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Online poker and tournaments
In France, online poker is a legal vertical overseen by ANJ. The two most recognizable venues are Winamax and PokerStars. fr. Both keep daily MTT grids, regular episodes, offline satellites and online festivals, as well as responsible play tools. Below is a practical guide to help you quickly enter regular tournament mode without unnecessary mistakes.
1) Market picture and ground rules
Regulator: ANJ (mandatory KYC verification, 18 +, time/deposit limits, warnings).
Verticals: cache, tournaments (MTT), Sit & Go, spin formats, satellites.
Responsible play: deposit/play limits, self-exclusion, "reality of the game" reminders.
Bankroll and player taxes: online winnings are paid by the operator; plan a bankroll and don't mix the gaming box office with household expenses.
2) Sites: features and "handwriting"
Winamax
DNA: "sports + poker" and a strong local community.
Formats: wide daily MTT grid, Expresso (spin-format), many "step" satellites, regular large online series.
Pros: dynamic lobby, mobile client, deep Sunday highlights, frequent promotions within the ANJ requirements.
PokerStars. fr
DNA: "global engine" with local binding. fr.
Formats: massive MTT grid, regular "majors" on Sundays, serial festivals with multi-day events, Spin & Go, various satellites.
Pros: familiar client, many structures for every taste (from hyper-turbo to dipstacks), stable fields.
3) Tournament formats and what to watch
MTT (multi-table): schedule basis. Look at the blind structure, start stack depth, ante and late reg. The deeper the stack and smoother the levels, the greater the role of technique and post-flop skill.
PKO (progressive knockouts): part of the buy-in goes to the bounty. Often give a high value due to "hunting" and soft fields.
Turbo/hyper: fast pace, higher dispersion - reduce the proportion of such events in the rookie grid.
Freezeout vs. Re-entry: reentry increases variance - plan ahead for reentry limit.
4) Sunday "majors" and serial festivals
Sunday is the main night online: large guarantees, dense fields. Focus on 2-4 key events and do not "embroider" the lobby before losing concentration.
Series (online festivals): usually lasting 1-2 weeks, with headliners, mini-versions and a satellite grid. The idea for a bankroll is to qualify through steps and cheap satellites, and not "throw" direct buy-ins.
5) Satellites and how to get "cheap"
Steps/steps: Walking the ladder of buy-ins - saves bankroll and trains ICM skills.
Spin satellites (Expresso/Spin & Go): quick chance for a ticket, but high dispersion - use pointwise.
Classic fixed-ticket satellites: Best balance for a beginner; take "timings" with a smaller field (early evening/weekdays).
6) Example of a weekly grid (adapt for ABI)
Mon-Thu (Warm-up): 3-5 MTT Low/Medium, 1-2 PKO, 1 Deepstack.
Fri-Sat (control): 3-4 events focusing on dipstack/RKO + 1-2 satellites to Sunday majors.
Sun (peak): 2-4 "majors" in bankroll + 1-2 side events for "pickup."
Mon (parsing): output or light grid + distribution analysis.
7) Software and features worth enabling
Tags and notes of opponents, lists of selected tournaments.
Time bank and hotkeys: speed up decision-making in multi-label.
Structure filters: save presets (buy-in, format, speed).
Security: 2FA, checking login devices, time limits - must-have.
8) Bankroll management (briefly and strictly)
ABI (Average Buy-In): Keep the average buy-in so that the bankroll covers at least 100-150 ABI (higher for turbo).
Cap on reentry: Solve the maximum re-entries (often 1-2) in advance so as not to "heat up" the cash register.
Satellites separately: keep separate records of ROI for satellites and conversion of tickets to cache.
9) Micro card value for beginner
Weekdays in the early evening: fewer players, softer pitches.
PKO with "non-standard" buy-ins: part of the field will overestimate the bounty and will "give" chips.
Dipstacks with average speed: above "skill-cap," below chance.
10) Responsible play and ANJ rules
Include deposit and time limits, use reminders and timeouts.
Pass KYC in advance, do not delay at the time of the first payment.
Avoid "catching up" with losing and night marathons without sleep - it is better to finish the session according to plan and return fresh.
11) Frequent mistakes and how to avoid them
1. Too wide a lobby mix on Sundays. Decision: 2-4 key tournaments.
2. Structure Ignore. Read the tab with levels - it is more important than the "beautiful guarantee."
3. Reentry overheating. Cap and hold on to it.
4. Lack of parsing. Once a week - mandatory analysis of tags/hand history.
On Winamax and PokerStars. fr the French player gets everything he needs to grow: daily MTT, PKO, dipstacks, convenient satellites and large Sunday events. The key to stability is a reasonable bankroll, a thoughtful weekly grid, a focus on structures (not just guarantees) and the discipline of responsible play according to ANJ rules.