Sit and Gos and Overall Strategy

I understand that a tight-agressive strategy is the best for sit and gos, but am wondering is there are folks that employ largely a loose-aggressive approach and do constantly well. And if so, some insight with the loose-aggressive approach in this particular format.

No, LAG isn't optimal for SnG's at all. The blinds go up too quickly basically. All sng's are going to degrade to a match in which all decisions are if shoving is +EV, and then you're either shoving preflop or folding.

Playing LAGgy to accumulate chips works with long levels and small blind structure, because people have larger M's and are willing to cut loose from marginal hands, since they know they'll have a better spot.

In Sng's you're either playing small stakes, where there are lots of loose donks, or you're playing higher where people understand correct sng strategy. If the former is the case, lag breaks down since your fold equity disappears. In the latter, you're going to take blinds quite a bit, and if you get into a pot, you're probably going to be quite far behind, and end up bleeding off your stack when there's no real need.

Even doubling up early on does little to advance your position. It's not bad to do so, but all it really does is delay how long it takes before you personally have to switch to a shove/fold preflop strategy.

I think you need to understand in low stakes SNG's half your table is going to be LAG and half is going to be TAG. Watch your first hand or 2 and see who the all inners are, then take advantage of them when you have a great hand. After these LAG's have won an early all in, they then try to be a big stack bully. What I have found from these players, they dont like the pressure applied to them. I may limp a strong hand against them, wait for their reraise and then come over the top of them. Many times I will see them muck their cards. I like to develop a TAG image through the first several levels, as later on in the SNG it plays to your advantage as you are able to steal a couple of pots.

Every time, i find a LAG i kill him. I will wait for a hand and play it TAG, this has worked. sometimes i will even pull off a bluff, but i won't show it.

Yes from time to time you will see a LAG with a good chip stack, but you will see some TAGs trapping them in to a hand. I seen this last night.
TAG is the way to go..

As usual... it really all 'depends'. Generally speaking it is accepted that the key approach to Sng's (especially in early levels) is TAG.. but for good players this is not always the case.
There are some great articles online that consider an 'alternative approach' to playing Sng's and who are very successful at it (Jennifear makes reference to this alternative style in some of her strategy articles..."Jennifear" is a successful micro stakes SNG player ($10Sng's) and is a successful SNG coach).

Noticing above that some members stating here that "LAG" is in reference to the early 'allin'rs'.... this isn't necessarily indicative of a LAG-style of play (more so Maniacal... or just out & out aggro-fish).

If you're curious as to what style you might want to consider for taking down SNG's and if you don't have ALOT of experience, then you'd probably for sure want to stick to a TAG style approach to them.
If you're super interested in a strategy article re: playing SNG's LAG style, I could dig one up for you but would take a bit of time. pm if you want.

Get the SNG bible - Colin Moshman's SNG Strategy

Jillychemung said:

Get the SNG bible - Colin Moshman's SNG Strategy

Click to expand...

For sure get this ^^^^ if you're interested in improving your SNG game. However Moshmann's book doesn't actually go into discussion on an 'alternate method' for playing SNG's but imo if you study this book your SNG game will improve 100% (mine did).