2 or 3 left

[Trampler]

Doing well in $10 tournaments. Get down to final 5 over 90% of the time. Since I starrted tracking, I have 7 first, 15 seconds, 16 thirds and 30 fourth or worse. I know as the players drop, lower hands start becoming playable. With 3 people, what is the correct strategy? I always play Ax, any 2 faces, and suited connectors. Should I also be playing just one face? I know it varies due to opponants and chip stacks, but generally, what hands are worth playing with 2 or 3 players? I am trying to figure out how to get more first.

[t_perkin]

This is where experience comes to the fore.

This really is an "it depends" situation.

As always practice your heads Heads Up on Stars HU tournaments, or play against SparBot on the internet (google it).

Playing three way, is a where "SnG skill" really shows. When you are the big stack you should bully but not be a maniac, when you are small stack you should be trying to survive but not being weak.

Try to think carefully about the game from other players points of view. The game becomes much less about cards and more about stack sizes and positions. Basically everything is about preflop decisions (esp at Party).

Post some specific hands and people will discuss them, you would be amazed about how much it helps just to write them. Often you will find that just by regularly thinking about specific hands it will become second nature to think about the most important factors in any situation.

Tim

[The Prince]

Hi,

read what Abdul Jalib has to say on the subject. Do a Google search.

Basically, you want higher cards. In many situations K2o is better that 76s. So think about that preflop.

And since you'll have fewer opponents, with more marginal hands, flops will be harder to hit for them. So many times second pair is huge. And you sometimes have to call with third pair or just an ace. Practice that in the NLHE heads-up available on some online sites.

Good luck,

Nicolas Fradet (The Prince)
www.wptinsider.com (http://www.wptinsider.com)

[t_perkin]

Abdul Jalib talks about Limit Holdem (I am assuming you play NLHE as almsot evryone here does) and it is certainly not talking about the end of SnGs where blinds are very high compared to stack sizes. I think you will find that this is not the best thing to read. Although better than nothing.


I think many would say that Jalib's opening hands are a little on the loose side in places, especially for online play where the games are looser. But I am not the man to ask about this.

tim

[M.B.E.]

[ QUOTE ]
Doing well in $10 tournaments. Get down to final 5 over 90% of the time.

[/ QUOTE ]
To me it sounds like you're playing too tight at the start of the SNG. I realize that your opponents are probably self-destructing by bashing heads with each other, which accounts in large part for your 90% survival, but I wonder if you're also letting yourself be bluffed out of way too many pots early in the SNG, by opponents willing to move in with poor hands.

[Trampler]

[ QUOTE ]
To me it sounds like you're playing too tight at the start of the SNG

[/ QUOTE ]

I don't think so. I have limped into third on some but have probably been in decent shape in over 70% of the ones that I placed in. I was looking at my notes. 6 of the thirds I have got were from bad beats. following up with the notes from the second place finishes.

[eastbay]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
To me it sounds like you're playing too tight at the start of the SNG

[/ QUOTE ]

I don't think so. I have limped into third on some but have probably been in decent shape in over 70% of the ones that I placed in. I was looking at my notes. 6 of the thirds I have got were from bad beats. following up with the notes from the second place finishes.



[/ QUOTE ]

Go to the party leader board and then search for some of the top players at the $200 SnGs. Watch how they play the final 3. The basic idea: maniac city.

eastbay

[PrayingMantis]

[ QUOTE ]
Go to the party leader board and then search for some of the top players at the $200 SnGs. Watch how they play the final 3. The basic idea: maniac city.


[/ QUOTE ]

Short handed Uber-aggressive play PF, with almost anything, especially when you're first to act, might work well in high buy-ins, where people are much more aware to the gap, and know that by calling they have basically only one way to win.

In lower buy-ins, certainly the 10+1 and such, this can be a bit problematic, even with pretty high blinds, since other player's calling standarts could be way loose, and they'll call with hands you really don't want them to call with. So sometimes the strategy can be to let the loose-raiser and loose-caller bust each other (I mean - one will bust the other), then face one of them.

HU, again, you need to adjust to your opponent. With very loose callers, it's better to tighten-up a bit, even with very big blinds. Against tight callers you should of course raise with more hands, and vs. the LAG, well, that's the toughest math-up HU, especially with big blinds. Actually, you can't do much against them if they know what their doing. It will come close to 50-50 if the stacks are close.

[trillig]

At that price point, I notice the final few get up tight a lot.

I have won having only 10% of the chips in distant 3rd place A LOT!

At this point, you have NOTHING to lose, and everything to gain....

Depending on the players, I may try to let 1st and 2nd bang on each other.

If they are passive, I will go AI with any 2 suited cards both above 5, any A7 or higher, any 2 cards = to 20... obviously any pair... etc etc....

Also if I am SB, I will AI the BB if the other guy folds first with anything...

This has worked well for me at SnG's....

Getting to final 3 is a different game plan however....

Last one I was in, I had 75% of chips with 7 people left! LOL!
Damn that was fun, I got 3rd out and 2nd out the very next hand because 3rd had almost no chips, I gave him a gift slamming out the guy who deserved 2nd.

-Bri