[SheridanCat]

If you don't have Harrington On Hold'em, volum 2, you should get it. 4xBB is pretty bad shape. If you assume the SB is 1/2 the BB, then you only have an M of about 3, which means you can survive 3 orbits. 1 M = the amount it's going to cost you to play one orbit (or, as Harrington puts it, "the ratio of your stack to the current total of blinds and antes" - just divide your stack by the amount of blinds and antes). An M of 3 puts you solidly in the Red Zone. This is the zone where you have to start making some moves, and you may well be too late.

Here's an example from a live tournament I played last night. The blind structure was very aggressive. After the first hour, there was no one at my table with an M greater than 10. My M was about 6, that's Orange Zone, when the first level after the break began. If I was first in, I would raise aggressively with any ace that had a moderate kicker and any pocket pair. My opponents were playing much tighter than that, but they didn't seem to realize they didn't have that luxury and my steals kept working. They certainly were feeling the heat of the blinds/antes, but they didn't adjust while I had - this is a great edge.

Waiting until you're at 4xBB is almost too late. At that point, your ready to go in with almost any hand that's above average. Part of your advantage is fold equity, which diminishes with your stack since you stop being threatening pretty quickly.

In your tournament, if players are tight and aggressive early, you might try loosening up a bit to see more flops and try to hit big hands early. When you come in, make standard raises and see if the tighties can be moved off a hand.

And, remember, your sample size is small and if you play a lot of tournaments, you'll have plenty of these heartbreakers.

Good luck,

T