There are practical reasons to sitting out, which may suit some players in some situations...for example:
1. Session connection issues. These have been mentioned above.
2. Discipline issues. Some players know that they have discipline issues and play too loose. Sitting out allows them to protect some chips for a while allowing them to advance.
3. To cash or to win? Many players play with the first objective being to quite simply reach the cash. Such players will calculate, based on the number of players, blind speed, format, etc. what the required stack size needs to be to reach the cash stage. If they have enough, they may take a break leading up to the bubble.
4. Toilet break. Sometimes, a player needs a bathroom break but is not in a good position to leave the table. But, tada, a quick triple up putting them into chip lead territory and <sit out>... finally they can take that break.
5. Nonsense before a break. Have you ever noticed how much nonsensical play happens just before a break? There are some players who always want to get to a break having just doubled up. There are others with smaller stacks, especially when approaching the add-on will get their money in to either double or rebuy while they still can. On the other side are people who do NOT want to go out just before the break. These people, in the minutes leading up to a break might just sit out.
6. Smokers. Although the number of smokers in the world is dwindling, there are still plenty of poker players who smoke. That said, many of these do not smoke inside their homes. 5 minutes is not really enough time to get outside and smoke a whole cigarette...so, smokers either have to transfer to another device or sit out.
7. Tactical changes. Do you play differently as chip lead than you do as short stack? (hint: you should!). Some people need to reset a bit when they move from short through medium to big stack to chip lead. You might want to stop, take a breather and simply watch how your opponents behave and look for opportunities to exploit a weakness. Whilst you could sit and fold (which is arguably better as you can slow the pace a bit), you are by necessity splitting your focus to assess play in terms of how you are playing, rather than assessing how the table is responding.
For me, I like to take a moment to rethink what opening bets are going to result in heads up play. This can vary, and it might change when chip lead is at the table. In one game it might be min raise, others need 5xBB to eliminate most of the competition. Sitting out and watching a round or two can help.
8. Confounding the HUDs. Loads of people are using HUDs out there. Sitting out messes up the stats. If you are someone who plays a bit loose, sitting out for a while (regularly) will make your stats look tighter than if you had played more hands.
...
I'm sure there are other reasons...
Cheers,
ObbleeXY
))
