Foxwoods Limit HE Tourney, fold to ensure 10th?

This situation came up tonight in the limit hold'em tournament at Foxwoods.


The background info:


$35 buy in plus a $30 rebuy that everyone takes.


10th place pays out $60, or a $5 loss for the tournament.


The payout goes up a few dollars each level until 5th which was about $150. Then there are bigger jumps up to 1st which was good for a little over $1000.


So, we are down to 11 players. The blinds are 500 and 1000. I'm in the SB with 5000. Good for 6th overall.


UTG raises all in to 2000. Obviously could be just about any 2 cards. Folded to the button who maked it 3000. He's got a total of 4500.


I have AJo. I think there's a real good chance that the button raised to get heads up with the likely weak UTG. I think about raising. I also think about mucking, since I've got a real good chance of getting to the final table if I do. I'd be left with 4000 in chips.


On the other hand, the blinds are so big in relation to the stack sizes, just about ever hand that has more than one caller is an all in for someone. I don't want to get to the final table and be in a position where if I don't play a really marginal hand I'm going to get blinded out.


What's my play? Do I try to play for 10th or 9th and a small pay day, or do I try to make a move at a big pot with what may be my best hand for the rest of the way?


I decided that I wasn't interested in just getting my money back, so I call.


Flop: Ah Ac 2h


WOW! I bet, the button raises all in for another 500 and turns over JhJc when I call. UTH turns over Js5s. Alright! They are both drawing just about dead! I actually thought they were both dead for a second.


Turn is Kh, river is 8h. Button makes his runner runner flush and beats me. Oh well, these things happen. I went all in on pocket 3's the next hand and won then went all in on KhQh 2 hands later and lost.


This post isn't meant to be a bad beat story. I lost to a better hand. No problem there. I just want to know if I made a good decision.


Thoughts? Thanks.

I don't think that the payout structure is all that important here. It sounds like a fold anyway because if you play, you are committing to a three-way pot without any chance of making anyone fold, with a moderate hand. Not what you want to do with such a short stack, although my limit play is very sketchy.


Andy.

It's debatable to some. My preference here is to call, then bet the flop whatever comes. If you believe in your read, then by all means get your money in there! This is the time to show 'em a pair of iron balls! Five or six-handed, your A-J is a strong hand.


Some players believe inching up the payout ladder is the right way to do it: I prefer to use

a more aggressive approach, since I'd rather finish first once in five tries and bomb out the other four in a traditional pay-out structure( i.e., winner=40%,2nd=25%,third=12%, or some such),

than barely make the money each time by playing ultra-safe. That said, I don't think mindless aggro will work, either.


perfidious

I would muck, and this has nothing to that you're on the bubble: AJ ist just too weak and you have to give the button credit for a real hand here. Chance the AJ to AK and you have a call.


cu


Ignatius

I agree with the pannel, bubble or no bubble, AJ is simply too weak to play in this spot.


Nicolas