Re-Buy Tournament Strategy

Debi

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This is our Forum Challenge Discussion for Week 3 in January. All members are encouraged to participate in this thread - even if you are not completing the challenge.

Please read this article and discuss it:

Re-buy Tournament Strategy

When I could play at pokerstars I loved the $5.50 re-buys. In fact I think both of my top 2 online cashes were in re-buys.

I entered every re-buy with the intention of re-buying 2-3 times depending on my situation and always doing the add-on. I liked to take advantage of the reckless play by so many players during the re-buy period.

I guess by some player's standards I should have been willing to re-buy even more - but I know when to cut my losses.
 
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sergik1992

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In general I dislike re-buy tournaments. But sometimes I nevertheless play it.
I'm sure that my style in this discipline is weak.
The super loose strategy is not for me. It's hard for me to change philosophy of my game and always to push.
Between slightly loose strategy and one bullet strategy I'm rather the second type.
So usually in the tournaments with re-buys I play my typical style.
 
Edison A

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Poker

If you enter a rebuy tournament you have to have the peace of mind of having a good bankroll, if you are in a weak bankroll and afraid of losing everything, you will not play with the peace of mind that you should have, at the beginning of the tournaments with repurchase you can take the opportunity to get many chips because there are players who many times all the time that you can that opportunity


:deal:
 
tihomir_kula

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I like re bye tournaments and often enter as late as possible and play all in with every good hand.
 
Alexandr Svinarshyk

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The article is well written down strategy. If you are playing a tournament with rebuys, be prepared for the fact that you will have to shop more than once. such tournaments are not for those in whom a weak bankroll.
 
No1eJoker

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I do not like re-buy tournaments, on re-buy tournaments many players have a huge preflop call range/raise and play on much starting hands than otherwise, because of the possibilities again re-buy, if I sometimes play RB tournament I only one time enter re-buy and that is it.
 
Serjo600

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In rebuy tournaments I do 2 rebuys and 1 add-on, that is, to play in these tournaments you need to have roughly 4 bi
 
makisaa

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I have played rebuy tournaments many times. I usually rebuy many times when the rebuy is low, like the Sunday Storm satellites and 1-2 times when it is higher. Generally I do not prefer them satellites or not , because I prefer to buy in.
 
C

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"The One Bullet Strategy" is really not something I would implement. You are not using the tournament for it's full potential and that WILL cost you money in the long run. We often talk about not playing "scared money" but that exactly what you will do as a playter who palys plaing making add-ons/rebuys will have an edge (looser call/shoving ranges) and you will sit like filthy NTI =)
My go would be if you dont want t spend extra 5-10-15 $ on a tourny just dont play the re-enty 1... or if you dont expect there not to be a A5s shove for UTG =)
 
dimon4ik89

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In the beginning, you should clear your memory of any strategies

In the beginning, you should clear your memory of any strategies that you used in regular tournaments. Remember that each case needs its own approach. Refrain from limping and try to play strong hands. If you are going to play with all-in, then your hand should be backed up by good mathematical indicators. Well, if you have a strong hand, never be afraid to call raises. Many players at the table in the tournament with rebuys will simply boast that they are not afraid of relegation, since they can always afford to go back, and to take their chips, and even to temper the ardor, it is necessary, after all, to play with a strong hand.
I found this information on one of the poker sites. I think this is useful information, the main thing is to be able to correctly use it. But to be onest, I do not really like re-buy tournaments.
 
migesan

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I do not like to play tournaments with re-buy, there are many players who come in with all the cards in the game and enter all the chips, I had the opportunity to 888 poker to play the entry 5 $ and in just a couple of days I lost $ 120, now I'm back to zero , I tried to play on a safe pair of tournaments I took some money, but not much, I had some strategy to play just for sure, but when they start the normal game, they are up to 10 times harder than me, so I can hardly play after.
 
freeringo

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I wanted to get in a $5 rebuy game yesterday but then I saw it was 5 hours of late registration and I chickened out :(
 
CRStals

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Very good article overall. I fell though that there's a significant component to this that's missing - and that's bankroll management.

Re-buy tournaments are lucrative because smaller buy-ins often have big prize pools guaranteed at the end of the rainbow. But...this is based on an expected number of re-buys, increasing the average buy-in accordingly. If you are bankrolled to play $3.30 MTT's for example, you should not play a re-buy tournament of equal value UNLESS you employ the one bullet strategy.

Example: A $2.20 re-buy has a $2k prizepool. Does Stars expect 1000 players to play? No...but they expect 1000 entries between players, re-buys and add-ons. So players must plan for this entering these tournaments and adapt their strategy accordingly. If I'm rolled for $3.30 MTT, and a tournament has a max re-buy of 2 with the add-on, you could plan on one re-buy and one add-on at the $1.10 level to maintain bankroll management.

The satellite portion is great - and some of the advice could be employed in any satellite tournament, not just rebuys. Near the bubble, if your seat is locked up, it's too risky to play hands and push shorter stacks in. IF they wake up to a hand, call, double up it could leave you in trouble.
 
adriantempo

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I don't like rebuy tournaments in general. It's like not admiting you have lost. Instead of a rebuy in the same tournament I have lost, I prefer to just buyin in a different tournament. The chances are bigger this way.
 
chicopaw

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REBUYS are pretty aggressive ,and when i play i only enter knowing i have enough funds to buy all the bullets 3@the most plus the add on.once the rebuy and add-on's are finished i find the game played more conservetly rather then an all-in shoot out
 
D

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I never re-buy, never! I like to get big stack at start n try to crush re-buyers and make em tilt and re-buy even more and win win win. They pay my marks.
 
milencenov

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I will reply in my usual fashion - item by item.

The Super Loose Strategy

Well, I do NOT recommend this strategy to any recreational, amateur, low-stake player.
Bankroll management is much more important than pure poker skills.
And if you do endless re-buys, you are putting your bankroll management in danger.

Remember, you can do 48 re-buys like Daniel Negreanu. But after the 48th re-buy, you are starting with ONE stack. And the BB level is so high that probably your starting stack is now 10 BB instead of 100. You will need incredible luck to even survive to the money.

The Slightly Loose Strategy

In my view, doing even ONE re-buy is stupid, if you are already in a later stage where the BB is very high. However, if you bust very early, you may consider re-buying.
In the end, re-buy does NOT include a fee - so you are getting one more chance to play in a tournament with X dollar prize pool for less money than it would cost you to buy-in for the next similar game !
So, one re-buy at an early stage can be a good idea.
But this does NOT mean that you should play a loose game, only because you can spend money for re-buys.

The One Bullet Strategy

I like it, but it is too conservative.
While I strictly agree that you should be tight and not get involved in big pots with sh1tty hands, I cannot fully agree that you should never re-buy.
Sometimes, you may want to play a "One Bullet Plus One Spare Bullet" strategy - i.e., play with the normal buy-in and try to survive without re-buys, but if you bust early, use a spare bullet - make one re-buy.
I already explained above why one re-buy at early stage can be better idea than just buying in for another tournament with the same buy-in and prize pool.

Defend Against.the Super Loose Strategy

I would rather say "try to exploit players with loose and reckless style".
Actually, a lot of your decisions will depend on the styles of the players you are playing against.
Remember - AGAINST. Not WITH.
Don't get involved too often against very tight and disciplined players.
But try to establish possible ranges of your loose opponents and when you give credit to your hand to be a big favorite - do not hesitate. Play it.
There is no guaranteed win in poker. Even AA can lose.
But if you fold most of your top hands because of the fear of losing to a donk - why are you playing poker ?

All Pairs and Kickers Are not Created Equal

I wish I wrote this part myself !!!
Last year, I explained to one of my team mates in the CC League why it is a bad idea to push 7-7 from EP when your stack is at risk and the top places are still way ahead.
He simply scolded me "I am playing poker for living. I am a pro and I play big stakes. I will not take any advice from you".
Well, people are different. Now I accept his words and admit than everybody has his own opinion and style.
But at the moment of that discussion, we entered in a heated debate, with a lot of emotions and even insults. Not a good idea ! Disrespect and insults only create enemies, not friends. And they destroy our good image here.
Nice that we both got over it and forgot our quarrel.
On top of that, I even drafted him again for my team in the next season !

When to do the Add-on

Here, I agree with most of the author's opinion.
However, he forgot to add one factor.
The cost of add-on in number of buy-ins versus the number of add-on chips in terms of starting stacks !
Example:
There are games where add-on costs 1 buy-in and adds 1 starting stack to your chips.
Some add-ons cost 10 buy-ins and add 10 starting stacks.
Some add-ons cost only 1 buy-in, but add 10 starting stacks !
Some stupid add-ons cost 20 buy-ins, but add... only 10 starting stacks !!!

Big recommendation from me:
Add-on time usually comes with a break. Use this break !!!
Open the tournament lobby and look at the numbers.
How many remaining players, how many paid places, what is your stack against the stacks of the others, what is your ranking, what is your potential to survive with or without the add-on - ask those questions to yourself.
Some quick numerical tips - if your stack is equal to the tournament average, then you are in the top 1/3 of players; if your stack is 2/3 of the average, you are most likely in the middle of the ranking; if your stack is half the average, you are most likely around a place 2/3 in the remaining field.
So, check what are your chances, check the cost of add-on versus its actual effect, and then decide - to do or not to do add-on.

Playing in Rebuy Satellites

I totally agree with this part.
For me, the major factor to decide to rebuy, is whether I can start again at a low BB level with a decent stack.
If the tournament is in a phase when the blinds are very high, rebuy is not recommended.
I want to be able to apply some flexibility in my game and not turn myself into a bingo donk.

On the other hand - the idea to stop getting involved in any hands when we have huge stack, is good. I do this all the time.
I even tried to give this as an example in the CC thread "Would you fold AA".
Wow, so many people criticized me that I would fold AA in such games.
They cannot understand that if you double your stack, you still win ONE ticket.
But if you lose your stack - you win no tickets.
So, why risk when we have our victory in our hands and we should just wait some minutes...
 
elton015

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To tell you the truth: I hate re-buy tournaments and I I´ll explain why.Generaly after a re-buy ,the player might be nervous and the possibilit of raise or re raise or even an all in is higher than the normal so, this player will lose and make a re-buy again.And then all in again.And on and on and on...So that´s why I prefer no re-buy tournaments specialy Cardschat the best freerool ever!
 
milencenov

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A small addition to my comments.

I noticed at least two times where the author used "you're" where the correct word was "your" !!!

I still understood what he was saying, but using spell checker and grammar correction before posting, is a good idea...
 
tagece

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I don't play rebuy tournaments because I know the correct strategy is being looser than I like to play. I just don't like to play trusting in luck.

But I already did rebuys in freerolls tournaments, and for a good reason. In this kind of MTTs, a significant percentage of the players didn't have any bankroll. If you have a 10.000 people tournament and play with a minimum of patiente, you could rebuy when are 4.000 players left and 1.500 are payed. And with the possibility of making a addon, you can easily be in the first 2000 in the break, even when you lost almost all your hands. Of course it depends of the prize and cost of the rebuy and the addon, but worked for me.
 
PHX

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There are different types of rebuys on Stars. Different kind of strategies to adopt for each of them.

The two main ones are the one with single double rebuy and an add on of not more than 3 buyin these are usually slower in speed. Then there are the splashes with unlimited doube rebuy and the big 10X add on structure is turbo.

In the splashes loads of reckless play early when I play these I go one of two ways I play loose like everyone else or tight and wait for monster. Once I get a sizable stack I shut it down and play only premiums and try to make it to add on. Tourney plays like regular tournament after add on and stacks are usually quite shallow so god preflop decisions are key along with a little luck.

The other type of rebuy structure are usually more deep more play. Play is relatively normal and standard unlike other one. There is usually a limited number of rebuys you can make like 2 rebuy 1 add on. In this one the add on I see as optional if you have enough chips or if the cost of the add relative to min cash is high then I choose to not add on.

In general you should have a pre-determine amount you are willing to spend i.e. go into tournament with a set amount of buyins you are going to use.

There are also freeroll rebuy where the entry is free and there is rebuy and add on in most of these unless it is a super small field I do not rebuy or add on as most cases a min cash is just a couple ticks above the buyin or add in. In these I just roll with the freeroll entry and try and make itm.
 
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The article describes a strategy that is difficult to play, since, for this, a solid bank must be available. a tournament with rebuys allows us to speculate with a range of hands that we would otherwise discard. I only play with repurchase some satellites to events. but they are not the style that would follow
 
zam220

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In rebuy tournaments, as a rule, are allowed to buy more chips during the first hour and I'm in the rebuy tournaments do 2 rebuy and 1 ADD-on.And I register at the last minute.
 
ScottieDuncan

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Generally don't play them, but, if I do I'ii be in the slightly loose category.
 
demibar

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i have played rebuys and i didnt like them the most type of players i face to these tournaments was the super loose strategy players 2-3 players on same table shoved over and over of course you need luck ,2-3 rebuys that was my limit and add-on i prefered the one Bullet
 
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