Soft Play (Collusion) in Tournaments
 

I own a small poker room. We offer almost solely cash games, except for a once weekly tournament.

For the tournament, we have recently had a group of 7 players consistently enter. These guys always soft play as a team. This last week was painful. 5 made it to the final 7. It was obvious they were not going to enter a large pot with one another. Their only goal was to eliminate the other 2.

Let's assume for certain reasons you cannot just ban these 7 from entering the tournament (unfortunately). What would be our best plan of action? What steps should the tournament director take?

Thanks,

Oscar

Re: Soft Play (Collusion) in Tournaments
 

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I own a small poker room. We offer almost solely cash games, except for a once weekly tournament.

For the tournament, we have recently had a group of 7 players consistently enter. These guys always soft play as a team.

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Let's assume for certain reasons you cannot just ban these 7 from entering the tournament (unfortunately).

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Let's also assume that you have no business owning or operating a poker room.

Re: Soft Play (Collusion) in Tournaments
 

Well if you can't stop them from playing there really isn't a lot you CAN do. I mean you can't penalize people for simply not playing big pots with each other. Since you didn't mention any actual collusion like talking during hands and such there isn't much. The big answer obviously would be to not allow them to play if that was an option.

What do you want to do? Force them to all go all-in against one another? Why can't you just not let them enter?

Re: Soft Play (Collusion) in Tournaments
 

If you live in America you always have what I like to call the F U Rule - We reserve the right to refuse service to anyone.

Re: Soft Play (Collusion) in Tournaments
 

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Let's also assume that you have no business owning or operating a poker room.

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Also fair assumption.

Oscar

Re: Soft Play (Collusion) in Tournaments
 

How do you know they soft play?

Inform them that soft playing will not be tolerated and if seen, caught or just giving management a reason to believe they are participating in soft play they will receive penalties. Say 10 minute time out for first offense / offender escalating up to 30 minutes and then possibly disqualification.

Don't forget to remind them that the decisions of management / floor are final.

Re: Soft Play (Collusion) in Tournaments
 

That's the problem, he doesn't "know" they're softplaying. Or he knows they are but there is no proof. It basically sounds like this so far: they're probably a lot better than a lot of the people playing...they know each other so they'd rather pick on bad players as long as they can...they're trying not to play big all-in pots with each other therefore OP doesn't like them.

I mean you can't FORCE them to play pots with one another. And you can't (well you can, but it would be stupid) to try to give them penalties simply because they don't play against each other. They're not even softplaying from the sounds of the OP, they're simply avoiding one another, that's not even against the rules.

You need to be able to point to a specific rules violation with proof of the violation in order to penalize people. (the real problem is that the decisions of the floor are NOT final if he doesn't even have the authority to keep them from playing)

Re: Soft Play (Collusion) in Tournaments
 

Well, if nothing else, you can split them up as much as possible to start (although from the description it doesn't sound like you start with a lot of tables).

Re: Soft Play (Collusion) in Tournaments
 

I'm trying to get beyond the fact that he can't stop them from playing. If OP has no ability to enforce any rules.....well thats a whole different problem.

But he say's that they softplay so he must have some definition in mind and their play fits that definition. So describe to these players what they have done in the past and that it will not be tolerated in the future.

So assuming he has a definition of softplay that these players are violating and assuming he can enforce the rules and assuming he can explain to these players how their actions are in violation then I don't see a problem.

Maybe I assume to much.... [img]/images/graemlins/wink.gif[/img]

Re: Soft Play (Collusion) in Tournaments
 

another example of this, i played at a wsop circiut event this year. i was in a 1 table sng sat. husband and wife sat down and half way thru the wife checked down aces because her husband was in the hand. i was like wtf was that. she said what? i know how my husband plays. i dont know how you guys play. i said it dosent matter how we play, make his azz fold like everyone else.

theres no way she checks down aces to anyone else. friends are in the same boat they go soft on each other but agressive on the guys not in thier crew? what can we do?

patiently wait them out tell they make thier stupid mistakes?

donkism 101