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A Enhardt · High Card Joined: 05 Sep 2005 Posts: 4

Hi,

This happens to me every now and then: I reach the final table, but have played tighter than Harringtons boxers - and find myself shortstacked.

Eventually you'll come up on the round where the next time you have to post BB you're all-in. During these final hands (from the one where you have the button to the one when the BB reaches you again) how would you play it?

I'm thinking two things:

1. Wait for a good/decent/suited hand and go all-in preflop?
2. Wait for a hand where there's been a raise and a call/reraise (to get the most out of the all-in if I get lucky) before moving in (with any hand)?

Maybe you have another tip that can help me (I know..."don't play so tight"....)?

Thanks for taking the time!
Cheers

Jaconda78 · Message Board Junkie Joined: 06 Jul 2005 Posts: 4177

You should push all in well before you're down to your last big blind. When you have less than 10x the BB, you want to find the best hand you can expect to see (I'd go as low as KT, maybe K9 at a tight table) and if nobody else has raised the pot, go all in. You need to do this while a)your bet is still big enough to be scary; and b)doubling up will still give you a chance at the tourny.

NickCC · Pair Joined: 23 Jun 2005 Posts: 26 Location: Fairfield,CA

I was on a final table blinds were 4K/8K ante 1K when I was down to about 62K chips. I went all in on a A-9 and got called by a 7-7. Flop came down A-blank-7 and that was all she wrote...

KGBlovesOreos · Moderator Joined: 28 Jun 2005 Posts: 5313 Location: VA

i always find myself in situations like this, and the way i try and double up isnt by trying to look for a decent hand like KJ, KQ (these hands can be easily dominated)... instead, i look for two live cards like suited connectors or something like 10-8, 10-7... these cards are more likely to be live cards so they give u a better chance of doubling up...

many times i have seen a shortstack to go all in w/ a small ace or king and run into a bigger ace or king... it happens too much, and the shortstack should always be looking for live cards instead

Jaconda78 · Message Board Junkie Joined: 06 Jul 2005 Posts: 4177

I'd rather have A5 against KQ than have 10-8. But that's just me...

You are likely to be called with something like KQ, because they know that you are shortstacked and have to push with mediocre hands. I'd prefer to go in as a favorite. I like to increasey my chances of being a favorite by as much as possible, by playing the best hand I can.

iuz the old · Posted: Thu Sep 08, 2005 2:27 am Post subject:

If you know your opponent has KQ then thats fine but potential callers are going to show you hands that your A5 is going to hate. If you are short stacked any ace will look you up whereas any ten wont. I think middle suited connectors are generally better hands to push in this situation but when you are short look for A8 or better. If you are really short as in the first example then being first to enter the pot is the most important issue - cards are largely irrelevant (HOH II , Inflection points). You really need to keep pushing first in at least once a round , until called when hopefully you will have something.
The one thing you dont want to do is move in on a raiser with a medium hand as you are basically calling all in against a better than average to very strong hand. You need to be first in as taking the blinds and antes will double you up in and of itself. Make weak- medium hands call you , dont go all in when you know you are up against something better!

Howard Lederer · Full Tilt Pro Joined: 20 Jun 2005 Posts: 38

I do everything I can to not get into that situation. My goal as I start to get short stacked is to take action before I get below 10x the big blind. As I approach that number I wait for a decent hand and then I move all in, or I wait for a very strong hand I can reraise all-in agianst an opener. Using this strategy, I can sometimes build my stack back up without ever turning my hand over. But, if I do get called, at least I can double up. If you adopt this strategy, it becomes almost impossible to get down to 1 big blind.

Howard Lederer

torgeauxSA · Flush Joined: 26 Jun 2005 Posts: 137

A Enhardt · High Card Joined: 05 Sep 2005 Posts: 4

Thanks for the input everyone. Obviously I am too picky with my hands sometimes Rolling Eyes

. I'll take you guys up on your advice and hopefully improve my play in these situations.

cardplayer52 · Straight Joined: 25 Jan 2008 Posts: 101

With 12 big blinds I start thinking push. But now it's too late. I go w/ option C wait till your UTG and push. Sort of like option two to maximise your odds if you wait till UTG you have a better chance of getting the best possible odds. But before that if you pick up any semi good hand push suited connectors pairs two high cards. I don't like to be the one calling I would rather be first in. BTW it's way better to go all in as a dog w/10 bb's than wait till you got 1bb.

Tiger VVoods · High Card Joined: 28 Feb 2008 Posts: 8 Location: Tourney

Howard,

Could you please define decent hands to push All-in at 10BB's and less!!!!!

LostOstrich · Posted: Mon Mar 10, 2008 10:20 pm Post subject:

Howard's point was that he will shove BEFORE he reaches the 10BB point, if he has a strong hand. Personally, I'll often extend this to an M approaching 10, if I have AK or 88+. As your stack decreases, so must your range widen, but as you become really short-stacked (M<6) you're looking more for situations than hands. Being first in to a pot is essential unless you have a top 10% hand, and having as few players as possible to act behind you is also a big advantage. The cards almost become irrelevant as your stack shrinks below M=5.

FlopDog7 · Posted: Thu Mar 13, 2008 6:04 pm Post subject:

Texas Golda · High Card Joined: 23 May 2008 Posts: 2

What do you do when you are card dead in a tournament? It never seems to fail: I'm doing really well in a tournament and I have a healthy chip stack. The last time, I was in a live tournament, I had 6,000 in chips, the antes were up to $50 and the blinds were 150/300. There were still 160 people left in the tournament and it paid down to 27.
Practically every hand someone was raising the big blind by 3x or more. And I'm card dead. I got no pocket pairs or even anything on Howard's Pre-flop strategy chart. I didn't even have a face card! So what do I do?
What I did do is wait for a good hand to push with and I didn't get one until I got down to 1600 in chips. I got an A-3 off suit. I was in middle position and no one opened yet. I went all in. One woman who was in the big blind called because she only had 175 more in chips. Only one other player called because he was chip leader and was looking to get two players out.
The chip leader had K-9 off-suit and the other player had 3-8 off-suit, so I'm ahead. A King came out on the flop and I didn't improve so I was out.
What could I have done differently? I can't believe that the pros just fold, fold, fold their way to a slow tournament death. So what do pros do when they are card dead?

ManilaDog · Posted: Fri May 23, 2008 6:13 pm Post subject:

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