An Unfortunate Asymmetry

[Farfenugen]

David,

Would making small raises with hands you would normally call with(similar to what is discussed in NLTAP to get the table to play bigger) help in this case? Or does that strategy backfire due to the fact that in a tournament once you lose all your chips you're gone.

[CardSharpCook]

[ QUOTE ]
But as with many forms of luck, it is not 100% beyond your control. There are things you can do, especially later in the day, to loosen your table up and get them in a gambly mood.

[/ QUOTE ]

Excellent point, foucault. In my old home game, I used to say all the money at the table went through me. That is, people would gamble with me, while playing more conservitively with each other. Show down a big air bluff. You'll start getting action from TPTK type hands.

[Sabrazack]

So you're basically saying there's luck in poker tournaments?

Edit: On a serious note, quite interesting point.

[disjunction]

Cool, the Sklansky equivalent of a BBV post! [img]/images/graemlins/laugh.gif[/img]

[benfranklin]

[ QUOTE ]
I think this is a very similar problem to playing a Stars rebuy tournament at a tight table. Some tables are lucky enough to have multiple all ins every hand and will finish the rebuy period with 100,000 chips on the table, others will finish with half that or less. But there are ways to loosen up a tight table.

[/ QUOTE ]

It has been suggested that part of Negreanu's strategy of going nuts early on in a rebuy is that even if he doesn't immediately build a big stack, at the end of the rebuy period his table has a lot more chips than any other table. When he settles down and plays solid poker after the rebuy period, he generally has the best chance to win most of those chips. There is also the fact that the tables tend to remain unbroken for a longer period in a rebuy tournament.

[El Diablo]

DS,

Play in a manner to change the style of the passive, conservative table into a volatile table.

[Farfenugen]

[ QUOTE ]
DS,

Play in a manner to change the style of the passive, conservative table into a volatile table.

[/ QUOTE ]

Would that be to make small raises with hands the you would normally call with? I know I already asked this but I am quite curious as to whether it is a viable strategy in a tournament setting.

[cbloom]

FYI, the main event is not a rebuy.

[Alan Goehring]

[ QUOTE ]
I'm sure this a lot of why so many pros play LAG, it makes the rocks uncomfortable and makes them loosen up and play back badly.


[/ QUOTE ]

Exactly. You have to give action to get action---(and you can not be overly concerned with busting out early).

While table draw is a big part of winning a tourney, I personally am hoping to draw the table described ---- if they don't adjust (i.e. loosen up) they will be run over.

Relatively tight/conservative players (even expert ones) are seldom in the top 1% of chipholders at the end of day one, IRRESPECTIVE of their table draw, although I agree that this is even more pronounced with a conservative table.

I have to disagree with David's point about the "real action" starting on day 2. Joe Hachem made a similar statement along the lines that Day 1 is not about poker, but if you can get some chips you can start playing poker on day 2----this is completely opposite of reality in my opinion. I think day 1 is "real poker" and then it increasingly becomes a contest of catching the best starting hands.

[Limpfold]

[/ QUOTE ] Exactly. You have to give action to get action


[/ QUOTE ]

Don't know if I agree with that statement totally, in theory yes but reality is different.
There's just too many people in a tourney who can't help themselves from reraising/putting plays on guys who 'don't deserve' the action.

Also, it hurts rocks way more than loose players to switch tables since image built up goes back to scratch at the new table (if you aren't known from TV)