Frustration Short Handed...need help

[sxz18]

I've been playing PartyPoker for a while now and I do decently well. However, recently I've been playing some 15/30 (6 max) and the fluctuations seem ridiculous. Just today, I bought in with $350 (it was all I had in my account, didn't feel like depositing unless I lost it all) and after one round, I saw my stack fall down to $150. After about 1 hour of play, my stack was up at $750. Then a few hands later, my stack fell slowly and consistenly. I couldn't find a hand to play or continue postflop. The hands I did end up play would run into bigger hands (i.e. A9s in BB preflop, two bets to me from button I call, flop comes nine high and turns out button has pocket kings). It feels like a lot of times I run my stack up, I just get crushed a round later when PartyPoker decides to deal me a great hand only to come second. Can anyone help me? Should I be folding more or what?

[KidPokerX]

party poker is ridiculous

[astroglide]

trying buying in for the minimum next time. good luck.

[CORed]

At the Party 15/30 (short or full), swings of +- $1000 in a session are to be expected, swings of $2000 are unremarkable, and a really bad run might cost you 200 BB ($6000) over a few sessions. If you can't handle this financially or emotionally, play lower stakes. Sitting with $350 is just plain dumb. You should try to keep a minimum of $360 in front of you at all times, so you never have to go all in.

[Lestat]

I don't short-buy in a full game and wouldn't even think of it in a short game. Call it a psyche thing, but I like having lots of chips at all times whether winning or losing when it's short.

Make sure you're not OVER adjusting. There seems to be a consensus on here that 6-way is short-handed. It's NOT! You DO have to adjust, but most of your profit will come from other's who are OVER adjusting (i.e. they'll play bad aces from any position, can't distinguish a legitimate raise from a steal. Too often they get there comeuppance after calling a raise with a hand like AJo (or A9s maybe?).

Short-handed is all about maxing volume with very small edges. Sometimes these edges don't hold up. Sometimes even the best players will make misjudgements about whether or not a certain hand or flop even gives them an edge, etc. These small edges combined with lots of volume produce extreme fluctuations. Swings are part of the territory when playing short. With all due respect.. Either get used to it, or get out.

[YoureToast]

Lestat, that was a fantastic, concise and very well stated post.

[sxz18]

Ok, so let's say the Button was a player who doesn't always steal blinds, but will raise about 2/3 of the time it's folded to him. In a six-handed 15/30 cash game, assume action is folded to the Button, who raises. SB folds, you hold A9s in BB. Fold or call?

The flop comes rainbow 9 7 3. Check-raise, Check-call, or bet out?

Turn is 2, putting all four suits on board. Action?

River is J. Action?


The question is, how do you whether the button is holding a monster (overpair, set, etc) or simply pushing with AK or underpair? How can you separate a legitimate raise from a steal raise?

[Justin A]

[ QUOTE ]
There seems to be a consensus on here that 6-way is short-handed. It's NOT!

[/ QUOTE ]

Would you agree that 6max may mimic a short game in some ways because there are so many blind steal and defense situations?

[Lestat]

<font color="red">assume action is folded to the Button, who raises. SB folds, you hold A9s in BB. Fold or call? </font>

Of course, I'd (at least), call here. And there's probably no getting off your hand. But you did word it as:

<font color="red">(i.e. A9s in BB preflop, two bets to me from button I call, </font>

That was a little unclear. The phrase, "two bets to me" when you are the bb, implies the button raised and the sb 3-bet. Since you only mention the button and not the sb, I guess I could have assumed it was ONE bet to you from the button.

Either way, I wasn't critiquing that particular hand. Hopefully there was some other stuff in my response to think about.

[roy_miami]

[ QUOTE ]
most of your profit will come from other's who are OVER adjusting

[/ QUOTE ]

This is the biggest reason I have any success at all at 6 max. I basically just play my regular full game strategy as if all the early positions folded.