Updated on 21 Feb 26 by
Barry Carter
Poker Expert

How to play the early stages of a Bounty MTT

Play for the scalps or aim for the final table? Check out the advice of a coach who recently won a big Bounty tournament at PokerStars.

PokerStrategy.com coach

Video type

MTT

Coach:

Jordyvde

Status:

Silver

Duration

61 minutes

Watch the Video

Our micro and low stakes MTT specialist Jordyvde is back, this time with a guide for a unique tournament format. 

Our coach played the $11 Bounty Builder at PokerStars in July and he took it down for an impressive $4.4k.

In the first part of this two part series he looks at key hands in the early to late stages of the tournament, before getting to the final table. 

This is often a tricky period for tournament players who have to consider whether a bounty is worth taking a risk for, or if they should play it more like a regular MTT and keep their focus on getting to the final table where the biggest prizes are. 

If you want to learn more about our coach, check out our interview with him.

poker video

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Previously from Jordyvde

Poker Expert

Barry Carter is the editor of PokerStrategy.com and the co-author of The Mental Game of Poker 1 & 2, Poker Satellite Strategy, PKO Poker Strategy, Endgame Poker Strategy, GTO Poker Simplified, Mystery Bounty Poker Strategy and Beyond GTO. In 2025, he won the Global Poker Awards for Best Book and Twitter Personality of the Year.