Tournament play tweaks

I've been playing a lot of MTT tournaments lately, usually 500 people +, and haveb been trying to tweak my game to get better performances. Prior to the last few weeks or so, I hdnt gotten the results i had wanted to i tried to do a few different things in my tournament play, and its worked thusfar. Now, the couple things i have done different arent most likely textbook, and heck, they may not even be logically as sound as i think, but theyve worked for me; just wanted to see what u guys think.

First thing ive done, is cut down on the chips i lose calling hands pre because of pot odds. Ya know, a few people call pre, ur small blind, cost u a lil to call, u do with junk, and end up missing or getting pushed out; only rarely do u make any sort of hand. In these situation ive folded everytime save for when the pot odds is at least double the number of others players in the pot besides u. Now, as i said, i didnt read this anywhere, and i havent tried working the numbers, so i dont know if its mathematically sound, but ive found that; by folding these hands, it demonstrates a tighter image, and ive found that im able to get away with plays in the future because "im the guy that wont put in an extra 80 chips in a 480 pot". Remember, my rule: ya got 3 players in the pot pre, ya gotta have better than 6:1 odds to see the flop with a marginal hand. It seems like the sacrifice of seeing the flop, is well worth the boost in table image and the chips you save.

And secondly, and it kinda goes along with the first thing. Is that i imagine that every chip i have is two chips. Its the chip itself, plus the potential value of doubling it. So if you call away chips in a loose play kinda situation, youre losing having the chip itself, and whats its worth when you double.

Ive found that doing these two things, have given me a tigher image at the table, and have resulted in me being in better situations late in tourneys because of my chip management. What do you guys think?? Am i a tight wad? Should i loosen up? or am i spot on??


-0max

This is too tight. You saw what i can read from people by watchin the game (AK vs AQ vs 88 AHEM AHEM) and the inability to complete from the small blind isnt one. In the range you are talking about of games, and even the higher limits, noone will pay that close attention to this. Your tightness as a whole will be noted, but not particular plays.

The 2nd part makes sense. As its true. Tho really its 9x chips, as at a 9handed table, you can always stack the entire table.

Your game worked fine from what i watched, the 33 vs 88 was lucky, but everyone needs a lucky hand to go deeper.

The only thing is, IMO, you do put alot of value on big draws. At the stage you were in, with a UTG limper, AT in lateish position with the amount of people in the pot is a fold or big raise. Betting the flop is fine, but with only 3 definate outs, and 3 more probable ones, getting into big draw situations at that stage wasnt sensible.

First of all, LOL at the ak aq 88. :-D. Also, that 24 ko was a joke (if you couldnt tell by the 33 all in). I was gonna meet my girl after i busted in the FTOPS, but u and ndn goaded me into playing :-). That and the 7.50 KO's... which are the shiz by the way. I knwo u never met me or anything before.... but do u REALLY think id make that play unless i had to be somewhere. (mind u i left for 2 hours after that and came back... where u think i went).


But yea, to stress, the new running theme in my play is that each chips has mroe value than it seems. As i said, every chips you lose, is itself, and what it could potentially be. When i constantly keep that thought in my mind, i find that good chip management, as well as overall good discipline simply follows.

-0max

I would say in the early stages in a MTT this is sound advice. It the mid-late stages, I found that people tend to loosen up in attempts at stealing the higher blinds, thus resulting in more oppurtunities in getting bigger pots if ya got the cards to catch em doing it. Catching blinds thefts(who often times will try to protect themselves when you reraise them) in the late stages and end game has helped me come from dead last bubble to take the lead very late in MTT, so i try to stick around and just wait for big hands, and let the looser crazies go at it.

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Originally Posted by PANAMHIEST

I would say in the early stages in a MTT this is sound advice. It the mid-late stages, I found that people tend to loosen up in attempts at stealing the higher blinds, thus resulting in more oppurtunities in getting bigger pots if ya got the cards to catch em doing it. Catching blinds thefts(who often times will try to protect themselves when you reraise them) in the late stages and end game has helped me come from dead last bubble to take the lead very late in MTT, so i try to stick around and just wait for big hands, and let the looser crazies go at it.

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Actually thats some good advice. I bet theres a point in the tournament where ya gotta switch, every ones different im sure. But yea, for the early stages, thats how i play. And then later, you gotta open up your play a lot, cause your not going to have the opportunities u do earlier caue of the blinds. Nice, ill use that.

-0max