Final table and I'm the short stack

[zuluking]

Empire Bellagio TV Star 5+1 qualifier. Top 2 get seats in the Saturday night main event. We're down to the final 8, and I'm in 8th place with 1700 in chips. I haven't seen a sooted face card, 2 paint, a pair, nothing but low cards in 1-1/2 orbits or I would have been all-in long before this.

Blinds are 300/600 and I get J 2 offsuit in the BB. CO raises to 1200 and I go all-in with my remaining 1100. Should I have waited just a bit more even though the SB would bring me down to 1400?

CO had Ax and I finished in 8th. Thanks.

[TxDozerMan]

This is a bad spot, you have junk, but not enough chips to do anything but push and hope your live. If you fold here you will need an absolute miracle to get any chips back since you will have less than 2bb, so anyone with half a brain will call your next push.

I would not be so hung up on getting good cards to push with. Once down to 5bb if it is folded to me the only thing I check before pushing is that I actually have two cards. If it is being raised every hand, push UTG, you will be surprised how much respect an UTG push will get. I hate getting this short on chips.

[zuluking]

[ QUOTE ]
I hate getting this short on chips.

[/ QUOTE ]

I hear ya. The J2 off was the best hand I had seen in 15+ deals, no chit. I was in decent shape about 3 orbits earlier when my AK sooted got beat by the JJ of the not-so-short stack at the time. That pretty much crippled me.

[Isura]

I'd fold. You're in desperation mode, but CO is still opening. So he probably doesn't have just a random hand. I'd wait and push any 2 next hand in the SB, or call a raise with any decent hand next.

[The_Missile]

You can't call here. Even though you're in the big blind, a fold with a bad hand like J2 still gives you 1100 in chips (if my math is correct) coming into the small blind. Even if you have to fold the SB, you still have 800 in chips remaining.

I've been known in my games to make a few comebacks with a ridiculously short stack, and I've learned that patience is the key. Always be patient, beacuse two hands from now, you might be on the button with AJs or 88. You never know. Always patience.

[TomHimself]

[ QUOTE ]
You can't call here. Even though you're in the big blind, a fold with a bad hand like J2 still gives you 1100 in chips (if my math is correct) coming into the small blind. Even if you have to fold the SB, you still have 800 in chips remaining.

I've been known in my games to make a few comebacks with a ridiculously short stack, and I've learned that patience is the key. Always be patient, beacuse two hands from now, you might be on the button with AJs or 88. You never know. Always patience.

[/ QUOTE ]how much patience are you asking for, if he folds he has less than 2 BB, I would call here with J2

[45suited]

I'd probably fold here, but my 2nd option is not to push:

I'm not usually a big fan of this play, but if you're going to play the hand, try a stop-n-go. This would obviously depend in large part on how many chips the UTG had. Granted, it probably wouldn't work, but there is at least a chance that it will.

[zuluking]

Here was my problem with this situation. If I fold, and end up folding the SB, then I'm left with 800 chips and about 8 hands to play. If I did double up before the blinds came around again, I still would have only 2500 with 900 in blinds coming around the bend.

I figured my cards were live and that if I did double up in this spot, my chip count would be 3700 with a 300 SB due up next. Even if I didn't play until the blinds came around twice, I'd have 2500 in chips, about the same as the above senerio, but an opportunity to see more hands.

But I ramble.

[45suited]

I undestand why you don't want to fold. My point is if you're going to play the hand, why not at least try a stop-n-go?

[TxDozerMan]

I agree, I first said push, but I think I like the SNG better. Probably doesn't work, but you never know, and a PF push has zero FE.