[yvesaint]

its even more important in 55s as i just realized lower buy-ins DONT have the 1000 starting chip stack (which is also why i think the 55s are pretty fishy to start with)

i find the blinds start to get high once they hit 150/300 but i often find myself getting very aggro by the time they hit 100/200, sometimes even 75/150

doubling up early definitely helps you cashing, of course, but from what ive seen, it doesnt help as much as you'd think - i find a lot of times how my early game goes in levels 1-3 does not affect the outcomes of my games as much as i thought it would. which is why there are some simple things i excersize early on:

- pot control with 1-pair hands (can be more important than 'protecting your hand' in many situations)
- playing in position
- much less completing/playing from the blinds

i just find that playing a nice, aggro game later on helps a lot more in terms of cashing/1sts. you steal blinds once at 75/150, thats 225 chips right there w/o a single showdown, while at levels 1-3 thats a good-size pot that you have to have the best hand to show down with