9 handed SnG with 3 left

Its down to 3 and you're all in the money. One player is a loose aggressive player that has been up and down in stack size. The other player has played few hands and when he does it has been passive. He hasn't played without Top pair and rarely raises. Assume the stack sizes are even.

This situation has occured multiple times the past couple of weeks in $1 SnGs.

At this point I'm wondering what I should be doing and who to try and target. It will be difficult to target and get chips out of the Tight passive player because the LAG is always in every hand and usually raising. On the other hand I can focus on the LAG, but i'll have to watch for the passive player to make a big hand. It will also be risking more chips and I could easily play tight into second place.

Up until now I have played tight and waited for big hands to take on the LAG player. Usually this ends up leaving me the short stack when we are heads up. So far the tight passive player has been eaten alive by the blinds or the LAG making a hand. Its frustrating to see that the tight passive chips end up in the LAG's stack.

Once heads up I know that I can take pots down and double up with mediocre holdings compared to the any two cards stradegy of my opponent. The problem is that if I go too card dead the blinds will eat me up, i'll become desperate, thus having to push with average hands. I've come out about 50/50 in these situations. Sometimes I take first and sometimes 2nd. I want to win because obviously 1st gets more money. Is there a better way to handle the situation when we're 3 handed? Should I focus on trying to play back at the LAG player throwing chips around and then pound down the tight passive player heads up?

If you are generally finishing 1st or 2nd in equal parts (and no 3rds) when you reach the final 3, you're doing pretty good. I'm not so sure you can adapt any one strategy that will work much better.

If you call the Lag's raise while on the blinds, look to check-raise them more often.
Don't fall into the trap of playing back at them.... it might be the time they wake up with a hand.
Tend to call down lighter (ie. MPGK).

I would play it like I am already heads up with the LAG player. The tight player will probally lay low until one of you two are out, so he won't be a factor.
So I would play back at the LAG player right away. First let him push you around for a couple hands. Then throw in some check raises. That will probally slow him down. Be aggressive.

When you get ITM you should play more agressive than before. Check raising a lot with not so good hands.

This is because the blinds will be high and you can't afford to wait for the nuts to acumulate chips.

Steal a lot and be very agrssive.

I'd look for opportunities to play the LAG, especially in position. The tight player won't do anything without a hand, so you can adjust accordingly when he enters pots. But if you tighten up as well, that makes the LAG table captain as both of you give up your blinds easily, and don't contest his very often. Not the best situation.

Also, once you're in the money, the payouts tend to favor playing to win. assuming a payout ratio of 5 3 2.

I agree with this. I will let the lag push me around a few hands then drop the hammer on him with a big check raise, they almost always fold. Once in a while the lag will wake up with a real hand but most of the time they will fold. I don't exactly ignore the tight player because after you drop the hammer on the lag you can usually get away with a large pf raise the next hand and steal their blinds, especially if the tight player is in the bb. He's going to try and lay low while you duke it out with the lag.

i would concentrate to kick out the loose aggressive player first by playing loose tight.Then i will play tight aggressive with the tight player...And in the mean time if the LAG and tight players are having a showdown, jst stay away until u have a winning hand. This would be my style of playing...

I think when the LAG player is out and you are HU with the tight player, then I would play him LAG, unless he changes his strategy.

IDK how deep you are but usually when I get to 3 players left stacks are sort of shallow. Its pretty much push/fold poker with stacks of <10-15BBs. I'd be looking to steal the tight/passive guys blinds with either a min raise or 2.5xbb if you get smooth called or raised look out. i'd be looking to play back at the looose/agressive player with meduim strengh hands maybe even try a stop+go(call a raise OOP then shove into him) but i would of liked to see this guy fold to aggression before this. but for the most part 3 handed its time to be loose/agressive yourself.

I think like with anything else, "It depends". If the tight player continues to fold like a jellyfish, then you ought to play as if you are playing HU against the LAG (as many of suggested already).

I think you have to assume that the LAG's range of hand is ginormous once everyone has made the money and push back/shove with any reasonable hand