Hitting a Wall in NL Tourneys

[2planka]

Only been playing NL tourneys for a couple of months online, mostly at UB.

I seem to win the single table tourneys with regularity (haven't fully crunched the numbers but it's somewhere around 33%) which provide entry into larger, more lucrative ones.

I tend to start slowly in the large tournaments, but I've consistently been finishing in the top 25 (typically between 300-400 entrants in these tourneys). Just can't seem to get past this into the next level.

I've posted some of my all-in beats here. I had a set of jacks popped by a runner-runner royal with 18 players left (the guy had A-10 suited), I had AA rivered by a caller with pocket ducks, and last night I flopped a 10 high straight, went all in, and lost to a boat, eights full, again on the river. In retrospect, I was probably too aggressive last night, and called all in with poor table position (lost to the button). So I can chalk up a lesson there.

I've analyzed my play on my all-ins and I think I'm making the right moves (most of the time), just not getting as lucky as my opponents. It really boils down to one or two hands over the course of the tourney - call them missed opportunities - that I need to pump up my stack in order to withstand that one desperate beat late in the match.

I feel that my game is close to making the final table, but I'm not quite there yet. Can any of you bastions of poker knowledge impart a nugget of wisdom? /images/graemlins/wink.gif

[Your Mom]

don't get sucked out on and you will do better

[TimTimSalabim]

Try posting this in the "Tournaments" section and you will get a better response.

Overall, my opinion is, in those big online NL tourneys, you have to look at doubling up periodically if you want to win or even reach the final table. Tight play is probably right for the first hour or so, but at some point you need to get your stack pumped up way before you reach the final table. That means taking chances. That means you need to see some flops if you can get in cheaply, and then when you hit a flop well, you can double up. Don't just wait for AA-JJ in mid-tourney. If you do, then you'll probably barely survive the whole way and consistently finish near the bubble. Do be careful with trouble hands like AJ and KQ, though. I usually just call with them and see how the flop hits me. Try not to bluff very often, because online players will call you down more than live players. And of course, watch your opponents so you can get a feel for how they play. Is that sufficiently vague? By following the above, I've managed to get to the final table fairly often. (I need the advice that will get me to the top 3, where the big money is ). At any rate, those experts over in "Tournaments" can probably give you less-rambling advice.

[2planka]

Thanks for the reply... relatively new to this forum. Of course, I found the NL section about a minute after I posted this.

I think you're right, though. I stay too tight for too long.

As for the other comment. Why didn't I think about telling the opposition not to suck out on me? /images/graemlins/grin.gif