Question about tournament survival
 

First off this is not a bad beat story. I played a couple of Multi-table tournaments today with the last being a $10 buy in at PP that I was just knocked out of.

I was above the average stack size and tried to only get involved with smaller stacks. I get dealt AK, so I raise 3xbb and get one caller. Flop comes KXX, he checks, I bet the pot, he reraises, I push and he calls with QQ and catches a Q on the river...I'm out.

There's the background and I'm sure it happens to you guys as much as it happens to me, but the question is this: Knowing that this kind of thing happens do you still always try to get your money in with the best hand and let the cards fall where they may or do you ever fold what you know is the best hand in order to avoid the possibility of elimination early or mid way through?

I realize it's a catch 22 because a good majority of the time your dubling up through <edit> OTHERS bad calls.

What is your guys strategy?

Re: Question about tournament survival
 

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I realize it's a catch 22 because a good majority of the times your dubling up through bad calls.

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um.. doesnt this kind of defy probability?

Re: Question about tournament survival
 

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um.. doesnt this kind of defy probability?

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fixed

Re: Question about tournament survival
 

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Knowing that this kind of thing happens do you still always try to get your money in with the best hand and let the cards fall where they may or do you ever fold what you know is the best hand in order to avoid the possibility of elimination early or mid way through?

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Better be a WORLD CLASS player to be able to fold when you have a vilian TOTALLY DOMINATED as in the case of over pair v under pair [img]/images/graemlins/wink.gif[/img]

Re: Question about tournament survival
 

I dont even think you need to be a "world class" player to fold something like AK with that board. For me, it all depends on the situation. If it is early to middle of the tourney and I feel I am ahead then I will make that call and hopefully double up. If you put your money in and lose with AK with a board of Kxx and your opponent with QQ is the one to crack you on a river Q then it is just not your tourney. I usually will just say nice hand, try to hold in my emotions and live to play another day. Now if it is late in the tourney and I am near the money then my strategy
might be different. I might not risk my money as my opponent could of flopped low trips or whatever. I am usually a bit more conservative late in tourney with average
to large size stack. Then again... if it is late in tourney
and same situation comes up short stacked then it is a no
brainer.. just push it in. Like I said it all comes down
to the situation.. Hope this helped.

Good Luck

Re: Question about tournament survival
 

You don't have to be world class to fold AK there...
...but if you fold because you're afraid of QQ sucking out, you're playing the wrong game.

Re: Question about tournament survival
 

Read some of the threads in the anthology of MTT wisdom, particularly the one about not passing up small edges.

Here it is a bit different because you don't know you are a big favorite but I wouldn't lay this down without a very specific read.

To be a successful MTT player you have to be willing to gamble whenever you feel you have the best of it. If I know I'm a slight favorite I can't get my chips in any faster.

Re: Question about tournament survival
 

The comments do help and for what it's worth after about 45 minutes of playing and watching his betting patters I was pretty confident he didnt have AA (probably would have reraised). I think he put me on a smaller pair and hoped I didnt have a K, which was the case.

I'm wondering if anyone can make a case for not going all in with him dominated. Do I just call his reraise and not put my life on the line? Doubling up at that point would have allowed me to either 1:) suffer a long run of bad cards or 2:) allow me to get in there and gamble and take advantage of the biggest stack at the table. Here's the hand:

Party Poker No-Limit Hold'em Tourney, Big Blind is t50 (9 handed) FTR converter on zerodivide.cx

UTG+1 (t1635)
MP1 (t480)
Hero (t2860)
MP3 (t6060)
CO (t1830)
Button (t2035)
SB (t3265)
BB (t850)
UTG (t1960)

Preflop: Hero is MP2 with A[img]/images/graemlins/club.gif[/img], K[img]/images/graemlins/diamond.gif[/img].
<font color="#666666">3 folds</font>, <font color="#CC3333">Hero raises to t150</font>, <font color="#666666">3 folds</font>, SB calls t125, <font color="#666666">1 fold</font>.

Flop: (t350) 5[img]/images/graemlins/club.gif[/img], T[img]/images/graemlins/diamond.gif[/img], K[img]/images/graemlins/club.gif[/img] <font color="#0000FF">(2 players)</font>
SB checks, <font color="#CC3333">Hero bets t350</font>, <font color="#CC3333">SB raises to t700</font>, SB calls t2010.

Turn: (t3410) 6[img]/images/graemlins/diamond.gif[/img] <font color="#0000FF">(2 players)</font>

River: (t3410) Q[img]/images/graemlins/diamond.gif[/img] <font color="#0000FF">(2 players)</font>

Final Pot: t3410

Re: Question about tournament survival
 

still hasn't changed....

Re: Question about tournament survival
 

If you don't want to get your money in as a huge favorite, when do you want to get your money in?