Keeping patient in MTT

Hello.

I would describe myself very much as a `rock` in the early to middle parts of a tourny. I only start to open up a little when we get down to the last 20, becoming more open if I get to the final table.

I`m writing this now as I am sitting in a 204 entry rebuy, I`m 40th out of 69, sitting on about 20 times the bb.

Do any of you guys play the same way??? I sometimes sit for an hour on line and u r lucky if I play 1 or 2 hands. Having said that, when I play a hand I normaly win the pot about 75% of the time (early to middle part of tourny I am talking here. Obviously, when I open up my % drops)

I suppose what I do for the early & middle of the tourny is play the cards, not the players very much.

I`ve been playing poker for about 7 months, so is this a good strategy and how long do you think it will be when I can loosen up earlier?

I`m now 36th out of 63!!!

Cheers guys

theres no right or wrong answer. if your table is passive, you play aggressive and raise/re-raise often before the flop. if your table is loose and aggressive, tighten up . I prefer to play a lot of hands in the early portions of tournaments and try to accumulate a big stack or bust out early. i'd rather have a big stack going down the stretch and go for a win than be clinging to a short stack and bust out on the bubble or just ITM.

I agree with Dingo, depends on the circumstances.

Having said that, I do tend towards the style you describe in most tourneys I enter. Not being a rich man, I usually play $10 buyin or less. At that level, there are a lot of dumb players. You don`t need to be clever. Just wait for a premium hand, bet it hard and double up. There is nearly always some mug who will call. They don`t seem to notice that you folded the last 20 in a row and can be assumed to have a good hand when you come on strong.

I usually change gears, loosen up and start stealing some time in the second hour, depending on the situation.

I`ve finished in the money 23 times in the last 6 months, including 6 final tables, so this method has been fairly successful for me.


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U play $10 and less Egon? In connection with the quote above, how many MTT have you played in during that 6 month period?

Ronaldadio

You should play tight throught the early-middle stages. When the blinds get bigger, you need to pick your spots to bluff before your stack gets lower. If the table is playing tight as well, bluff more often. If the table is playing loose, bluff less often and play your good hands aggressively.

118. Two or three a day, some days. A lot fewer in the last month, since I did an analysis of my results and realised I was getting better $ per hour from SNGs.

Now I`ve adopted a different approach, I play mainly SNGs to build my bankroll and, a couple of times a week, invest some of the gain in a satellite MTT for one of the big tournies, looking to maybe win a really serious prize.


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being a rock is the right thing to do untill the later stages of a tournament. Unless you are in a $30 or more tourny online. If the rounds are less then 12 minutes then you may have to use luck rather then skill. In the lower end tournaments there are to many players that just dont have a clue and you cant read them correctly. Most of the time after the break most of the idiots are out. Then become aggressive after the first ten minutes after the break when most people are just trying to nurse their stacks to make the money.

i dont think rock is right. you just have to be a more tight than normal aggressive player. and loosen up as blinds increase and then tighten back up if you make the final table and play it like a SNG