New to Party SNGo's, some advice

[spazm6666]

I have recently been reading a lot of posts here and the general consensus seems to be that the SNGo's at Party are a better proposition to make the money than Pokerstars. From the first 15 or so I have played I would agree though I haven't moneyed in more than 6. I'll chalk it up to some bad play, and an adjustment period.

I see a lot of talk here regarding tight play for first 3-4 levels then get some chips, hit the money and win it if you can. I was wondering if anyone could clarify just how tight is tight early on and when can you go out there and feel safe stealing a few since Party seems pretty stuffed with maniacs playing any 2 cards. sorry if this has been addressed before but the big change in blind structure and player quality is still beating me up. Thanks any for the help.

[GoSox]

IMHO I don't even try to steal blinds until there are 4 or 5 left and the BB is getting to 100/150. For me, tight up till that point means really, really tight. No suited weaker than AJ, no connecters worse then J10, and that only from LP.

[AleoMagus]

on the first 3 levels, I play only the following:

22-AA
AK
AKs

If I am in the last 3 positions I will play

AQs
AJs
KQs
and maybe ATs

On the first 3 levels, I limp with all pairs up to JJ
I will raise with QQ,KK,AA and AK/AKs (3xBB+, bigger the more limpers already in the pot)
If one of these hands is reraised, I am all-in
If someone re-raises all-in I might have to think about calling but I'd probably still get all-in.

If I limp with 22-JJ and get raised by a small amount, I will still call depending upon how many are in the pot. Even 22 would call a 3xBB raise if nine other players call also.

I will raise with AQ,AQs,KQs,AJs and ATs from late position but if I am reraised I'm usually gone.

Level 4 is an important level on $5-$30 Part sngs. Unless there are still 7+ players, this is the time to change gears.

At this point, I'd start playing a bit more.
Keep in mind that 'A bit more' still probably only amounts to about 30-35 hands total.

This may not be optimal, but it is simple and it works. Simplicity is good protection against tilt and though I might play a bit different from this on occasion, I still revert to this whenever I am doubting my state of mind.

Also, remember that your strategy may change depending upon your stack size. If you lose a big pot with AA on the first level and are left with only 150 chips, you can't follow these guidelines anymore. You'd need to get a lot more aggressive and loosen up some.

Be mindful of the fact that there are a lot of pretty hands that are big trouble in NL Hold'em

examples are AJo,KQo,ATo,KJo,QJo,etc...

These hands suck and I'd avoid them like the plague in the first three levels. I'd sooner play 72o. At least you aren't likely to lose your stack with that hand and you aren't as likely to be dominated by a raiser either.

Regards,
Brad S

[BradleyT]

Great advice, extremely close to my playing style although I don't really care much for 22 or 33 unless it's free or half a bet. I also will raise with JJ 80% of the time.

[Bigwig]

I just wanted to say that the Party or Pokerstars decision should be based on your style of play. I hated Party -- HATED it because the blind structure was too fast, and it didn't suit my aggressive style of play.

[AleoMagus]

This is actually an important thing to mention in this thread because the difference between these two sites is huge

The strategy I described works on party, but you should do things different on stars.

On stars, the stacks are deeper so I will actually play more hands on early rounds, but will also get away from marginal flops a lot more also

For example, after a big preflop raise with (say) AK on party, if I get a caller or two and catch top pair, top kicker - a pot sized bet will almost be enough to pot commit me later in the hand and I'm likely to get all-in if the flop is bet in front of me

On stars, I'm looking for more made hands. Going all-in with TPTK in the early rounds on stars is a good way to lose.

So yeah, your style will affect your preference. And your choice of site will affect what you should be playing early in the tourney

Just my thoughts
Regards,
Brad S

[Bluff1]

I have recently started playing at party and play super super tight. Ak,AA,QQ,KK from the front to middle position and JJ,Aq from the back in the first 3 rounds. At round 4 I start to open up a lot and become hyper aggressive. PP is a place where if you just play tight and wait you will get the money.

[spazm6666]

Thanks all! The replies were about what I expected and certainly still feeling a bit 'fishy' I wanted to hear from those who are successful.

I do agree with the feelings about the blind structure being a bit fast on Party and as such I prefer the 50's over the lower limits for that reason, but the lower limits are still proving profitable already. I will still probably play both sites depending on the Poker I want to play that day. And you have pointed out some hands that I had been playing a little faster than i should have (if i should have played them at all early levels) and have gotten me burnt since tables tend to be pretty loose.

[David BB]

I have recently moved from stars to party. While I do think theres more variation due to the the small stacks/large blinds Party may be more profitable simply because the SNGs are over much faster.

Anyway, I agree with what has been said so far but not much has been said about play on the bubble.

When its down do 3-4 players with blinds around 150/300 I'll start moving all-in with any decent hand (and some not so decent ones depending on the situation). The blinds at this point are so big that stealing just a few makes a huge difference. Making a smaller raise will just get you pot-committed anyway, so I believe it becomes correct to either go all-in or fold in most cases here. What do you think?

Speaking of all-in or fold. Has anyone tried using a modified version of the "system" on Party SNGs? Seems like this structure would perfect for it.

[Bozeman]

It seems like the proper modification of the system for party sng's would be:

1st 3 rounds: Raise allin with AA or KK
later: Raise allin if dealt more than 1 card

Craig