CARD dead for 45-60mins in middle of MTT game.

anbu210

anbu210

Rock Star
Platinum Level
Joined
Aug 6, 2021
Total posts
198
IN
Poker Chips
269
Casino Coins
0
  • #1
In a middle of a tournament if you are card dead for 45-60mins how do you handle the situation ? sometimes one mistake can pull you from high stack to lowest stack or exit . Your thoughts ??
 
Jyco

Jyco

Rock Star
Platinum Level
Joined
Aug 7, 2025
Total posts
262
Awards
1
CL
Poker Chips
261
Casino Coins
0
  • #2
Even if you're card dead for a long time, you'll still get the occasional playable hand. The key is to play the hands you should and avoid forcing the action. The only exception is when you're very short-stacked. In that situation, you may need to widen your range a bit and play some hands you normally wouldn't if you find a good spot to steal the blinds.
 
SergioV

SergioV

Rock Star
Platinum Level
Joined
Apr 16, 2026
Total posts
188
Awards
1
UA
Poker Chips
149
Casino Coins
0
  • #3
anbu210 said:
In a middle of a tournament if you are card dead for 45-60mins how do you handle the situation ? sometimes one mistake can pull you from high stack to lowest stack or exit . Your thoughts ??
Being card dead for 45–60 minutes is frustrating, but it's a normal part of tournament poker. I try to stay patient and avoid forcing action just because I'm bored or blinded down. During those periods, I pay more attention to the table dynamics, stack sizes, and look for good spots to steal blinds when possible. The biggest mistake is getting impatient and punting your stack with a weak hand. And yes, one mistake can turn a big stack into a short stack very quickly, especially in the middle and late stages of tournaments. That's why staying disciplined and mentally focused is so important.
 
rhoudini

rhoudini

Visionary
Platinum Level
Joined
Feb 28, 2023
Total posts
664
Awards
3
BR
Poker Chips
1,194
Casino Coins
0
  • #4
Being card dead for an hour is rough but it is completely normal.

Tournaments are like a marathon. Sometimes surviving some levels is part of having a deep run. I remind myself that everyone at some point has to deal with variance, and the players who stay patient usually outlast the ones who try to "make something happen."
 
N

nitesss

Rising Star
Bronze Level
Joined
Sep 9, 2025
Total posts
10
IN
Poker Chips
34
Casino Coins
0
  • #5
"A 45-60 minute interruption during an MTT is really disappointing. I hope the poker site investigates the issue and treats affected players fairly. Hopefully this doesn't happen again."
 
F

fundiver199

Legend
Loyaler
Joined
Jun 3, 2019
Total posts
16,586
Awards
2
Poker Chips
1,201
Casino Coins
0
  • #6
You play a tournament hand for hand. It does not matter, what happened in previous hands, including if you had to fold a lot, because you were card or situation dead. Situation dead mean, you did pick up some decent hands, but the situations forced you to fold them. Like maybe you had AJo in CO, but UTG opened, and then UTG+1 put in a 3-bet forcing you to fold (or make a long-term losing play).

MAYBE you can widen your range a tiny bit, if you think, you have created a tight image. But its very easy to overdo or overthink this, because bad players often dont pay much attention do, what you are doing, and good players will often rely on HUD-data on sites, where this is allowed. Meaning that just because you have been inactive on this particular table, they will still know your general playing style from previous games. But if a situation is close, then widen your range.

If you are card dead for a long time, then usually this mean, you will not cash in this particular tournament, and it just is, what it is. Its not something, you can do anything about. Just like you cant do anything about it, when your K high flush loses to an A high flush, or when you AKo loses to A4s all-in preflop, because the opponent makes a flush or straight. Its all part of variance, and it will take care of itself in the long run.
 
Top 10 Games
Top