Harrington on Hold'em Clarification

[New York Jet]

On page 58, Dan in discussing Optimal Strategy for Small-Stakes Multi-Table Online Tournaments:

"Push your good hands (top pairs, trips) to the maximum, again with the hope of doubling up. You're much more likely to be called all-in than in a normal tournament. Remember that even your weaker top pair hands, like nines and eights, go up in value while high unpaired cards go down in value."

I find the last sentence a little confusing. Is he saying 99 and 88 go up in value while AQ and AJ go down in value? Or does he mean that post flop A9 with a flop of 952 goes up in value while AQ with a flop of 952 goes down in value?

Thanks in advance,
<font color="green"> New York Jet </font>

[jojobinks]

the latter, sort of. i think he meant that A9 with a 952 flop goes up in value, and AQo preflop goes down in value.

after all, in a tournament, AQ with a 952 flop doesn't have all that much value.

[New York Jet]

I don't understand why he mentions this then. He makes it sound like it is an exception in these tournaments. Of course having top pair on the flop is better than two overcards. It is better in a cash games and limit Hold'em also.

I wish Dan posted her like Ed does on his book.

[illab]

I think he means they go up in value preflop. You can push 88 and 99 because chances are that you wont go up against an overpair so youre never a big underdog. If you lose with them you didn't waste a lot of money or time compared to a normal tourney. You probably wouldn't play those pairs too aggressively in a tournament until its gets very late or shorthanded.

AQ or AJ are nice hands to see flops with but since the blinds go up so quick and the stacks are so small in a SNGs you might have to go alin preflop or call an allin. Pre-flop AQos is only a 60-40 favorite over a hands like K2s or 45s.

[New York Jet]

Thanks illab. That makes sense.
- With 99, if you are called by A7o, you are more than 2 to 1 to win the hand.
- With AQo, if you are called by 55, you are slightly less than even money.

[illab]

Yeah the odds are important but also important is the number of people you are going against. In a tournament the people get moved around so that they are usually at full tables and you're more likely to run into an overpair. In an sng by the time you are pushing hands like 88 or 99 the table is probably down to 4 or 5 people.

[New York Jet]

Now I am confused again. Dan is talking about small stakes online MTTs, not SNGs.