|
ABOUT
TURBO SITnGO TOURNAMENTS
Turbos have
taken off lately due to their reputation as a quick and exciting way to
play tournament poker. In this article, I’ll explain how to adapt your
game as you move through the blind levels of a Turbo SNG. Lets explore
early and middle play.
Early (10/20 &
15/30)
Early on, play is driven
by the cards you pick up. You should be betting for value (not
bluffing), as the table will play pretty loose. I’m not a fan of playing
super tight in the first few levels, because a lot of the loose players
will throw their chips away and you want to be getting your share.
Here, your implied odds
are at their highest, so play speculative hands in position or even out
of position if their table is loose/passive pre-flop. You should be
looking to hit the flop cheaply and try to double through with a big
hand. This isn’t an excuse to play A4s and K9o from early position! Try
and get in to see some cheap flops with low pocket pairs and suited
connectors…the more limpers the better. You’ll find a lot of players
getting too attached to top pair hands early on, so make sure you’re not
putting too much of your stack at risk with just a pair.
Although I like to loosen
up early on, it’s important to be patient. If the situations aren’t
favorable, be sure to keep your cool and fold, fold, fold. If you
fritter away too much, then you won’t get maximum value when you do
double through!
Since play is so loose
early on, it’s best to play big hands fast. Don’t be afraid of scaring
off action. If your opponents are loose, then make your raises bigger
than the standard 3xBB raise to gain the extra value available.
(25/50 & 50/100)
The maniacs are dying off
and your implied odds are getting lower. Cut down on speculative hands
unless the situation is really favorable. Look for middle/high pairs and
big cards and play them more aggressively.
You don’t have as much
space for maneuvering post-flop at this point. Continuation bets
(bluffing on the flop after raising pre-flop) are more likely to take
down pots. Be careful when continuation betting, don’t c-bet into three
or more players unless you’re certain they’re weak.
(100/200 &
100/200+antes)
The stacks at the table
are now much lower in relation to the blinds. Stealing becomes a big
part of your game, with a lot of the pots being taken down before the
flop. Antes provide a lot of extra money in the pot. When the antes kick
in it’s time to get aggressive.
It’s important at this
stage to make sure you’ve categorized each of the players at your table
(loose/tight, aggressive/passive, etc.). Pick on the tight
medium-stacked players. They’ll generally tighten up even more as the
blinds increase, as they’ll be worried about busting out. Try to stay
away from the bigger stacks, as they have the ability to eliminate you
from the tournament. You should be aiming to steal the blinds at least
once per orbit.
When you steal it’s very
important to be first into the pot, but also look out for weak players
that limp-in then fold to raises. When you raise over the top of a
limper other players will give more respect than usual, and you'll pick
up extra chips from the weak limper.
It’s important to be wary
of pot committing yourself in the wrong situation. You want to push
people around, but you don’t want to pot commit yourself with marginal
hands. Here’s an example:
You’re eight-handed and
the blinds are 100/200. The BB has 1700. You’re in the SB with 2000.
It’s folded around to you with Q9o. You raise to 600…
(Your raise was a fine
play if you’re deep-stacked, but when short-stacked you need to be very
careful not to pot commit yourself in a situation where you don’t need
to, and could come off pretty badly as a result.)
…the BB pushes all of his
chips in. Now it’s costing you 1,100 to call into a 2,300 pot and see
the hand out to the end. You’re now in a very bad spot, having to commit
almost your entire stack in a hand that you’re likely behind in.
There’s a simple rule you
should have followed here: when a raise will pot commit you (when you’re
raising over 35% of your or your opponent’s stack), you should be
shoving all of your chips in the middle. This not only gives you better
fold equity (chance of making your opponent fold), but it takes away the
chance of you making a weak fold when your opponent re-raises. Either
shove your chips in, or don’t pot commit yourself. Make a smaller bet
that you can still get away from if your opponent plays back.
Good luck |