Which sites offer flexible satellites?

Where can you pick and choose the event to play with your satellite winnings, rather than being forced into the target event?

There was once a time in online poker where satellites were very flexible and robust. Most operators allowed you to at least win multiple seats to an event and take the cash after the first one. Many had a T$ system where you could unregister from the target event and take 'Tournament Dollars' instead to play on the site, or other satellites. 

That has changed as most operators, especially PokerStars, decided that the T$ system meant that players were not playing satellites for the purpose they were intended, which was to play the bigger event. Good satellite grinders made the games tougher, stopped casual players playing big events and meant that the big events sometimes missed their guarantee. 

As such, the industry standard is now 'must play' satellites where you are automatically registered for the target event, cannot unregister and cannot win multiple tickets.

There are, however, some operators offering flexible satellites for those of you who like playing them but do not want to commit to one specific target event.

T$ satellites

partypoker have regular T$ satellites to win a set amount of tournament dollars which can be used for any type of tournament or SNG on the site, although the majority of their satellites are still direct 'must play' satellites. It should go without saying that these satellites feature the toughest satellite grinders compared to the 'must play' variants. 

GGPoker also have a T$ system which they call T$ Builders. They are not as frequent (probably because of their staking system allows players to buy into bigger MTTs), but they are likely much softer.

Token satellites

Token/Ticket satellites are a hybrid of T$ and must play satellites. You win a specific buy-in ticket and you have to play an event of that size, but have flexibility for which one you play. So if you win a $109 token, you can play in any $109 MTT the operator hosts. 

888poker have a modest amount of these, which they call Steps and they only appear to operate at the low stakes, with the highest current buy-in being $5.

Unibet have a busier and more robust token system as well as plenty of 'must play' satellites. As well as offering flexible generic tickets up to €50, they also allow some flexibility for their must play satellites. For example, if you win a €100 SuperNova ticket you usually have several months to use it, rather than have to play the next one. 

Maybe the most interesting thing about the Unibet system is they have an 'Exchanger' option, where you can trade in some of your larger tickets for multiple smaller tickets. For example if you have a €50 ticket you can exchange it for ten €5 tickets. It's not as flexible as T$ but ideal for people who want to build a roll playing small stakes satellites. 

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