Sit and go (SNG)

A tournament that starts as soon as its seats are filled rather than at a set time.

Last updated October 16, 2026

What it means: A sit and go, or SNG, is a small tournament with a fixed number of seats that begins the moment the last seat is taken. Most are a single table of 6 or 9 players, and they pay only the top two or three places.
How it is calculated: The blinds rise quickly, so stacks are soon short and most hands near the end are an all-in or a fold. ICM shapes those decisions from the start, because so few places pay and the jump from third to second is large.
Worked example: Nine players each pay 10 into a 90 prize pool that pays 50%, 30% and 20%. First wins 45, second 27 and third 18; the other six win nothing.
Why it matters: A sit and go is the quickest way to practice short-stack and bubble play, which is the same skill set a big MTT asks for at its final table.