# Satellite Tournament Strategy

> Source: [Satellite Tournament Strategy on Smarter.Poker](https://smarter.poker/learn/satellite-strategy)

## Executive Summary
In A Satellite Every Seat Pays The Same, So Once You Have Enough Chips Extra Chips Are Worth Almost Nothing: In The Example Below The Chip Leader Already Has A 98.8% Chance Of A Seat And Would Need 78.6% Equity To Call An All In From The Third Stack.

- **Category**: Tournaments
- **Curriculum**: [Smarter.Poker Strategy Lessons](https://smarter.poker/learn)

## Why Satellites Are Different

A Satellite Awards A Fixed Number Of Identical Prizes, Usually Seats In A Bigger Event. Finishing First Pays Exactly The Same As Finishing Last Among The Winners. That Makes The Payout Structure As Flat As It Can Be, And A Flat Structure Is Where ICM Pressure Is Strongest.

Take Five Players With 40, 30, 20, 6, 4 Thousand Chips And Four Seats To Give Away. Under Malmuth-Harville ICM The Players' Chances Of A Seat Are 98.8%, 97.6%, 94.4%, 64.4%, 44.8%. The Chip Leader Is Already Very Close To Certain, So Every Chip It Wins Adds Almost Nothing, While Every Chip It Loses Risks The Seat.

### Chance Of A Seat, Five Players, Four Seats, Malmuth-Harville

| Player | Chips | Chance Of A Seat |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Player 1 | 40k | 98.8% |
| Player 2 | 30k | 97.6% |
| Player 3 | 20k | 94.4% |
| Player 4 | 6k | 64.4% |
| Player 5 | 4k | 44.8% |

## The Cost Of Calling

If The Third Stack Moves All In On The Chip Leader, The Leader Risks 20 Thousand Chips To Win 20 Thousand. On Chips Alone That Is A 50% Decision. Under ICM, Winning Moves The Leader From 98.8% To 100% Of A Seat, While Losing Drops It To 94.4%. The Call Needs 78.6% Equity, Which Only The Very Strongest Starting Hands Have Against A Typical Shoving Range.

This Is Why Satellite Experts Fold Hands That Would Be Automatic Calls In Any Other Format, Including Very Strong Pairs, Once Their Seat Is Nearly Secure. The Folding Is Not Timid. It Is The Correct Price Of A Chip When Extra Chips Cannot Buy Anything.

## Playing For A Seat

Build A Stack Early, When The Seats Are Far Away And Chips Still Have Close To Normal Value. As The Bubble Approaches, Work Out Roughly How Many Chips A Seat Needs, And Once You Have Them, Stop Taking Risks And Let The Shorter Stacks Fight.

If You Are Short, You Need Chips, And You Need Them Before The Blinds Take Them. Look For Spots Where You Are First In And The Players Behind You Are The Big Stacks Who Cannot Call. They Should Fold, And In A Well Played Satellite They Usually Will.

## Key Poker Terms In This Lesson

- [icm](https://smarter.poker/glossary/icm) ([Markdown](https://smarter.poker/glossary/icm.md))
- [fold-equity](https://smarter.poker/glossary/fold-equity) ([Markdown](https://smarter.poker/glossary/fold-equity.md))
- [equity](https://smarter.poker/glossary/equity) ([Markdown](https://smarter.poker/glossary/equity.md))
- [variance](https://smarter.poker/glossary/variance) ([Markdown](https://smarter.poker/glossary/variance.md))

## Practice & Interactive Tools On Smarter.Poker

- **Training Drill**: [Play Satellite Survival](https://smarter.poker/hub/training/play/mtt-006)
- **Interactive Calculator**: [Open ICM Calculator](https://smarter.poker/hub/training/icm-calculator)
- **AI Coach**: [Jarvis Training Insights](https://smarter.poker/hub/training/jarvis)