Donk Day :)

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vcruz387

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So about a month ago I returned to playing online poker again. I have did a lot more reading and basically studying. I have participated in some live tourneys as well just to see if the books had helped in anyway. So the first week I played I cashed about 5 times (mostly in 9th place but that's a different conversation). So then when i found the articles on mtt tournaments I read everyone and the biggest thing that stood out to me was it kept restating never get your hand all in with a mediocre hand. So lately i have been folding a lot more preflop and to be truthful it seems to really be hurting me. I have not cashed in 3 weeks. I"m always low stacked late in the tourney and a lot of the folds I have been making are turning out to be bad because my hand would have held up in a lot of these situations. I think I'm just playing too tight now especially early where i use to catch some idiot doubling me up so i can buckle down until i get something really good.So for fathers day i have decided to play about 5 tourneys today where im going to chase and reraise and do every other thing i have been taught not to do early in a tourney. I will call this donk day it should make me feel alot better lol.:p
 
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Flsnookman

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Try to play a lot early if you can get in cheap. Good luck.
 
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AvaloNNN

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Agreed. In early stages you should play more hands, especially if you are deep enough. Plenty of fish willing to stack off with mediocre hands...
 
AugustWest

AugustWest

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Everything I've read says to be tight when the blinds are small.
I usually wind up kinda deep, but usually am short by the time the bubble happens.
I'm a nitty cash player, so I think that is why I don't do very well in the tournaments....
 
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DunningKruger

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The field is at its weakest during the beginning of the tourney. Get in on some fish n chips before everyone else does. Tight at the start would be more not calling off your stack with 99 AQo etc and not so much folding everything you're dealt because the blinds aren't high enough yet. Heh.
 
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deedbr

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I have changed my strategy to play more during the beginning of the tourney. However, I am not trying to get all in preflop with moderate hands. I am trying to see flops somewhat cheaply and busting out people that over value top pair.

Then when the tournament gets deeper I am trying to find out peoples ranges to come in over the top.

However, my strategy changes based on the table dynamics.
 
Michael Paler

Michael Paler

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Try sticking to what you have changed into doing, only do it at games with a better blind structure. Then, if it goes well, you can go back to those shorter ones and play how you used to. Seems like no one considers blind intervals when they play. Once I started playing 12-20 minute levels, my game started to suck something awful. That's because I was playing like I did at 5-8 minute level games.

If you are having more success with your new way until the later stages, maybe that's when you need to "shift gears" and return to your previous style.

And then loan it to me, that's where my weakness is right now.
 
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deedbr

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Try sticking to what you have changed into doing, only do it at games with a better blind structure. Then, if it goes well, you can go back to those shorter ones and play how you used to. Seems like no one considers blind intervals when they play. Once I started playing 12-20 minute levels, my game started to suck something awful. That's because I was playing like I did at 5-8 minute level games.

If you are having more success with your new way until the later stages, maybe that's when you need to "shift gears" and return to your previous style.

And then loan it to me, that's where my weakness is right now.

I don't focus as much on how many minutes the levels are. It does make sense that the change in levels will make a difference. If you like to jam it a lot and your foes have become more patient/selective with a slower blind structure they might pick you apart.

I try to pay more attention to stack sizes related to blinds and antes.
 
Michael Paler

Michael Paler

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I don't focus as much on how many minutes the levels are. It does make sense that the change in levels will make a difference. If you like to jam it a lot and your foes have become more patient/selective with a slower blind structure they might pick you apart.

I try to pay more attention to stack sizes related to blinds and antes.



Right, because If you like to open UTG with AA,KK,QQ,AK,AQ suited...20 min levels can see enough of these hands to open with in early position, so you will be alright. Once it gets down to a 12, 8 or 5 minute levels game, you have to widen your opening range accordingly or get short stacked by actually not playing enough hands! (I use ! there because most players play too many hands).

At three or five minutes it's real tough, you end up opening UTG with just about any two cards that are paint, even A-10, K-9, etc., if you want to stay alive. IOW, you have to "gamble" more. This could be a big reason that when you are in a free roll with 5 minute blinds, you see more UTG limping and the calling of raises out of position after that limp. They want to see a cheap flop if possible w A-10, K-9 UTG, so they limp in and just call any raise. They fail to realize that if you plan on doing that, you should have raised UTG anyway.

Now, if it is possible for you to only raise early in the game UTG w a "proper" starting hand (20 or 5 minute levels) then do it, because after the other players see that, then when you raise again UTG this is what they will often "assume" you have, but you will not! You are raising UTG w 44, 67, 89, etc. and they just fold to you because they think it's AK, etc., and they do not have a big ace. Keep in mind, if you do this, you need to be prepared to fold to a 3-bet when you get "caught" with that 44 UTG for 3x coming in; doing so, you make it look like maybe you had A-J or something and did not want to get mixed up w AK. Doing this, you are maintaining your "table image"and have "shifted gears". They will probably then only 3-bet you with that (AK) or better (AA,KK), because of the image you have created, they know you cannot have AK every time, but only you know you have opened up to a much wider range than they have. If they think you are a "nit" (only play big hands), you can play smaller ones and catch them off guard. If they think you are "loose" (bigger range), you play only big hands and still catch them off guard!

Whew, I love poker!!!!
 
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cashwig

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I think you should be playing tighter at the start of the tourney and open up more in the middle stages by trying to steal blinds and antes. Wait for people to stack off to you in the early stages. This doesn't mean don't play your suited connectors and small pairs early but it does mean try to get into good spots. Play them cheaply and fold if you don t hit, as for small pairs i like the no set no bet philosophy. In the later stages you must open up or be blinded off.
 
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