$55: Flaw in my thinking? (Pushing Top 67% at Lvl4 when not desparate)

[AA suited]

I'm beginning to rethink my strategy.

Background:
My 8-10th place finishes = ~20% combined, yet i have 15% ROI over the past 1000 SnGs.

I've tried playing less aggressively early on to cut my 8-10th place finishes but it's not my style. so i'm rethinking my strategy when i enter Lvl4 short stacked.

Old strategy:
I want to enter Lvl5 with at least 5BB. (FLAW??? [img]/images/graemlins/confused.gif[/img]) That way i can afford to sit out at an orbit if i dont get the cards and hope i get cards during the 2nd Lvl5 orbit when i'm down to 3.5BB. That way I don't have to push with Any 2 immediately.

Thus if i have less than 600 chips at Lvl4, i start pushing with Top 67% (ie: any face card like J2o) if folded to in LP to get to 5BB at Lvl5.

if the blinds have at least 7BB at lvl4, they're usually less likely to call with questionable hands like A7o.

New strategy:
Go back to being a Pushbot. Stay tight till 3BB no matter what the level, then push with Any 2.

Is my thinking that I need to enter Lvl5 with at least 5BB flawed?! If so, WHY?

[Freudian]

You certainly want your pushes in level 4 to mean something, but top 67% seems too much for me. In level 4 at least 6-7 opponents should be left. That means you should be able to find a spot each orbit that is much better than pushing J2o.

I think you should go back and look at how often you find yourself in level 4 with ~600 chips and figure out where those 400 chips went. Do you pay off too much in level 1-3? Are you getting involved with marginal hands because of pot odds? Do you have a hard time getting away when you hit top pair decent kicker?

[stupidsucker]

I don't think many winning players have 20% losses that early. I commend you for being different.

[AA suited]

[ QUOTE ]
Freudian wrote:
I think you should go back and look at how often you find yourself in level 4 with ~600 chips and figure out where those 400 chips went. Do you pay off too much in level 1-3? Are you getting involved with marginal hands because of pot odds? Do you have a hard time getting away when you hit top pair decent kicker?

[/ QUOTE ]

i know exactly where my chips went at lvl1-2.

raising with good hands, calling small raises with pocket pair hoping to flop a set, and betting out on the straight/flush draw as a semi-bluff. as well as trying to pick up abandoned pots.

when that fails, i'm down to as low as 700 chips. add lvl3 blinds and i'm at 625.

my question is should i get agressive at lvl4 to get up to 750 chips so i can survive an orbit at lvl5? or be a pushbot, and wait for good hands, till i'm down to 3BB?

[Paragon]

All that triggered with me was "stay tight till 3 BB." That doesn't sound too thrilling.

I think you should really work on finding a hand to push before your FE essentially drops to nil. Otherwise you're praying for cards, and those break even for everyone.