Been a while since I've played much poker but I was invited to this weekly tournament a few months ago and have been playing it regularly since.

The game is a 28 dollar buy-in tournament with 20 towards the prize pool. 2 given to the high hand of the night and 5 for a bounty with 1 "rake". Usually it starts with two tables, 18-20 people.

There are a couple fairly competent players but mostly the play level is very poor. I find the game fun but the structure leaves very little play after the first two or three levels which hurts and tends to put me more at the mercy of the cards than anything else.

Starting stack is 5000, blinds go up every 25 min and it looks like this:

25/50
50/100
100/200
200/400
400/800 (wtffff)
500/1000

A lot of the players nearly blind out, I have seen people with m<4 not play a hand for two rounds. If I find myself still average stack after the first levels, I end up pushing A LOT.

I guess my real question is, what type of strategies do you use in games like this, when a lot of time is spent with lots of short stacks and lots of bad players?

I love poker, and therefore being in push/fold isn't my favorite position, but I have a lack of home games around me, and I like the laid back attitude at this one. Tips?

Sounds like scared players, with not much sense of stack sizes or pot odds (I assume they go hand in hand). I'd be tempted to raise 2-2.5x often in position, and fire small c-bets when it get checked around to you.

When someone shows aggression, believe they are at the top of a range you would play.

Ive played in a few home tourneys where the play/structure is similar.

C-betting with decent hands is key and just outplaying weaker players. If they think your tight you can get respect later on, or earlier. Or you just have to make a couple hands early on to survive later levels. Probably best to make moves earlier as people generally dont want to risk their stack early on and will give hands up easier, these small pots are great for your stack. Other people may not even notice the blinds creeping up on them and all the sudden they have 6BB left and just about crippled.

IMO- You know how big the blinds will get so theres no point in floating your way, the structure is designed to create action and get players eliminated. So I think your range has to open up to accommodate this style. OH I forgot to mention how position is everything too.

Maybe my advice is not the best since there have been people that disagree with me on certain things here. Everyone sees poker differently. Im just trying to give you an idea of how other players think.

Play as well as you can for an hour and 40 minutes, then sit back and hope that you're the one whose night it is when everyone starts shoving.

This is actually a decent structure for a home game. Not great, but decent.

You should play somewhat tight early on but by the 3rd level you should be raising ATC on the button and cutoff when folded to you. Cbet a lot. Also don't be afraid to punish weak tight limpers with ATC in position. A lot of chips can be won from these players.

You have to capitalize on others' mistakes. People will limp-fold with 8 BB stacks. They will fold weak aces on the button and they will walk the BB too often. Late in a tournament everyone seems to go into 'wait-for-big-hands' mode and you can win a lot of pots while everyone else is waiting around for big pairs.

I love poker too and the crux of the game is making better decisions than everyone else. Stack size doesn't matter when everyone starts with the same chips and plays with the same blind levels. You must adjust better than your opponents to win. In that sense they are just like any poker game.

Thanks for the responses guys. The structure would be a lot better with one more level at 300/600 imo but I can see all this advice being valid. These players are more likely to limp on the button with a 5BB stack and a weak ace than they are to fold or raise.

I need to start making making my standard open 2x or 2.5x when there aren't limpers, I think after the first two levels I am committing too many chips to one raise.

lol limping with 5BB on the button.... if im in that place im ready to gamble and im getting it all in with hands like 10-9s. May not be the best move if you get called but I think its a good play and your card can still make a hand.

now if I was in the BB and someone limped like that id just about shove any face card into them. By checking BB your giving them a chance to hit, granted they arent limping with just anything, but instead of guessing what they could have on the flop id just get it in and maybe they fold.

This situation would never happen in the tourneys i play in. This is just my style though, Im in it to win and if I bust, then theres always the next one.

I used to do this. Now I just check and here's why. I see people limp in with big hands all the time when they're short. It makes no sense but I see people limp in with pocket pairs, big and small, and even hands like AKs. A guy will limp in the cutoff with 9-9 and he'll call an all-in. He might tank call but they call every time. They think you have aces when you shove 10 BBs but they'll call anyway because they won't fold their pairs or big suited aces. They're not slow playing or trapping. I have busted out of more tournaments than I can count this way.

Ahh yes the almighty trap, if it goes checked to the flop you shove the flop or check raise right? good point there Koko. So basically check the flop unless you have a pair or AQ/AK

I feel like the cutoff or button would limp with a pair <99 and shove A10<

everyone plays differently though, some like to gamble, some like to trap i guess

You have two ways to go with this structure ( And I have seen much much worse T structures). Play loose and aggressive for an hour or so and try to accumulate a big stack early from the weaker or tighter players. You will bust out a lot of course. Or you can play very tight and conserve a decent stack while others are busting. You will miss out on growing your stack very much usually doing this. This will become pretty much a shoving match after 3 or 4 levels so bring your luckbox. GL

FTFY

Stick to casinos..imo

Your format is similar to my Wednesday night league - which plays mostly for point.

~4k starting stack, 30 minute levels that mostly double, and 25/50 to start. Estimated tournament time three hours or so.


Optimal strategy seems to not be to pick up chips early by splashing around, but to simply steal a few pots at >200/400 and then hope your all-ins stand or go uncontested in the late rounds, as there will always be high variance in "turbo" formats.

Thanks for the replies guys. I've been playing my normal game the first 2/3 levels which is pretty loose in late position and trying to win postflop via relentless value betting and betting my decent draws. At 200/400 I just try to win the blinds slightly more than once a round and anything else is cake on top. I came in second tonight when my AA<JJ in a three way all in among the last three players with the third player being very short.

Thanks again, I just needed some perspective.