The $1,000 Sit and Go Poker Challenge

Congratulations on reaching this far in the course. You have now learnt a powerful strategy for Sit and Go tournaments and also understand some more advanced SNG strategy topics. Don’t worry too much if you didn’t take everything in the advanced lessons, re-read it a few times and over time it will all start to make sense.

Now the part of the course you have been waiting for, where you are going to actually put your new Sit and Go strategy into practice. In this lesson we are going to guide you through the stake levels… working toward the challenge goal of growing your starting bankroll of $50, with a target of reaching $1,000 through structured play and strategic progression.

Armed with your new $1,000 bankroll and the dominating strategy we have shown you then our work will be done, and you will be equipped to compete regularly at the higher stakes tables and continuing to apply your strategy with confidence — just don’t forget where your journey started!

The Challenge

The challenge is simple, following the guide below, you will deposit an initial $50 into your bankroll and then play through the challenge stages, moving up through the stake levels, all whilst maintaining bankroll management and practising the techniques we’ve shown you in this course.

Once again, we highly recommend playing through this challenge at our recommended SNG poker site. They really do stand out from the competition with regards to Sit & Go tournaments with a player pool that’s particularly welcoming for newer players looking to develop their skills. You can of course choose any poker site to play through the challenge, it’s just you’ll get a head start with the site below:

Recommended Poker Site... Bovada Poker

... if you're after the kind of poker site that feels like a well-kept secret – one with real players, real action, and a track record of treating its community right – Bovada Poker is where the Professor suggests you sit down and deal in for the Sit & Go Challenge in this course.

For starters, they roll out the red carpet with a welcome bonus, designed to give new players a little extra to start with (T&Cs apply - see bonus terms for wagering requirements and restrictions).

But it’s not just the bonus that makes this room stand out — it’s who you’re playing against. Thanks to a steady stream of casual players crossing over from the site’s popular casino and sports betting platforms, the Sit & Go games tend to contain more inexperienced players than other sites.

Even better? Bovada Poker aligns well with the Professor’s training and that means more opportunities to implement the strategies you will learn in this course.

If you're going to be studying the playbook, this is a good field to put your learning into practice in a live setting — helping you build experience and develop your game further.

You also never have to wait for a SNG tournament at the low and mid stakes, with most tournaments filling up and starting within minutes of them appearing.

So while there are plenty of decent poker rooms out there — and we’ve reviewed just about all of them — when it comes to putting theory into real-world practice, this is the one the Professor recommends most — based on our own testing, training results, and player feedback.

Of course, as with any poker site, results will vary, and responsible play is essential.

For more details read our full Bovada Poker Review.

DownloadBovada Poker

18+ • Bonus for new & eligible customers only • T&Cs Apply • Always Gamble Responsibly • GambleAware

If you do not already have an account there, then just click on the button above to download and sign up for a free player account. Once you have your new account setup then you can deposit your starting bankroll of $50 ready to get started with the $1,000 SNG bankroll challenge.

Bankroll Management

First thing to recap on is the SNG bankroll management we talked about in the very first lesson of this course. During this challenge we will maintain a bankroll of approximately 20 buy ins, which if you remember from the lesson is a slightly higher risk bankroll strategy.

The reason we have taken this approach is to allow you to play at higher stakes initially, keeping it interesting and make it more of a challenge for you. By the end of the challenge, and as the stakes increase, we will have migrated more towards 40-50 buy ins which is more like the long term bankroll strategy we encourage you to continue on with after the challenge.

The strategy of maintaining a bankroll of 20 buy ins (or 5%) helps manage risk, but remember — no bankroll approach eliminates the possibility of losses. You would have to not cash in 20 tournaments on the run to go broke. Of course you should never play with money you can’t afford to lose, and if your $50 means more to you and you want to be more conservative, then that is fine, just adjust the stakes and stages based on the bankroll management rules you learned in the first lesson.

Bankroll management is very much a personal decision based on your personal circumstances, the ability to reload if you go bust and the amount of risk you are willing to take.

Always Gamble Responsibly

Take regular breaks

Bet what you can afford

Always set limits

Never chase losses

The Targets

So here are the targets for the challenge:

• A suggested benchmark to aim for is finishing in the money around 50% of the time (top 3 placed). This isn’t guaranteed, but it’s a goal to strive toward as your consistency improves.
• Of the 50% you should aim for the following target finishing positions – 20% first place, 20% second place and 10% third place.
• You will be playing on single full table (9 or 10 players) standard speed (blinds increase every 6 minutes) SNG tournaments.
• You will not move onto the next stage until you have reached the target bankroll for the current stage you are on.

If your poker software has options to filter the lobby then do so now. There are lots of Sit and Go Tournaments that we are not interested in such as Turbos, 6-handed, Double or Nothing, Satellites etc. Make it nice and easy to find the SNGs you are looking for and save yourself stress later.

Take the challenge at your own pace. It’s certainly possible to complete the challenge in less than a week, but not everyone will want to go at that pace.

We get it — reaching for that $1,000 goal is exciting and motivating — and it should be! Many in our community have enjoyed the challenge.

But it’s important to remember that responsible bankroll management is key to long-term success. Only ever play with money you can afford to lose, stick to the buy-in levels that suit your personal situation, and take regular breaks to keep your mind sharp.

This challenge is about learning and growth — not chasing results. Play smart, stay balanced, and enjoy the journey.