[RiverDood]

For what it's worth . . .

The starting blinds are so small that I'd play quite tight the first hour or so. No reason to get tangled up with KJ when you're likely to win a small pot or lose a big one. Playing tight keeps you in contention and will help your image for what sounds like the most interesting stage of the game . . .

. . . When a few players have busted out and you've got two short-handed tables and rising blinds. NOW is the time to steal some pots, make some aggressive first-in moves, continuation bets, etc. If you've carefully built a tight table image, no one with anything short of KK will play back at you at first. And with fewer opponents at the table, J9 UTG just might be the best hand.

If that works, then you get to the final table with a legitimate stack. Whether you're 2nd or 5th in chips matters only modestly. If you're anything other than the chip leader or the short stack, the main thing is that you're in the hunt and it's time to win some pots and dodge some bullets.

The prize breakdown matters a lot in how you play the final table. But I wouldn't think too much about it before then. Treat the game in two stages -- getting to the final table with a decent stack . . . and then playing the final table perfectly.