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Playing the bubble in tournaments

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Thursday November, 26th 2009 by fullhouse

One of the toughest parts of the tournaments to play is when everyone is getting really close to the money. The tension will begin to rise as the players begin can almost feel the money. If you play many tournaments you will notice that a lot of players in a tournament begin to take extended amounts of times when it is near the bubble. These players have not been hit with a sudden desire to thoroughly think through every action they take, what they are doing is trying to kill some time so that they can slide their way into the money. Another thing that you may have noticed in tournaments is that these players generally aren’t very good. The big tournament winners are those who are always going for the win. It is not all that difficult to simply cash in a tournament, winning one however, now that can be quite the chore. If you have a big stack near the bubble you will be in a position to rob the shorter (weaker) stacks blind. Many players are so worried with just cashing that they will throw away all kinds of hands that they normally wouldn’t for the sake of survival. If you happen to be one of the short stacks near the bubble you should expect times to be tough. Short stacks will be forced to push or fold with every hand they get, and their life is always on the line. While cashing in a tournament is certainly the first step towards winning a tournament, what many players don’t realize is that it’s not the only one.

Playing with a big stack near the bubble

If you have a big stack as the bubble approaches you will be afforded the opportunity to completely manipulate the other players at the table. There are not many situations in all of poker where you have a bigger intimidation factor then when you are essentially threatening every other player’s life. The correct way to take advantage of this ability to intimidate is to make as many steals and aggressive plays as possible. With the blinds being high it will be important that you win as many blinds as possible, and it will never be easier to do this than when you are one of the big stacks near the bubble.

Playing with a short stack near the bubble

Playing a short stack in a tournament is one of the most nerve racking this you will experience. Where you feel powerful with a big stack near the bubble, having a short stack will make any player feel incredibly weak. The only solid option a short stack has in a tournament is to either shove or fold. There is no room to make steals or bluffs as they will deplete a large portion of a short stack’s remaining chips when they go bad. Each move can be your last so it becomes more important than ever that you make correct decisions when you are short stacked. Sure, sometimes you will shove and bust before you make the money, but it is better to take a chance at going on a run than it is to wait around and slowly die off.