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sit 'n go link and observation

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  1. #1

    Default sit 'n go link and observation

    didn't know if you guys had seen this sit 'n go strategy page - i found it pretty useful:

    http://www.winningonlinepoker.com/stagemusic.htm

    i finally played a $6 SNG last night (which of course now makes me an expert - i'll be quitting my day job any time now! ) and won it.

    some observations:

    - i decided i wouldn't play anything less than AA, KK, QQ, AKs in the first rounds, so, i didn't play my first hand until we were down to 6 players and the blinds were 50/100.

    - at this point, i loosened just slightly and was able to steal some blinds, i guess because i had played so tightly. i was still folding most hands and letting others duke it out with their "loose" hands.

    - position, position, position!

    - by the 200/400 round (down to 4, everyone left has chip lead on me), nothing goes to a showdown. time to get very aggressive as the blinds will eat you up, but still folding most hands when you haven't posted a blind.

    - now seemed to be the time for selective "All-ins" against the previously noted (i kept notes on who was playing what from where) loose players and the pseudo calling stations. also, target the smaller stacks once you have a few chips. betting the exact amount of someone's stack head to head seemed pretty effective.

    - take it home!

    the adage "it takes a better hand to call than bet" couldn't be more true.

    interestingly, my best deal was QQ that every one folded to, and my best showdown hand was 59o (played from the big blind) that two paired on the flop. so, i didn't have killer cards

    finally, i did not play a single drawing hand.

    please feel free to comment and criticize, i'm still learning and will take any help i can get.

    good cards to you!
  2. #2
    I am one of those people that have had better success at the ring games than in the sit n' go's. I started out by placing in the money in 4 of the first 7 sit 'n go's that I played in (three 2nd place finishes and one 3rd place finish). Since then I have not placed in the money in my last SEVEN sit 'n go's! In those last 7 I've placed 4th, 5th, 6th twice, 7th and 9th twice.

    I have, however, been doing pretty well playing the ring games. I know that tournament style play is different but come on. At this point I'm not quite sure what I am doing wrong in the sit 'n go's vs. my play in the ring games but I just can't seem to make and headway recently. Not that I'm really complaining because my ring game play has more than made up for the money I've lost in the sit n' go's but it is a bit frustrating when I am actually sitting at the table playing in the sit 'n go's.
    "The urge to gamble is so universal and it's practice is so pleasurable, that I assume it must be evil." - Heywood Broun
  3. #3
    Thats about the exact same way I play SNG's... Tigher than a virgin first few rounds. I'm looking for it to become 4-5 people left, or the blinds are 50/100. Now is when I start stealing pots and become VERY agressive.

    The reason for so much agression with only 4-5 people left people in the tourny the'll fold more often. EVERYONE is trying to make the money and nobody wants to go out on the bubble. It doesn't always work, but it does work well for me. (hell if it always worked I'd quit my day job )

    The one other things is the first round I tend to limp in from the SB with any hand.. The BB is $15 and the SB is $10 heck for the extra $5 i want to see it. After that the SB is 1/2 of the bb so its not worth it.


    hehe, i'm the opposite of JM I use SNG's to fund my ring games

    I'd play more SNG's but I don't always have the hours to dedicate to playing them.

    With ring games if something comes up you can just leave.. but SNG's you can't leave if your the Chip leader and there is only 4-5 people left. Y
  4. #4
    you guys bring up an interesting question:

    what is it that makes you a good ring player versus sit 'n go tourney player or vica versa?

    it would seem to be most of the same set of skills, although, in a tourney (especially in the final 5 or 6), it seems more about aggression and bluffing. not nearly as many showdowns as ring game! seems more playing the player as opposed to the cards.

    i don't have enough experience to really know, but i like both and we'll see how they go.
  5. #5
    I'm not exactly sure what makes the difference between a good ring player and tourney player.

    I think I do better in the tourneys because I like to bet stronger and bluff more. Bluffing the board in a NL ring game can be way to expensive.

    I also think the SNG's keep better track of my bank roll and help me survive going on tilt. I go on tilt in a ring game I could lose a few buy-ins at a time.. (not usually that bad but you get the point). In a tourney your just out. Then at least somethings changed and I find it easier to get off of tilt.
  6. #6
    You may be on to something there mike. I tend to play a fairly straight-forward game which may be helping my ring game play but doesn't seem to be too affective in my tournament play. I will bluff but I find that I don't bluff or get nearly as aggressive as much as I probably should during a tournament.

    Hmmm...... some food for thought for me now.........
    "The urge to gamble is so universal and it's practice is so pleasurable, that I assume it must be evil." - Heywood Broun
  7. #7
    Fnord's Avatar
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    As the resident scrub and losing SnG player I'll chime in here...

    Two big concepts apply to SnG's that don't apply to ring games:

    Limited Bankroll
    You don't have time to wait for opportunity, you have to make it happen. You can't let lots of little pots go by waiting to get someone on the hook or limp in on lots of 1/10 chances. There is no tomorrow, you must find a medium between going out big or get blinded to death.

    Big Blinds
    Big blinds relative to stack size force you to play more hands. Also, play on the turn + river often becomes irrelevent because you're often making a play or dump decision on the flop (or even pre-flop!)

    Quote Originally Posted by mike4066
    I think I do better in the tourneys because I like to bet stronger and bluff more. Bluffing the board in a NL ring game can be way to expensive.
    It's an art and one I've spent a lot of time practicing. It really comes down to position, the other players (some $25 NL players are not bluffable), your image and if you have any outs to fall back on. Also, you can't overcommit and must know how and when to put on the breaks. Picking up a few $2-$3 pots (or $6 - $9 if I raised) here and there can really add up and set-up your bigger hands.
  8. #8
    in an sng, or especially in a multi table tourney, I'm trying to avoid that one mistake to get me eliminated. Flop top pair and my bet gets called, I start to wonder trips. In a ring game you can always pull out another 25 and be right back in it. Also one important point is that once that blinds have increased and the action gets to about 3-4 handed and especially heads up, you can't just sit back and wait for that A-K like you could in a ring game, you've got to be able to steal blinds with any hand. When I go heads up against someone and that person is constantly folding, I can pretty much comfortably raise with any hand, and they'll fold if they don't have that ace or king and slowly but surely, I'll grind them out.

    Btw that strategy you outlined, is pretty close to what I like to do (with some minor differences). After a while try the 10+1 SNG"s, very profitable.
  9. #9
    Quote Originally Posted by mike4066
    I think I do better in the tourneys because I like to bet stronger and bluff more. Bluffing the board in a NL ring game can be way to expensive.
    Very true, I hate losing a pot in a tourney, It's not rare for me to bluff on the flop, on the turn and on the river on the same hand! When they fold on the river, its the best feeling, then again when you get called you feel like an idiot. I don't do this every time I miss a hand mind you, only if I sense some weakness or a draw, but I like to take at least one shot at the pot, unless theres too much power on the board.

    You try reraising someone preflop?You can gain quite a bit of chips doing that by just taking their preflop bet + blinds and if you do it with a bad hand, its a great feeling.
  10. #10
    Quote Originally Posted by Ragingguitarist18
    You try reraising someone preflop?You can gain quite a bit of chips doing that by just taking their preflop bet + blinds and if you do it with a bad hand, its a great feeling.
    Thats one I'll have to start doing

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