The Strategic Sitting Out

Ohk, so I just made up that title so forgive me if it sounds moronic lol..........What i'm getting at though is how much of you guys sit out for an extended period of time after accumulating a desired number of chips during a tourney as a means of strategy, i.e. to watch players get knock out around u thus increasing chances, risk free. Is this a good strategy? Do you employ it?

Personally I dont....even when I find myself in the chip leader or close...I tend to play every hand...I think I should do it though at certain points in the game

I think if i accumulate chips in the first part of the tournaments i will not let this advantage over the other players on the table and just sit out.I play more aggressive.
I never sit out...

and I agree with Lulu
Even if you're the chip leader is better to take advantage of this and attack those with small stack!

If you call this a ''strategy'', then it's pretty much the dumbest strategy I've ever heard of. You should be bullying and accumulating even more when you have a big stack, not sitting out.

i have sitting out in open skill league at pokerstars once i accumulate so many chips that i know i will be among the first 400, but not to watch other players, but because maybe i have to leave or something,

but it doesn´t make ny sense to do it in any other mtt, imagine you sitting out for one hour because you feel you have enough chips to get itm, but in the meantime you get monster cards, then you are ging to lose i lot of chips (no diminishing your sack but because you were suppose to win this hands 80% of time and you didn´t play, so then you reach itm with so few chips because the blinds erased part of your stack and if before you started your sitting out strategy you were like 100BB maybe now you have less than 10BB, and you are almost finishing your mtts at this point without getting any deep so for me unless is a special case (for instance a tournament that give tickets to the first 100 and remaining 400 you have so many chips that you are sure you are going to make the first hundred then you can use this strategy of sitting out and it´s better bcause you don´t risk your chips)

i think sitting out is never a good strategy, however in satelites in which 10% win the same amount of money, if you have a stack 10 times bigger or more than your starting chips, you shouldnt be playing any hand as its almost impossible not to qualify for the target tounament, because you already have the average or more chips that are required to be in the top 10%. in that particular scenario the best choice is not to be sitting out because sb or limpers can steal your blind, but just folding every single hand until the satellite is finished.

I don't thing sitting out is ever a good strategy especially if the reason you're sitting out is because you have the big stack and you want to protect it. If anything you should be more involved in the tournament and increasing your stack even more. Sitting out will just let other stacks catch up and make the size of your stack relative to the size of the average stack smaller.

Sitting out means you sit out when you get your aces. Thats that.

While it's not mathematically optimal, I wouldn't blame anyone for sitting if they're near the bubble or a significant pay jump in a tournament where the amounts are truly meaningful to that person at that time.

How much such amounts are is quite subjective. And there can probably be other factors involved. For example, would I sit out to ensure cashing in a wsop event? There's a pretty good chance I would. And not just for the money. Min-cashing for 2k in a lower buyin or even 20k in the ME would be nice but not enough to affect my lifestyle. In addition though, it would be pretty cool to know that I have cashed in one.

It might look like I am sitting out, but seldom if ever am I not there. Before the bubble bursts, if I have a big stack, I feel little if any compunction to put myself at risk, and doing that stupid table sheriff thing.

Immediately after the burst, the game will be playing as crazy as the very first few hands of the tourney, and I feel no need to join in that insanity either.

But I am sitting there watching for premium opportunities, and folding fast when there isn't one. That is what would make others think I might be sitting out (if the site software isn't telling them).

So in a sense it is sort of strategic, tho not a strategy, more like another tool to understand and use when appropriate. It will always be table dependent. This faux sitting out is a different situation than purposeful delay. Delay is a wholey different subject.

I call that style of play puss poker and have never understood why people do it. whats the point of having the big stack only to let it dwindle down cause your scared of loosing some it.At the very least you should stay seated and only play premium hands instead of missing out on those if your scared of risking the stack you have accumilated.

Is this even worth a discussion ?
Sitting out means skipping opportunities and allowing people to take your blinds without any resistance.
If you're gonna play a tournament with the intention to sit out, once you have a big stack, you'd better not play at all.

10058765 said:

Is this even worth a discussion ?
Sitting out means skipping opportunities and allowing people to take your blinds without any resistance.
If you're gonna play a tournament with the intention to sit out, once you have a big stack, you'd better not play at all.

Click to expand...

All related poker/tourney concepts are valid for discussion.

This is not so different than in a golf tourney, where one gets a big lead and then stops making daring plays and instead aims for par over the remaining holes. It usually works.

And make no mistake, tourney strategy is valid across any tourney based competition, it isn't unique to poker.

One caveat would be in a tournament that pays X amount of tickets /entries .If you get to a point where you cannot lose with the chips you have at hand this can be a sound strategy. Why risk a certain win ?

dj11 said:

It might look like I am sitting out, but seldom if ever am I not there. Before the bubble bursts, if I have a big stack, I feel little if any compunction to put myself at risk, and doing that stupid table sheriff thing.

Immediately after the burst, the game will be playing as crazy as the very first few hands of the tourney, and I feel no need to join in that insanity either.

But I am sitting there watching for premium opportunities, and folding fast when there isn't one. That is what would make others think I might be sitting out (if the site software isn't telling them).

So in a sense it is sort of strategic, tho not a strategy, more like another tool to understand and use when appropriate. It will always be table dependent. This faux sitting out is a different situation than purposeful delay. Delay is a wholey different subject.

Click to expand...

Took the words out of my mouth.

I sit out when it's close to ITM because there's this tendency and sorta pattern where I'll get badbeat, lose maybe even 1/2 my stack and end up tilting and busting out before the bottom payout.

blakewyte said:

Took the words out of my mouth.

I sit out when it's close to ITM because there's this tendency and sorta pattern where I'll get badbeat, lose maybe even 1/2 my stack and end up tilting and busting out before the bottom payout.

Click to expand...

I've noticed that pattern with me also ......

dj11 said:

All related poker/tourney concepts are valid for discussion.

This is not so different than in a golf tourney, where one gets a big lead and then stops making daring plays and instead aims for par over the remaining holes. It usually works.

And make no mistake, tourney strategy is valid across any tourney based competition, it isn't unique to poker.

Click to expand...

This is the best answer ... my point exactly

spstevens said:

One caveat would be in a tournament that pays X amount of tickets /entries .If you get to a point where you cannot lose with the chips you have at hand this can be a sound strategy. Why risk a certain win ?

Click to expand...

This is one way I think it is good. In some sort of double-up tourney (or a tourney where everyone wins the same prize, like the tickets or something like that) I don't think it's a terrible idea.

I guess you could rationalize it by saying that you have a big stack and you don't want to play over-aggressive and end up blowing it.

I am currently in a tournament where I have 2000 chips left & am 7 spots away from a guaranteed pay.

The BB is 900, you bet your left one I am sitting out until then number of players gets below the places paid.

After that I will just go all in & see if I can improve my position although it is very unlikely.

it is not good strategy although that is the way to reduce possibilities to make mistake/s. And that is the way to lose opportunities to increase your stack.
So, if you want to avoid some hands you can simply fold it.

Every hand is crucial.
I sit out only if nature calls or do very important thing.
I sit out only if I place deep in a satellite and the game is near bubble.

unless you have to leave or something then no, just avoid marginal spots and play solid and you should be fine

Funny how many things are counter intuitive in this game, I still have a lot to learn.....

In this case it worked out OK for me, I made a couple of pretty risky bets after I was guaranteed a pay & ended up number 51 out of a field of about 1800.

Worked out to be about $18 or so which considering I am a beginner is not too bad.


*************
You finished the tournament in 53rd place. A USD 19.96 award has been credited to your real money account.

worst strategy ever.better sit in and be super tight if you want.i cant see how sit out is a better strategy than this

dj11 said:

It might look like I am sitting out, but seldom if ever am I not there. Before the bubble bursts, if I have a big stack, I feel little if any compunction to put myself at risk, and doing that stupid table sheriff thing.

Immediately after the burst, the game will be playing as crazy as the very first few hands of the tourney, and I feel no need to join in that insanity either.

But I am sitting there watching for premium opportunities, and folding fast when there isn't one. That is what would make others think I might be sitting out (if the site software isn't telling them).

So in a sense it is sort of strategic, tho not a strategy, more like another tool to understand and use when appropriate. It will always be table dependent. This faux sitting out is a different situation than purposeful delay. Delay is a wholey different subject.

Click to expand...

bingo, exactly. cannot improve on this answer.

I suppose the only time I MIGHT truly sit out...(like go take a shower or something)....would be if I already have accumulated in the money chips...and we are far from the money. More to lose than gain in a situation like that. But, having in the money chips far from the money is really hard to do. Usually in most MTTs even the tourney chip leader doesn't have in the money chips until pretty far into the tourney. Either way, I'd prefer to just play tight solid poker, and fold all marginal spots.

think about the WSOP main event....every single year there is a day 1 or day 2 chip leader who busts out by the end of the day. I bet that guy wishes he would have just spent the day at the pool! slow down there partner! you can't win the main event in 1 day!!!

but for me, and my goals.... I play poker because I love to play poker. I don't play it to eek out a slightly higher win rate or pay my mortgage. I choose to play because I like having cards in my hand and seeing flops and making decisions.....and never, ever is playing poker more fun than when I have a mountain of chips!!

So, even if sitting out might be an OK strategy...I wouldn't be able to enjoy sitting at the pool knowing my stack is just blinding down!