives a total prize pool of $5,000. The amount of winners and prize pool distribution varies from tournament to tournament. In this example you might have a 1st prize of $3,000, a 2nd prize of $1000, a 3rd prize of $500 and 10 prizes of $50.
In the example above all of the prize pool is distributed to the winners. In a lot of tournaments the casino will keep part of the prize pool which is how they make money from running the tournaments. It is always worth checking on the prize pool distribution before you enter a tournament.
Once all players have paid their buy-in the tournament can start. In general each player receives a set amount of credits to play with. All of the players then sit at a slot machine and get a certain amount of time to play. This tends to be quite a sight as all of the players are franticly hitting the spin button as fast as possible to get the maximum amount of spins in the set time frame.
When the play time is over the winner is the player with the highest amount of credits on their machine. The places are also determined by the amount of credits on the machines. It is worth noting that you do not win the amount of credits that you have on the machine you win the prizes according to the tournament payout schedule.
Some of the bigger tournaments take place over a longer period of time with many smaller tournaments leading to a final round where the big money is won. In these tournaments you generally need to place high in the rankings in the smaller tournaments to move on to the next stage. The advantage of this style of tournament is that you tend to get much bigger prize pools.
The prizes are not always for the biggest scores. In some cases you will find that the tournaments also award prizes for the worst score. There are many different prize formats which is one of the reasons that slot tournaments are so popular.
If you are bored just playing against a slot machine, you might want to consider whether you want to participate in any of the online slot machine tournaments. The best online casinos virtually every day offer the opportunity to participate in one of their tournaments. Expecting interesting prizes, you can compare your slot strategy with other players around the world.
How to Play Slot Tournaments in Las Vegas Casinos?
All slot machine tournaments work very similarly to blackjack or poker tournaments. The online casino will announce the date when it will be held and on which slot (or slot machines) are eligible. Usually, players have to register, but in some cases, all you have to do is open selected slots and play. Sometimes, however, there may be “Sit-and-Go” tournaments that begin when the minimum number of participants is registered.
The second step is entering the tournament. It can either be paid or free of charge. This is also the result of the price of the pool. Free tournaments usually have a prize pool of €50 to €300, but you can also find such tournaments that with free entry you can win up to several thousand euros. However, this is more an exception than a rule. Prizes in the thousands are 90 % only for paid tournaments. The entrance fee is usually in the order of several euros or dollars.
Once you are in the tournament and start playing, it is your goal to play/win more than all other participants. If your bankroll drops to zero and you do not have the option to re-buy, you are just at the end of the road. There are also several types of tournaments here. Firstly, it may be a tournament where it is easy to compare the balances of individual players after the tournament ends and the order will be created accordingly.
Another way to evaluate a tournament is through what is called the “Winbox”, when players only add prizes regardless of the amount of the final bankroll. Tournament winners with the highest Winbox then wins.
For example – entry to a 3 000-coin tournament, 6 spins
Spin | Bet | Win | Bankroll | Win Box |
0. | 0 | 0 | 3 000 | 0 |
1. | 75 | 0 | 2 925 | 0 |
2. | 75 | 250 | 3 100 | 250 |
3. | 75 | 25 | 3050 | 275 |
4. | 75 | 100 | 3 075 | 375 |
5. | 75 | 0 | 3 000 | 375 |
6. | 75 | 0 | 2 925 | 375 |
Tips and Trick How to Win a Slot Tournament
Since the online slot machines have not yet introduced elements to allow the player to influence the house edge, the results of the game rounds depend only on the player’s luck. However, there are at least some basic pieces of advice that can significantly increase your chance of winning on slots.⭐
- Play as fast as you can
Play as fast as you can. In most slot tournaments, players will get e.g. 1 000 credits and only 10 minutes to play them through. If one spin costs you 3 credits, you have less than 2 seconds for one spin to clear your credit completely. You have to be really fast to do that.
- Always play for the max bet
Higher-stake games, especially those with a higher denomination, give you better payouts. In particular, thanks to the maximum bet, you can qualify for the jackpot.
- Do not bother too much about how much you have already won
Especially in Winbox games, do not worry about scoring on it. Individual winnings are not so significant. You have to play as fast as possible.
- Click through the Bonus Wheels as quickly as possible
In a tournament, you are mainly pushing for time; bonus spins with free spins can cause a significant delay if you do not speed them up.
- Check your time
It is not worth starting a 5-minute slot tournament 2 minutes before it’s over. There is no way you can make it in time.
- Possibility to continue the game
Some of the tournaments give you the chance to continue playing, even if the lap time has elapsed. It will almost certainly cost you real money, including in free tournaments. If you want to win, it will sometimes be necessary to continue playing for money. Be sure that others will be willing to as well.
However, here too, use this option only if you are sure it is worth it. If you are already at the prize position after the base round, it can happen that by continuing with the game for the money, you only get to increase the lead over the player below you.
Advantages and Disadvantages of Slot Tournaments
Slot tournaments have a number of advantages and a few drawbacks. It is advisable to have all this information before entering the tournament. In our case, these are only general benefits or negatives. Specific situations, of course, will depend on a number of variables, such as what type of player you are, what slots you are allowed to play, if you can switch between slots, and finally but most importantly, one should not forget the VIP status players.
Advantages
- You have a higher chance of winning. *
- You know exactly how much you can lose.
- You have the chance to win high prizes for a small entry fee or free of charge.
- VIP status (if you have it) can guarantee free entry to the tournament.
Disadvantages
- You have to play fast.
- You may not be able to play on your favorite slot.
- If you win a jackpot, you will not be able to keep it. **
- You can only play in a tournament at a certain time.
Slot Machine Tournament Strategy Rules
* By having a higher chance of winning, of course, we are not thinking of tournament-adjusted payouts. RTP remains constant at all times. But, some prize pools are in thousands of euros, which may be equivalent to some local jackpots. The chances of winning such a jackpot are a few tens of thousands to 1. When in a tournament where there are 1 000 other players, you have a 1:1000 chance of winning.
** Your winnings during the tournament are only to determine the placement of the other players. This means that even if you hit a progressive jackpot, you are likely to win the tournament, but you will only win the main prize. All winnings on the online slot are dropped after the end of the casino tournament.
Slot tournament in online casinos
Online casino tournaments are slightly different from those you encounter in the big casinos in Las Vegas. If it is not a VIP event for regular players; any registered player can enter the tournament. There are always one or several slots selected for the tournament, and the date and duration of the tournament are also announced. Most online casinos have a calendar on their website for the months ahead, so there is no problem finding the best one for you.
Tournaments in online casinos are generally free to enter and have slightly different rules from tournaments in brick-and-mortar casinos. When playing in Las Vegas tournaments, players compete in a very short period of time. In online casinos, tournaments often last for several days or weeks.
One thing, however, is common to both casinos. Not all casinos have slot tournaments. Before you sign up in an online casino, make sure they offer it. And, of course, always read the General Terms and Conditions.
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Tips and Tricks How to Win Slot Tournament in Online Casinos
You will most likely encounter two types of online slot tournaments. Depending on the type, you should choose the appropriate strategy. In both cases, even if you do not pay a fee, you will not play at the machines free of charge, but for real money instead. However, you can keep your winnings.
Tournament type: Get the most points
In this type of tournament, you get points for every bet you make. It is very simple. The more you play, the more points you get. You will also get more points for higher bets. But remember: only bets for real money are eligible for the tournament.
- Sign up for the slot tournament as soon as possible and play from the very beginning
Those who bet the most, win these tournaments. Therefore, it is best to play from the start and play as you would normally play. And invest more money at the end of the tournament, when you see that you have a chance of winning a prize. But if you do not want the first prize too badly, there is no point in pushing thousands to win the tournament when the maximum prize is several hundred € / $.
- Choose the best bet size
Maximize the number of points earned per bet. Some point distribution may look like this:
- Bet €0.20 up to €0.99 = 1 point
- Bet €1.00 up to €1.99 = 5 points
- Bet €2.00 up to €2.99 = 15 points
- Bet €3.00 up to €3.99 = 25 points
- Bet €4.00 up to €4.99 = 35 points
- Bet €5.00 + = 50 points
If you have a €500 bankroll, it does not make sense to bet for €2 and get 3750 points, if you can bet for €5 and get 5000 points. And of course, it makes no sense to bet over €5.
- Choose the slot with the highest return to player percentage (RTP)
Before the tournament starts, check out the RTP for all slot machines in the tournament. And choose the one with the highest. You will thus play the most favorable slot machine.
Tournament type: Biggest win on a single spin
In this type of tournament, win the highest value single spin amount relative to your bet amount. It is a little fairer, due to the condition that you do not have to have an astronomical bankroll to win. In addition, bet size does not matter either, because it is the ratio that counts. For example:
- Win €1 / bet €0.20 – your score is 5 (1 / 0.20)
- Win €100 / bet €20 – your score is 5 (100/20)
- Play with the minimum bet
As has been said, size does not matter. It only depends on the ratio. The more bets you make, the higher the chances of the big win. Do not play through your whole bankroll with high bets if you can make more little ones.
- Play on slot machines with higher payouts
Before you start the tournament, check out all the available slot machines and their payout tables. Does one slot offer a 2000-unit pay for three cherries and a €5 bet and another one 2200? Play with the machine with the higher payout ratio. Winnings will not strike as often, but they will be higher and you will get higher points. That is what counts.
What to be careful about when playing online slot tournaments
Just like with every other casino promotion, you should thoroughly review the Terms and Conditions. Especially focus on:
Slot Machine Tournament Strategy Against
Registration Deadline and Tournament Duration
Although it may seem like a sure thing, players are wrong in this too. And it’s pretty upsetting not to participate in a tournament just due to late registration.
Which slot machines are eligible for the tournament?
Also, pay extra attention to this. There is no reason to play slots that are not in the tournament.
Winning criteria
In this article, we have described the strategies for the types of online slot tournaments that are the most common. You can also meet with exceptions and the winner can be evaluated according to other criteria. Keep in mind that different rules require a different strategy.
What is a prize pool and how will it be divided?
€5000 is pretty awesome, but if it is divided among 50 players, even the winner barely receives a few hundred. It makes no sense to spend €1000 in a tournament if the prize money is only €500.
What can you do with the tournament prize?
Slot Tournaments Online
What will actually happen when you win? Some online casinos pay tournament rewards as bonus money and are subject to wagering requirements, which further reduces their value.