Need bubble help ($33)

[pokerraja]

the last week or so i have consistenly finished in 4th place. this trend is costing me alot of money, and if i do make the money its usually 3rd place finishes. im losing races , like my A9 vs QJ, or A5s vs. K4. I dont mind those losses as those are what i want. my problem is how do u play your big hands during the bubble. especially when blinds get high. and wtf is up lately, blinds are always at least 200-400 with 4-5 people left.

but im really having problems with these type of situations. for example 4 stacks left. each with the same about 2000. i get AJs UTG. Blinds are 200/400. now is pushing all-in the standard move here? i hate to ask such basic question. but this is the move im making and usually will get called by 55 or 66 and i will bust out. these type of situations have been killing me.

when blinds are that high, isnt pushing the only play? And lately im noticeing its so hard to steal blinds, everyone will play back at you and/or call you with a mediocre hand. i guess just trying to keep someone honest, my problem is i guess im just losing these races at a very high rate. maybe im just pissed off cuz im on the other end of these coin flips. it just gets frustrating when you play so well to build your stack but you can lose it so fast.

anyone with any advice for these bubble situations would be helpful. i guess im just frustrated because nothing is going my way lately. thanks to all.

[spentrent]

I'm in the same boat as you this week, especially regarding races where I'm on the inside track. Oh well, I figure I'll be rich next week when Lady Luck stops XXXXing me?

Not advice, but an observation that might be meaningful: at the 20+2s, I notice a lot of min-raising in the late stages (200/400, five players) where the typical 2+2er would push. I can't quantify it, but I feel like I've seen it A LOT.

And it's NOT with craptacular hands; it's with hands one mght push, so coming over the top doesn't "scare" the min-raiser out. I'm considering mirroring this strategy to some extent when I'm at a table that "agrees" with it.

[Scuba Chuck]

You bet the minimum amount of chips in order to steal a blind. If the minimum amount is just 250 chips, then that's all you should bet. If pushing is the minimum amount, then that's your move.

[Scuba Chuck]

Oh, and one more thing. If you're table is that loose, that people are calling each other for a race, then let the others battle it out. Especially for the chipstack size you've got.