At what stakes do MTTs run better?

Trying anything to figure out how to play some better poker and the freerolls are just tough tough on ACR. I bubbled 11 times this last week alone from 11th to 19th and another dozen from 35 to 85. I cash in these once or twice a week if lucky.

I play tight but aggressive and find myself usually way ahead of very very loose players but am getting run over by runner runner and 4 card flushes , gut shots etc at a very large clip.

Im not a gambler at heart so have never played anything more than microstakes and freerolls but im curious at what stakes or entries does one start seeing less full blown donkey play? Im wondering if my playstyle would do better there and my hairline would appreciate less frustration haha. Thanks in advance.

No matter what stakes you play poker is poker and people are people good luck

Yes just because you move up in stakes doesn't mean that's going to change how you "run". In fact the games are going to be tougher as you climb the stakes because you will have to start making some tough decisions.

Keep playing a solid fundamental game and you'll catch an upswing. Variance is inevitable. The best thing to do is play within your bankroll (BRM) and to continue to better your game.

I know it has been beaten into the ground but patience is key.

Great video Hugh! and he's a canuck,lol SO! You want to play with the big boys!! Sick hand! :rock:

Hi BadluckBubba,
try to change your strategy, and open up a bit, hit the betting little bit more and raise/re-raise.
And if you make some $$$$ from micro's and freerolls, why not spend them on some nice tournament, where you can test it with your new strategy....
Get out of your comfort zone.

I wish you the best luck.

BadluckBubba said:

Trying anything to figure out how to play some better poker and the freerolls are just tough tough on ACR. I bubbled 11 times this last week alone from 11th to 19th and another dozen from 35 to 85. I cash in these once or twice a week if lucky.

I play tight but aggressive and find myself usually way ahead of very very loose players but am getting run over by runner runner and 4 card flushes , gut shots etc at a very large clip.

Im not a gambler at heart so have never played anything more than microstakes and freerolls but im curious at what stakes or entries does one start seeing less full blown donkey play? Im wondering if my playstyle would do better there and my hairline would appreciate less frustration haha. Thanks in advance.

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Freerolls are easiest tournaments to play poker. It will be much harder to play if you move up stakes.

Freeroll could be tough with loads of gamblers just getting all in every hand. Especially getting busting out by the gamblers with backdoor straight draw and get it at the river.

KingCurtis said:

Yes just because you move up in stakes doesn't mean that's going to change how you "run". In fact the games are going to be tougher as you climb the stakes because you will have to start making some tough decisions.

Keep playing a solid fundamental game and you'll catch an upswing. Variance is inevitable. The best thing to do is play within your bankroll (BRM) and to continue to better your game.

I know it has been beaten into the ground but patience is key.

Click to expand...

Maybe i should have been more clarified. Im not worried about my "run". I was referring to how people will stop calling my all in after the flop with no pair and no draw and hitting runner runner to beat me. Or raising every hand all in preflop etc.

dino said:

Hi BadluckBubba,
try to change your strategy, and open up a bit, hit the betting little bit more and raise/re-raise.
And if you make some $$$$ from micro's and freerolls, why not spend them on some nice tournament, where you can test it with your new strategy....
Get out of your comfort zone.

I wish you the best luck.

Click to expand...

That is the thing with the freerolls. I really really feel like I understand them and im running deep more times than not. The problem is when you raise, almost ever, you get multiple callers or people who jam with any 2 cards. This should be profitable with good hands but its barely over 50% win rate and when you have to dodge 10 or 12 of these per tourny, well the math isnt good.

Nothing better than playing guys I have a few hundred to a couple 1000 hands on with stats and they have it on me. You can actually use your tight image to bluff someone off a better hand. In freerolls......there is no bluffing lol. You will get called and even with the best hand you will lose a lot. Im curious if people take better care in what they play as the stakes go up.

most of them who switch from freerolls to mtt, start playing very tight then they switch a bit and open up their games, means they start playing with wide variety of starting hands, especially in the early stages, trying to steal so many blinds they can, and trapping others with small connectors, small pairs, etc...



With freerolls, what you can lose?
Nothing but some time.
If you're bored at home, and don't have nothing better to do, then why not, and mostly people try to steal a lot and with "any 2 cards can win" mentality, they often go all in even without good starting hands.
On other forums and games, you can see that a lot.

Usually, I try to make it wort wile and collect so many chips I can early in the game, when they play very lose and open with any 2 cards, so later in the tournament (freeroll) you can make it easier ITM.
In other words, I never go for min cash, always aim for FT and win, but doesn't work that way all the time....


In real money games, where people have to buy in, it's little bit different game.
And if you play on the weekend (lower lvl tourn), it's completely other game than on week days, since many weekend warriors and players come in, and trying to have fun, then mostly they don't care if they win or lose, since they didn't put much of their $$ on the line.

Just my $.02

BadluckBubba said:

Maybe i should have been more clarified. Im not worried about my "run". I was referring to how people will stop calling my all in after the flop with no pair and no draw and hitting runner runner to beat me. Or raising every hand all in preflop etc.

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You are still talking about your luck or "run" here....

Think about it for a second...would you rather them calling you with better hands?? You want these people calling bad all the time. Eventually they won't hit runner runner. We always remember the bad hands so it seems like it's happening all the time.

I feel bad because these are all cliché responses but very crucial to understand and grasp.

Free rolls are hard to win as they are literally a crap shoot in early stages. Any 2 cards equals all in time. Although after decent amount of time the players do start to tighten up and play better. If you climb the stakes the games will definitely get much more difficult and not easier. My best advice is grind out roll with free rolls or if you have extra money to deposit do it can take long time run up free roll bankroll. It is completely possibly and will teach you ton about poker and how to grind if you choose to do it the hard way. Also poker is sick game it can make the best of us lose our hair so don't sweat it too much just try to move on and play your best game and keep learning. I hope this advice will help you out.

KingCurtis said:

You are still talking about your luck or "run" here....

Think about it for a second...would you rather them calling you with better hands?? You want these people calling bad all the time. Eventually they won't hit runner runner. We always remember the bad hands so it seems like it's happening all the time.

I feel bad because these are all cliché responses but very crucial to understand and grasp.

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King my point in the post was that I was asking about at what stakes do you quit seeing the donkey play like you do in freerolls. Im wanting to figure out if playing tight poker in higher stakes might be better off for me since Im having to avoid multiple mine fields in freerolls.

Not a question about my personal running as much as it is............how do people play as stakes get higher type of running. Ex: AA Utg 2 with a 9% vpip mid way through tourny. If I open 4x bb am I getting 3 calls and 2 jams, then I have to jam, then another for a 4 way all in lol.

I dont complain about losing these hands. I know im dead. Just wanting to figure out if I see a lot less of the junk play as it moves up and if so about where stakes wise.

BadluckBubba said:

Maybe i should have been more clarified. Im not worried about my "run". I was referring to how people will stop calling my all in after the flop with no pair and no draw and hitting runner runner to beat me. Or raising every hand all in preflop etc.

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That is always going to happen in a freeroll because they have nothing at risk. As you move up you will see less of this, but the play can get more difficult as others posted. I personally think the 5 to 10.00 range is a great middle ground if you play TAG.

It is true what says Hugh Blair and King Curtis, I have been winning tickets of $ 55 and have played them and many times the players are played in such a way that they do not seem to care about the money, but there are also very good players and serious, the more you level up, you will find better players but also others who think they are playing a freeroll

Wanting less bad players is like wanting less money. You just need to adjust, maybe try looking to increase your bet sizing for value against donks and decreasing it when you have a speculative hand. If they are really donks they wont care about what the bet size means. Another thing you can do is focus on position more, then you will lose less when you fold and can win more when you hit.