Just wondering people's thoughts about chopping. Until this weekend, I have always chopped. Here was my situation:

$60+5 tournament with about 40 buy-ins

We get down 4 handed, I'm the chip leader. Two other guys have a little bit less than me, and I had about 5x more than the small stack. Somebody asks what an even chop would be (it was about $525 per person). I usually would have taken the chop, but these guys were kind of being a pain in the ass, so I said "since I've got more chips than anybody else, I think you guys should make me an offer, first place pays $850."

They basically said "ok, if you want to be a greedy a$$#0!e let's play." (For the record, I would have taken $550 but nobody even made any effort beyond an even chop.) So, they admitedly (sp?) bluff me one or two times, well played... then I take a few bad beats, that sucks. Ok, so 20 minutes later, I'm now the small stack and the same guy says to me "I bet you want to chop now, huh?"

My response, "of course I would be happy with that now but I don't want to be an a$$#0!e so if you guys want to keep playing, I understand."

Side note, the other 3 guys are all in their 60's or 70's and I'm 30. Hate playing with grumpy old men!

So, we keep playing and they just play soft as **** with each other. Old guy 1 shoves, I lay down my hand, other guy calls with small pair and wins over the guy who shoved with 6 high. Next hand, old guy raises big, one guy calls, I fold. They check it down and one turns over pocket aces while the original raiser turns over Kings Full! Who checks that down?

Anyways, I think they were just pissed at me for not chopping originally and think it's messed up that they played it like that.

So they finally want to chop and just go home, I say ok. The guy who was the short stack when I was the big stack says "I don't think he deserves an even chop since he was so f-ing greedy earlier." Now, keep in mind that I agree, but the fact is, this guy has 1 more big blind than I do at this point. He says I should get $300 (4th place pays $240'ish). I say no, play on and lose a few hands later. Sucks for me, but not the end of the world.

So as I'm standing up, this guy says something like "that's what you get for being greedy" and I say something back like "funny that you didn't have a single word to say when you were in my situation, but when you have one more bet than me, you turn into the a$$#0!e. All you had to do was say you would have taken $500 instead of the $525 and we could have avoided all of this but you wanted an even chop."

I'm as calm as a rock, just sitting with a grin on my face not really giving a s#!t, but this guy is SO fired up that they call security. I walk away, take my $240 and call it a night. I knew if I stayed for another 2 or 3 minutes it would have ended up with me going to jail for defending myself...

Damn I hate long posts like this because I know nobody will read it. Oh well, I guess I just had to vent.

So here's the question... do you always chop when you get short handed in a live tournament and if so, are you good with an even chop?

tldr

I never chop

but I am an egotistical bastard who hates money

To be honest I don't think I could ever chop. I want to see how the tournament plays out the right way. Just like how I hate it when people go all in with nothing towards SnG's just because they've already made money and they don't care where they finish. I figure as long as I have chips to play, I'm going to play them with the best of my ability to win the tournament. So, why do that if I'm agree to take less than the top prize money when I do end up winning it?

tbh, ive never made it deep enough in a big mtt over 180 ppl to even chop...sad beat.

call the floor and make a huge scene, imo. collusion against you because you wouldn't roll over and give up your equity is outrageous bs.

yes, except that there is nothing they can do about implicit collusion. Unless they check down the nuts they are not technically out of line. kings full is not the nuts so...

I say f em. play your optimal game, dont chop and most likely you'll win more often than they will since they are playing like crap and missing on value just to spite you.

and don't chop with idiots like these. gg ul $ happens

I chop if the effective stacks are shallow and we're 2/3 handed. Ex if you're chip leader and you got like 15-20 bb's then I think it's ok to chop and try to get a +ev deal. But if the players are bad I usually don't.

Thanks for the replies guys! Still pissed about the final outcome but more because of HOW it went down rather than me missing out on a few hundred $$$. Whatever... Life goes on.

Completely agree... I don't think I could prove they were doing it, but it was annoying knowing that they were.

By the way, in that case Kings full was the nuts (not on the flop, or turn, but on the river it was)...

Flop: 2 5 5
Turn: K
River: K

Guy held K5 in his hand, so he flopped trip 5's, turned 5's full, rivered Kings full.

did he check it back in position? if so then that's your proof for collusion. If he did it oop then he's probably a fish trying to tarp and probably isn't colluding.

He was on the button...

A long time ago (seems kinda unreal but unfortunately it was very real) I final tabled the Stars $3 rebuy.

We got to HU and I had a 35million to 6million chip lead.

Chop? LOL Uh, no thanks I think I will PASS and CRUSH YOU.

Opponent worked it back to 20million so stacks were equal... I got it in A7 versus their A6... and naturally there's the oh so standard six on the turn. Bink.

First place $9K
Second place $6K

No idea what chop would've been, probably like 8500-6500... so I cost myself around $2500 by refusing to chop.

Your call.

lol you could have got him in lotsa trouble mate. checking back the nuts on the river is not allowed. That's explicit collusion

I woulda talked to the pit about the collusion honestly.

As far as even chops, unless I'm the shortstack or I've got somewhere to be, not gonna happen. I'll think about a chip chop, depending on stack sizes and quality of opponents, but for the most part I wanna play it out. (also will think about it in cases where the money is borderline life changing...)

+1 to that, the only thing I'm willing to chop is villain's head.

i never chop evenly, usually want ICM. And I basically never chop unless its HU. but thats just me.

ICM???

Even chop is idiotic unless there are even stacks / similar skill level etc or whatever circumstances make sense.

ICM is chip chop basically. Term is more used in hand strat tho.

Thanks!

Yea this sucks. Casinos encourage it, they want it over, but most floors are decent about it. Clearly no one is obliged to chop, and no harassment should occur.

Hints:

Don't let them stop play, if you are not chopping.

There will usually be a ringleader. Look him in the eye and say "Stop begging you coward".

Be prepared for it going in. If you are going to have trouble staying on your game in the face of this nonsense, you prolly should chop.

Love It!

WAT

I can't believe you didn't call the floor after that happened. I'd be so tilted I'm not sure wtf I'd do. Def wouldn't have sat on that though. I mean I'm getting tilted reading it.

haha same here

Why do you think I had to vent here? And why do you think I came in 4th place?

Oh well, I'm over it. I'll just make sure to simply say "no thanks" if anyone asks to chop.