On the bubble in a MTT

[gibs]

In a MTT when it gets down close to the money, say 10 or so more have to be knocked out before you reach the money, how tight do you play assuming the blinds are a big enough portion of your stack that you are in "all-in or fold" mode. I have only played in about 5 or 6 big MTT and have not yet made it to this point, but I have watched some 2+2ers at this point in a tournament, and I was just wondering what the best strategy is for this situation. Do you go all-in with hands that you normally would if you had already made it into the money, or do you tighten up to try and outlast the others to make it into the money?

[Tosh]

I loosen up and raise approximately 80% of hands first in from MP or later.

EDIT: If I'm shortstacked I'll play approximately as usual.

[ZootMurph]

I agree with Tosh. Unless there is someone to my left who is 'bubble savvy' as well, the bubble is the perfect opportunity to build your stack.

Additionally, if you are shortstacked, it depends on reads for me. If there are big stacks looking to bust small stacks (bad strategy, by the way, as you want the bubble time to last as long as possible), then I'll tighten up a bit. If there aren't, I will loosen a little and raise try some blind stealing, trying to get myself away from being short stack. Without any reads, I play like Tosh said... my normal game.

[DougBrennan]

How about this stellar response?

It depends.

And it does. Is it important to you to finish in the money? Are you interested in "going for it" at the possible expense of cashing? Where do you currently stand in the rankings? How many BBs are left in you stack?

All of these questions are pertinent to your question. There have been times when I just tried to survive to the money, because I thought that was a reasonable goal given my particular circumstances in that tournament. Other times I have blithely ignored caution, because I felt I was in a position to do so.

One thing is for certain. The Bubble, when play has become uber-tight, is a great time to steal a lot of pots, if you are in a position to do so . The other side of that coin, of course, is that any time you enter a pot you risk losing those chips, and you can be certain that if you make a steal-raise during Bubble time and get called, or more likely, raised, you are in deep doo-doo.

So that's the long version of "it depends." When you get in that situation you'll probably have a better feel for what to do, because you'll know how the table is playing and what your position is.

And if you continue to read and post on this forum, you will get in that situation, more times than you would now think possible.

Doug

[Gar Pike]

[ QUOTE ]
If there are big stacks looking to bust small stacks (bad strategy, by the way, as you want the bubble time to last as long as possible),

[/ QUOTE ]

What's the theory behind that? (My copy of TPFAP is at home)

I was berated the other day for not calling UTG's (short stack) all-in from the BB, there were 4 of us (one left 'til the money) I was the big stack with about 4000, it would have been another 100 or so to call, blinds were 100/200 (i think) and I had T3o,

I figured a) T3o is a crappy hand to be calling even a random hand, b) it was OK to let the bubble continue, c)T3o is a crappy hand to be calling with. The other players disagreed.

I was able to put her all-in later with a raise from the SB with 66 and won all her chips, calling w/ K5s, or some such.

won the SNG, too, btw

Anyway, why is it good to prolong the bubble?

Regards,

Gar

[Garbonzo]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
If there are big stacks looking to bust small stacks (bad strategy, by the way, as you want the bubble time to last as long as possible),

[/ QUOTE ]

What's the theory behind that? (My copy of TPFAP is at home)

I was berated the other day for not calling UTG's (short stack) all-in from the BB, there were 4 of us (one left 'til the money) I was the big stack with about 4000, it would have been another 100 or so to call, blinds were 100/200 (i think) and I had T3o,

I figured a) T3o is a crappy hand to be calling even a random hand, b) it was OK to let the bubble continue, c)T3o is a crappy hand to be calling with. The other players disagreed.

I was able to put her all-in later with a raise from the SB with 66 and won all her chips, calling w/ K5s, or some such.

won the SNG, too, btw

Anyway, why is it good to prolong the bubble?

Regards,

Gar

[/ QUOTE ]

I believe the theory is this:

You have such good opportunities to steal blinds, push around the table on the bubble, that you want this "phase" to last as long as possible. After the bubble bursts, so to speak, you will no longer be able to steal chips and bully the table so easily.

Someone please correct me if I am wrong.

[montechristo]

I have been a lurker on 2+2 for quite some time now, and decided that maybe I can throw my 2 cents in here. Gibs, if you are in "all-in or fold" mode as you state, then I am assuming your stack is small enough that you can't really make a play at a pot without being pot committed. In this case it is usually right to go ahead and find a hand you like and push your stack in. Of course you are searching for the top premium hands, but you might not have time to wait for one.

I also agree with DougBrennan, in that you can benefit from the bubble-tightness factor, but pick your spots carefully or you will get busted. Busting out on the bubble isn't bad though, the substantial prize money is lumped into the top three spots and that is where you want to be. Double up or go home time.

[TomCollins]

If the UTG player had a hand as good as KJo, he is about a 2-1 favorite over you. Same is true with just 1 overcard and one card below a ten. Of course since you are a big stack, the others want you to gamble. If your hand was even marginally better, I'd consider calling anything for $100 more. But you have a big advantage having 4 players rather than 3 since you can raise any hand. In fact, I would be raising about 75% of all hands at this point.

[gergery]

I don’t like argument a or c. You were risking 100 to win 600 or so. Even against AA you are only a 7:1 underdog. If this were not a bubble situation then you would be correct to call any hand but AA-JJ, and since shortstacked UTG’s are likely to push with a great many hands right before the BB takes them out, you were almost certainly getting correct odds to call. Now, per reason b, it may have been higher EV to let bubbleboy stick around so you can steal blinds – that depends on table conditions and how likely your friends are to fold to your raises.

--g