How do u build your stack early in MTT???

Hello.

I`m back playing MTT again but I seem to be in a position where I`m always playing catch up.

I know a lot of the guys say they are happy to stay at about average stack for the best part of the tourny, but it would be nice if from time to time I had a reasonable amount of chips throughout the tourny.

I know I don`t steal blinds enough, so a bit of advice on what is your blind stealing hand requirement - at the level I have dropped back to <$10 I find that in the early part of the tourny an attempt to steal the blinds will get a call.

So I then sit waiting for a decent hand and when it comes it has to be played perfectly to pick up as many chips as possible. Of course, this then entices the fish to come along with u, so you odds of winning the pot diminish!!!

Any thoughts guys???

Patience, like you said, is the key. You are probably not going to steal many blinds that early in a small stakes MTT. Play you good hands aggressively and you will gradually build your stack.

If it is a rebuy tournament then I'll be a little more aggressive pushing with 1010 or better A10+ K9+ KQ QJ and others.

Turbos are a different story and aggression is a must early, if you don't pickup a few chips quickly you'll soon be into push/fold mode.

I guess my theory is that I am fine with my chipstack as long as I don't have to play push/fold. I try to pick my spots and fire away.

one place is when everyone tightens up because the cutoff dont be scared and risk all of your chips for maybe get 1.5 times your money because if you do make it it may help you get through the next couple cutoffs

Don`t worry about stealing blinds until the BB reaches about 1/10th of the starting stack. There is no point in taking the risk when the gains are small. Better to sit back and build a tight image.

If you haven`t seen it already, there is an Article on the subject:

http://www.cardschat.com/blind-stealing.php

You guys think its just part of the job - sitting and waiting???

What about the next part, being when you get a good hand. In the early parts of MTT should you play hands like AQ, AK, 99, 1010, etc - should you be looking to see a cheap flop???

Different players have different styles, Ron. There is no one correct way.

Personally, I will look to see a cheap flop from late position while the blinds are low, especially if I am holding something with the possibility to make a concealed monster if I hit the flop hard.

In other words, a small pair looking for a set, or connectors looking for the straight. Suited cards are less useful. Unless the other players at the table are very loose, they will be wary of a board with flush possibilities and unwilling to risk a large part of their stacks.

From Early or Mid position, I will play very tight during the first hour of a freezeout and bin anything less than a Group 1, 2 or 3 hand. Even a 3 may go in the muck, depending on reads and situation.

My aim is to win one big pot and double up by the first break. I don`t care about contesting small pots, too much risk for too little gain.

YES!

I played 11+ hrs and must have folded a few hundred hands on the tourney I eventually won.
There is no reason to panic early on in a big MTT.
Just wait and wait and wait until you get big hands to play or suffer the consequences of limping/folding a bunch of hands until you have no choice to push with any two when you are certain to get called by a better hand.
Play your position when you can....that's how you steal pots.... postion is everything....

My advice is, don't play loose (there is no reason to be entering pots with weak hands early on), but at the same time don't play too tight. Think about it, there are a lot of chips currently belonging to weak players that are up for grabs at the start. If you're playing like a rock, the donks will stack off with top pair to someone else. Your implied odds are very good at the beginning.

Also, it matters less if you bust out within the first half hour than if you bust out on the bubble. Think about your true win rate. This will be higher if you bust out early on and use your time to enter another tournament. This is another reason for not playing too tight early on, and taking some risks.

Be a bit more specific on what risks you mean.

One thing for sure is that when the weaker players are in a pot with u it will be near impossible to bluff them out of a pot. If after a flop they are 2 to a flush they will see that as a monster!!! Any Ace in their hand, regardless of kick, they will see as an overcard to the board, and the list goes on

I'm not suggesting you try to bluff people out. Just play your best poker and value bet strong hands from late position. Don't try to be tricky and slowplay. Just play like in a cash game, call small raises with low pairs and suited connectors especially if multi-way. Work out who's playing tight and who's splashing around. Raise in late position with any playable hand. If you hardly play any pots, people will probably notice and you'll end up just winning the blinds when you get dealt Aces.

You're basically saying players won't fold a flush draw or an Ace overcard, but that's good because it's a mistake that is profitable for you, so just value bet away. You may get mistaken for a donkey and people won't give you credit for a hand.

TAG, wait. It will come. Though I have not done it yet, I winch at AA, and have thought about dropping them in the first few hands to a multiway pot.
I have dropped KK first hand though.

Best thing that happens in my opinion is to be card dead the first 3 orbits. By then, often anyways, the group has calmed down, and perhaps even gone to sleep, knowing it will be a long frind. For the next 5-10 orbits, the picking seems ripe! There is some point however when that group awakens from that slumber. Usually one hand before I realize it with a big loss. But by then I usually find that my stack has increased a bunch.

Sensing when the group is sleeping is a good thing. Do try to hear the alarm clock though.

I think tosborn's tactics are the way to go, its basically what i do. I try to atleast triple 2nd highest stack on my table by going hard with a-10 combos and up, then I bully the lower ones with average cards like j-10 q-9 q-10 k-10. I make sure that whoever's still in the hand can't hurt my stack that much. Pick them apart like flies, at this point in time my stack would have normally reached top 10 or top 20 depending on how big the tourney is (good practicing with large freerolls with around 4000 to 5000 people). Do it really early, and you should be chip leader by the first break. This tactic has taken me to chipleader by first break so many times it's not funny. The next bit is upto you... keeping your lead/stack up high. Now is the time to play carefully and fold on anything you think might beat you, even if the other player bluffs... dont worry, you'll most likely take that person down within the next few hands. bluffers dont last long. good luck!

i usually do it by winning pots or sexual favors. depends on the day.

It depends on your table. If my table is loose and has a lot of limpers, I'll go ahead and limp behind to try and scoop a big pot. If the table is tighter, I tend to raise more. But during the early stages of tournament play, my hand requirements for raising are much higher; because the blinds are so low. Less raising can also build up tighter image, which you can use to play more aggressively later on. (More for sng tournaments as you get bumped around in MTTs) Hope this helps - Doorbread

Good advice.

GOOD ADVICE YOURSELF

A lot of it is table dependant. if people are playing a lot of big pots and raising a lot, you have to wait for a big hand get paid off.

The the table is loose and passive, limp in for implied odds and hope to strike gold or steal pots.

On UB the tables are generally passive, so i do a lot of limping with junkie suited hands or connected hands. I am looking to flop two pair and make a nice check raise or flop a draw and chase it cheaply and maybe get paid off big.

I will call min flop bets pretty light hoping to either pick up something on the turn or steal it with a raise on a scare card.

blinds aren't worth stealing, but pots are.

Early in the tournament you chip EV is most closely aligned with your $EV, so this is the time when you want to take the chances. Playing a lot of pots will also increase your ability to read your opponents. If you make a few small bluffs and they get called, well so what, you can come back quickly in the early part of the game. This has also helped my NL cash game.

My VPIP runs in the 20-50% range depending on how aggressive the table is and how frisky I feel. 35% if pretty typical though.

For the most part I only play the buck MTTs on UB, especially the rebuys, but I have a good record with a couple of wins and a lot of final tables. I don't play that often anymore though.

There are to tactics play tight or play aggresive and try to steal blinds.