(OT) Strasser says coinflips early are ok.

[ALReturnsLOL]

This was taken directly from Jason's blog and it goes pretty much aganist everything I have learned about early sng stratgey up to this point. I don't think this was taken out of context either. Can some other pros weigh in on what Stasser is getting at and if they disagree or agree with it.





"Early in sngs, some people believe that you should play conservatively and ‘let the idiots beat themselves up’. This is a terrible idea. For starters, you probably have your biggest edge against that drunk or crazy fish who is looking for ways to give his stack away. Do not be scared of taking early coinflips or busting out early, there is always another table to open. Don’t be scared of playing loose preflop in order to get yourself in pots with the weak players. Understand implied odds."

[gisb0rne]

You need to read it closer. He isn't advocating taking a coinflip situation, but rather saying if it happens it's ok. You shouldn't be scared of facing JJ when you have AK (a coinflip) because there's also a good probability that you'll be facing AT, etc. from the donks.

[Shakes]

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You need to read it closer. He isn't advocating taking a coinflip situation, but rather saying if it happens it's ok.

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The subject of the thread says that Strasser merely says that it's ok. Also, OP didn't indicate that Strasser advocates it.

[AMT]

yeah AL,

a good example of what i think strasser is discussing here is the idea of something like when a villain opens 3x bb and gets 4 callers, you can be happy to shove JJ even if you get called by AQ. dont be afraid of a spot like that. i think that signifies his point well here in that you should be willing to do that to pick up the chips early, or if you flop a straight+flush draw, dont be afraid to c/r AI and get called by donkey with TP and race for it, etc...

make more sense now?

[ALReturnsLOL]

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"Early in sngs, some people believe that you should play conservatively and ‘let the idiots beat themselves up’. This is a terrible idea.

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It seems to me that Strasser is reccommending playing looser pf than what (I would think) that sttf considers conventional. I have always been told to play very tight in the opening rounds of an sng.

[benfranklin]

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Don’t be scared of playing loose preflop in order to get yourself in pots with the weak players.

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Nothing wrong with this if you can identify the weak players. In his book, Greenstein says that the ideal tournament playing style is one that wins or loses a lot of chips quickly. If I remember correctly, he says that he figures to bust out in the bottom half of the field about 80% of the time and to finish in the top 5% of the field 20% of the time.

This sounds like the same principle applied to SnGs. And it assumes that you can play that style consistently. I read it as a specialilzed form of selective aggression, not as reckless aggression.

[AMT]

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"Early in sngs, some people believe that you should play conservatively and ‘let the idiots beat themselves up’. This is a terrible idea.

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It seems to me that Strasser is reccommending playing looser pf than what (I would think) that sttf considers conventional. I have always been told to play very tight in the opening rounds of an sng.

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its also that multi tabling with more than 4 tables doesnt allow much room for reads and post flop play with marginal holdings, and this is where playing looser is +EV (when you have those reads and post flop play ability). when youre 10 tabling its a lot harder to do this, but i fully agree in certain spots while manageable to take advantage.

[Snarf]

I suck, but if I feel comfortable where I'm at and my late stage game, I have no problem "donking" around a little in the first level or two.

but then we're back to the whole, does the possibility of having 2,000 chips outweigh the risk of having only 1,200? etc...etc...etc...

[redsoxsalty]

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I suck, but if I feel comfortable where I'm at and my late stage game, I have no problem "donking" around a little in the first level or two.

but then we're back to the whole, does the possibility of having 2,000 chips outweigh the risk of having only 1,200? etc...etc...etc...

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personally, i'm also willing to gamble a little in the early levels to build my stack, especially since most players are either too tight at this stage or just completely awful.

showing down a marginal hand at the early levels also helps me get more action in the mid-levels on my premium hands.

[benfranklin]

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most players are either too tight at this stage or just completely awful.


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Maybe not most, but a lot of these players make themselves known quickly. And you cannot identify them if you are 10-tabling.