sparK
10-26-2004, 06:11 PM
This is an email I sent to one of my friends who has developed and moved to vegas to play, he's a great guy and player but either way this email was sent to him but Im just posting it as reference for you guys to see.
it's a local game and I was wondering just your guy's thoughts on the structure and how you think I should play at each level.. here's the email
I will basically get you the jist of the environment and the tournament structure.
It's held at a friend's house, nothing fancy, it's down in his basement where we use a ping pong table (with a table cover over it) and another basically fold-out card table.
On average I would say there is anywhere from 14-20 people there. The buy-in is $30 making first place usually around 240 or something like that (that's an "educated" guess.)
Either way, I've played there consecutively for the last 2-3 months. It's pretty much always the same people there, sometimes a new face joins in and stays, or sometimes you have a guy who shows up for one, then never returns.
Now, to get down to the tournament structure:
Starting Chips : 800
Blinds start at : 10/20
side note - they do not have chips worth 5, and because of this blinds go up in this form
- 10/20
- 20/40
- 30/60
- 40/80
- 50/100
and so on.
Blinds increase every 30 minutes.
Based on that alone I was wondering what your thought on the structure is? Personally I think it's a very uncomfortable structure and doesn't even allow you to re-raise without almost being pot committed. Example following:
Hero Chip Count : 720
Blinds : 20/40
Hero is dealt : 10h/10d
UTG+1 Folds, UTG+2 Folds, MP Calls, MP+1 Calls, Hero Raises T130, SB Folds, BB Folds, MP Calls, MP+1 Folds.
Flop Dealt : Jd, 5h, 9c.
MP Checks, Hero bets 150, MP Calls.
Now, at this point look at what I have in the pot based on my chip size. Remember this is only an hour or so into the tournament (blinds at 20/40).
I have my raise of 130 in, plus 150, making an obvious 280 of my 720.
720 - 280 = 440.
So, this is basically half of my stack. What am I supposed to do though? I think my raise (about 3xBB) is a good raise in this position as I didn't really want to be to inviting so any less would be, just that, to inviting. But I couldn't neccessarily check the flop and a bet less than 130 which is what I raised seemed weak. So now it puts me in a predicament, as I have nearly half my stack in the pot, and folding here hurts.
What are your thoughts / advice on this hand and how to play a similiar situation that comes up?
Also, with the tournament structure like it is, how would you recommend one play to end up finishing the best week to week? I've tried playing a lot of hands, playing a decent amount, and playing Super-tight, and either way it really just comes down to one hand that I end up being pot committed or have a lot in the pot and am forced to fold.
I just can't find the right way to play in this local game and you are without a doubt one of the smartest and level-headed down to earth poker players I know of, and for some reason I only felt comfortable asking you.
So if you could just give me your overall advice and what your approach to this would be.
As for how the players are you have atleast 1/3rd of calling stations, a fair share of really big aggressors and then your tight players.
Your advice is much needed in this situation, and sorry for the lengthiness of this e-mail but I wanted to really get across the feel of this game. Anyway, I will shut up now.
Thanks for your help,
Matt Roberts
k so there's the email, so if you guys could give me an idea on how to play (what hands to play at different levels, your advice, etc) it'd help a lot..tournament starts in around 2 hours so any prompt help is super chouette!! (it's french) lol..thanks in advance guys.
it's a local game and I was wondering just your guy's thoughts on the structure and how you think I should play at each level.. here's the email
I will basically get you the jist of the environment and the tournament structure.
It's held at a friend's house, nothing fancy, it's down in his basement where we use a ping pong table (with a table cover over it) and another basically fold-out card table.
On average I would say there is anywhere from 14-20 people there. The buy-in is $30 making first place usually around 240 or something like that (that's an "educated" guess.)
Either way, I've played there consecutively for the last 2-3 months. It's pretty much always the same people there, sometimes a new face joins in and stays, or sometimes you have a guy who shows up for one, then never returns.
Now, to get down to the tournament structure:
Starting Chips : 800
Blinds start at : 10/20
side note - they do not have chips worth 5, and because of this blinds go up in this form
- 10/20
- 20/40
- 30/60
- 40/80
- 50/100
and so on.
Blinds increase every 30 minutes.
Based on that alone I was wondering what your thought on the structure is? Personally I think it's a very uncomfortable structure and doesn't even allow you to re-raise without almost being pot committed. Example following:
Hero Chip Count : 720
Blinds : 20/40
Hero is dealt : 10h/10d
UTG+1 Folds, UTG+2 Folds, MP Calls, MP+1 Calls, Hero Raises T130, SB Folds, BB Folds, MP Calls, MP+1 Folds.
Flop Dealt : Jd, 5h, 9c.
MP Checks, Hero bets 150, MP Calls.
Now, at this point look at what I have in the pot based on my chip size. Remember this is only an hour or so into the tournament (blinds at 20/40).
I have my raise of 130 in, plus 150, making an obvious 280 of my 720.
720 - 280 = 440.
So, this is basically half of my stack. What am I supposed to do though? I think my raise (about 3xBB) is a good raise in this position as I didn't really want to be to inviting so any less would be, just that, to inviting. But I couldn't neccessarily check the flop and a bet less than 130 which is what I raised seemed weak. So now it puts me in a predicament, as I have nearly half my stack in the pot, and folding here hurts.
What are your thoughts / advice on this hand and how to play a similiar situation that comes up?
Also, with the tournament structure like it is, how would you recommend one play to end up finishing the best week to week? I've tried playing a lot of hands, playing a decent amount, and playing Super-tight, and either way it really just comes down to one hand that I end up being pot committed or have a lot in the pot and am forced to fold.
I just can't find the right way to play in this local game and you are without a doubt one of the smartest and level-headed down to earth poker players I know of, and for some reason I only felt comfortable asking you.
So if you could just give me your overall advice and what your approach to this would be.
As for how the players are you have atleast 1/3rd of calling stations, a fair share of really big aggressors and then your tight players.
Your advice is much needed in this situation, and sorry for the lengthiness of this e-mail but I wanted to really get across the feel of this game. Anyway, I will shut up now.
Thanks for your help,
Matt Roberts
k so there's the email, so if you guys could give me an idea on how to play (what hands to play at different levels, your advice, etc) it'd help a lot..tournament starts in around 2 hours so any prompt help is super chouette!! (it's french) lol..thanks in advance guys.