MTT Question

moments · Jan 06,2005, 08:55 PM

At what point in an MTT do you decide to take those coinflips or 60-40's?

I ask because I play a very tight game. I'm usually raising three times the BB with any hand I play (for disguise) and then I react/bet aggressively when I think I'm in the lead. I will bluff at pots, but as soon as I'm called or reraised I won't put anymore chips in. This style has worked great for me (I make it into the money far more times than I miss it) but I'm always facing an uphill battle when I'm ITM. I usually bust out somehwere around the final 3 or 4 tables. Although I did take home a 7th place finish on stars for $1400 once, and final tabled one other time for a hundred or so.

I just finished a 900 player MTT and busted around 300th. My chip stack had fallen to about half the average after losing a pot. I still had 2000 chips. The blinds were 150/300. And usually here I don't panic. I like to always go out with a good hand, and find when I'm the small stack it's easy to double and triple up if you get a premium hand. But instead...

Here's what happened. It's folded to the late position to a guy who has the button and blinds covered in chips about 3 to 1. He shoves his stack all-in. The last two fold and I look down and see Tc9c. Normally this is auto fold for me, but I thought I would try something new. I figured he was stealing and didn't have a pair based on his previous steals. He probably any A or K, or two face cards. So I decided to call. He flips over AJ. An ace flops, I hit a 9 on the turn, and the river is unkind. I go out 300th and I'm wondering if that sweet run of cards was just around the corner. Or if I should of at least waited for a small PP?

Thoughts anyone? When to gamble meaning a coinflip or 60-40, nothing too crazy.

And all_aces I'm hoping for an essay-like response from you in particular. LOL.

yubyub1978 · Jan 06,2005, 11:07 PM

I prefer to start taking"coin flips" when my stack starts to dip below the average.
I would rather gamble at this stage and make a move, over letting myself get bullied around until im short stack and am in a position to get called purely on the size of my stack.

if you win one of the coin flips when you an average to slighty below average you put yourself in a nice position chip wise.

Personaly i am not very comfortable playing short stacked(Actively working on applying some spackle around that leak in my game) and would prefer not to but myself in a position where i am short chipped so i am willing to gamble a little to stay afoat and try not to make it an issue.

Tilter · Jan 07,2005, 02:11 PM

I don't think calling an all in for 6-7x with a suited connector really helps. Best if you are the one pushing it, or if you have 2-3xBB left, which gives you a good pots odds on the hand. But if you don't have to take those 50-50 chances, you can still do well. I prefer to hold off from those and get chips through agressive betting.