play to win or not to lose ??

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maloxu82

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Hi guys ,

Quick question for you - last freeroll I was in situation where they were 32 players left (27 places paid) , I was on 26 place with short stack (2200 in chips , blinds I don't remember but 150/300 or 200/400). And I must make a decision - don't take action , survive and get my 1$ or try to double up and try to get to final table ???

What are you guys doing in that spot ??
 
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Gaule44

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Hi guys ,

Quick question for you - last freeroll I was in situation where they were 32 players left (27 places paid) , I was on 26 place with short stack (2200 in chips , blinds I don't remember but 150/300 or 200/400). And I must make a decision - don't take action , survive and get my 1$ or try to double up and try to get to final table ???

What are you guys doing in that spot ??

That would all depend on the table factor,how long you been there, how tight loose aggressive you been. As they say play the players not the cards.
 
bellybuster7

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it all depends on you, if you have a 0 in the best couple win up to $ 1, and if it does not matter the amount of money for you to win the game
 
Robcv90

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With that amount of chips survive to win prize...and depends the hand that you have...with a good hand I play to win more chips eg AA KK QQ...
 
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ph_il

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Hi guys ,

Quick question for you - last freeroll I was in situation where they were 32 players left (27 places paid) , I was on 26 place with short stack (2200 in chips , blinds I don't remember but 150/300 or 200/400). And I must make a decision - don't take action , survive and get my 1$ or try to double up and try to get to final table ???

What are you guys doing in that spot ??
With blinds being at either 150/300 or 200/400, you only have ~7BBs to 5.5BBs. If we include antes, you're paying 690 to 920 in blinds and antes per rotation for an 8 handed table. So, you only have ~2.3 to 3 rotations to either find a hand and double up or get chipped out with your stack. That's only 18-24 hands.

On top of that, you have very little fold equity. So, if you let your stack dwindle down even more, you're likelygetting called if you decided to shove.

You do have the option of just folding and waiting. The problem, I see, with this is that you:

-are banking on that chance that 5 players will bust out before you do. Unless the bottom 5 players are sitting on 1BB or less, this might not be an optimal strategy since position in MTTs can fluctuate a lot. If a player in say 20th position suddenly jumps up to 3rd, this affects all of the players below and can easily push you out of your 26th position into 27th or lower.

-could be giving up +EV spots to get your money in that could give you a better chance at finishing deeper and, potentially, making more money.

To answer your question, I'd find spots to shove my short stack in to pick up blinds and antes. And I'd be doing this way before I fall down to 5-7 BBs, especially if the other short stacks at the table are playing tight and looking to just min-cash. I'll take advantage of that of by constantly applying pressure to them.

However, it would also depend on what is more important to you. If that winning that $1 is important and would be a big improvement on your BR, then I could understand wanting fold into the money. I'm not sure how effective it'll be given your stack being only 5-7 BBs and you'd probably have to at least steal a few blinds+antes or possibly double up at least once to stand a better chance of making it. Aggressive play > passive play in this situation.

If the min-cash isn't important to you, go for the win.
 
dino

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most definitely playing to win, not for min cash.
If you're playing for min cash, you will get in that state of mind, not a winning solution.
You may find yourself in many tournaments and "only" play for min cash, it's OK to, but, if you're playing for winning and take calculated risk, ....
Anyway, I wish you good luck
 
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redmast

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You're already in the money and then the probability of the stack to get the last table is small. I at low stack bb compared to less than 10 times, generally chose the most more or less in the cards and going allin. If you do not play, and wait until you win the Blyde sedyat not much more than $ 1. So, it is better to try your luck and play
 
jgreenman18

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Always play to win I am more aggressive at that stage of the tournament as many people become more passive. Also due to how it is a freeroll the prizes are usually more top heavy promoting even more aggressive play.
 
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Mauno

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Teoretically You should play your best play in any situation.
If your goal is to get paid ten probably you fold ands wich would be playable in other situation. Of course stack size is important to consider wen making decision.
 
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dragan malovic

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Depends on mentality. I always play for the win,that gave to me couple of the final tables, but never won it (because i am not so good in hands up) .Of courrs ,there is alot factors u should calculated .Just remember this a sentence :Next year this time we will be millionaire :D So sometimes u have to take a risk.
 
brno22

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generally all we play to make money, not to keep
 
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Chipsteal_jj

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play very tight and raise all in from a good position to double up or steal the blinds, even when stealing blinds keep in mind that you must have at least a hand with good odds because someone with a mediocre hand might call your raise and you'll lose.
Your end goal of the tournament should be to go as deep as possible and not just to make your money back.
 
max_cool20

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I always tend towards the final table!(all or nothing)
 
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subdylzep

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This happens often in many tournaments, however you will notice that most tournament players that do this for a living are not playing to simply make the cash as much as possible, if you do that you obviously make a profit but you arent going to cash everytime, 1 outta 3 is actually a great rate. basically this is how i see it, if you are very low around the bubble time you want to tighten your range, try to cash as best as possible to salvage at least something out of the tournament, the money shouldnt ever matter if you are playing the correct %s to your BR. If however you are very large or average stacked around the bubble you should loosen your range but never get overinvested in a hand, especially against a higher stack. The moral of the story is this, profitability for a MTT player is made by getting the top 3 finishes. if you have ever played for a living you realize that cashing under the final table will only get u far enough to continue playing more tournaments, if you never make the final table or more importantly i think the top 3 you arent going to be profitable. So take your chances when the opportunity arises. If you are super short tighten up and try to give yourself a chance but dont pass up pairs or some nice suited paint that may propell you to the middle or top of the field, and this is important, pay attention to pot odds, if 3 people have already gone all in and you are sitting with a suited 10J or a pair of 99s you probably aren't ahead but its a perfect situation for you to hit and give yourself a chance to actually make it in the tournament. You arent always going to have the best hand and you arent always going to win with the best hand, you have a lot of things to take in to account when playing long MTTs. I can see how the importance of 1$ is going to give you some money to play with, but honestly when you are playing without a bankroll you'll lose it quicker than it took for you to win it. You have to have some awareness of relativity, of course it is cash, which u probably have 0$ of on your act, but honestly when people are playing with pennies or low stakes online chances are they dont care and they are gambling, so your money is just going to go to someone else once you win it. My advice is if you are looking for a good tournament and want to win consistantly, play some higher stakes where people care a little more and make sure you stick to a bankroll. In a freeroll situation i understand your desire to have some money, but you have to at some point play the %s of your bankroll or it'll all be for nothing. Furthermore, every tournament should be played the same, and in these bubble situations tighten when low stacked, loosen when high stacked and dont over invest, but make sure you give yourself a chance to make the FT. Gl in future events.
 
sar1767

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Hi guys ,

Quick question for you - last freeroll I was in situation where they were 32 players left (27 places paid) , I was on 26 place with short stack (2200 in chips , blinds I don't remember but 150/300 or 200/400). And I must make a decision - don't take action , survive and get my 1$ or try to double up and try to get to final table ???

What are you guys doing in that spot ??
If I were in ur position i would better wait better hand and do all in
 
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3ccasd

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In this case you need to retire with less good card such Ace + any
 
EvertonGirl

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I used to be exactly like you, I would even fold KK just to make a min-cash :eek: KK used to be my nemesis, now it's Marc :D

I now go for the win, never going for a min-cash. I will try and get a DU when I am 10-15 bbs, just got to pick your spots.

GL
 
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kapobar

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I play to win but i dont want to be bubble too
 
K

kmart99

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Hi guys ,

Quick question for you - last freeroll I was in situation where they were 32 players left (27 places paid) , I was on 26 place with short stack (2200 in chips , blinds I don't remember but 150/300 or 200/400). And I must make a decision - don't take action , survive and get my 1$ or try to double up and try to get to final table ???

What are you guys doing in that spot ??

So much rides on the payout structure. For most tournaments all the money is in the top 5 spots. Finishing just in the money or way out of the money are basically the same thing. I always go for it unless their is more to be gained by just hanging on. Like in a Fifty50.

You may cash in 25% of your tournaments, but if you're not playing to win, you'll never have success IMO. Go for it. Who cares about making it past the bubble.
 
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Alex Menchenya

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in this situation, I only play strong hands
 
Zacccpanec

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here you are Nuno to understand you got to play in the tournament to win it or get the minimum payments? Typically, the majority play to win, especially in freerolls
 
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