Understanding the Payout Structure in Sit and Go Tournaments
Most single table, sit and go tournament's prize structure are 50% of the prize pool for first place, 30% of the prize pool for second place, and 20% of the prize pool for third place. So in a $10 tournament, your $50 for winning first place looks quite a bit better than the $20 you'll get for finishing third. That's because it is that much better. So hence, once you get into the money aggression is absolutely key to your long term success in sitngo tournaments.
The main reason for our this is because to significantly grow your bankroll, you need to finish first, more often than second and third combined during those times you make the money. But when the tournament comes down to four players, and only three get paid. You basically have a decision to make in the sense of; Are you going for the win, or are you just trying to make the money? Most successful sit and go tournament players these days will be going for it. Whether or not you have that objective, does not change the fact that you may have to adjust your play based on how your opponents are playing as well. Given the deep study of mass and payout structure that has been debated about extensively in poker forums, the overall thought process here is that aggression is better than passivity, in short game situations and near the money strategy.
To accomplish this, you are going to have to become quite skilled at a heads-up competition and shorthanded play. The best way to get this experience, is to simply just play. If you are still working with a smaller bankroll than play the low limits. You can find shorthanded and heads-up tables for one and two dollars at full tilt poker and you will always be able to find a game at that level.
Applying pressure is key in these stages and yes, it requires a sense of stack play combined with knowledge of whole card strength, and of course what you think your opponent is doing. But you are always looking to either be on top, stay on top, or be pushing first in, as a short stack. That will give you the last advantage to either regain the lead. And if he happens to call you, well your strategy is just to be in there with live cards, where they stand a pretty good chance of taking down a double up pot.
Late Sit and Go Situations - Be Pushy!
By far the biggest hole in most SNG players games (after they become reasonably comptent) is in dealing with low M situations. I understand why it is, and how it happens because it was my weakness for a long time as well.When you are playing a tight solid SNG strategy you are very often in a situation with 4 or 5 people left where you are in trouble because of the blinds. Usually there are other palyers in trouble as well, and the temptation is strong to fold ahnds and try to slip into the money unless you catch a big starting hand. Unfortunately this is the wrong attitude.
Luckily for you the rest of the table probably feels the same way. No one wants to go out before the money any more than you do, so you can take advantage of this by being very pushy.
I assume you've been watching your opponents closely and have a pretty good idea if there is a calling station on the table. You have been watching your opponents closely haven't you?
As long as there isn't a calling station yet to act the following logic applies -
If you push you are highly unlikely to be called. If you steal the blinds it not only adds to your stack, which puts pressure on other players, but it takes chips away from someone else, doubling the pressure. If you push all your chips in the middle people do not want to call you. The top 3 or 4% of hands are a good default to assume your opponents will call you with, but from watching them so far you will have an even better estimate.
What if you are called? Well first of all you weren't pushing with 92o, you aren't that foolish, but you may have been pushing with K9 or JTs or even 67s, all of which play fairly well when you get to see all five cards. If you steal the blinds you increase your equity quite a bit. If you are caleld and lose that sucks, but your equity wasn't that high in the first place if the call sends you to the rail so you haven't actually lost that much. If you are called and double up your equity skyrockets and you are usually in very good shape.
Things to remember -
Watch the stack sizes carefully. If the BB has 1/3rd of his chips in already because of hte blind you don't want to steal with 67s, but you may want to steal with A4o because you will probably end up heads up with him with a better hand.
You aren't looking to call all-in unless you have a very big hand. Pushing is VERY different from calling.
Going out on the bubble is not a disaaster. You didn't cost yourself at least 3rd place money as you may think. Because you certainly weren't guaranteed to make the money anyway you only cost yourself a fraction of that, and because you may have won the hand where you got called, the fraction is even smaller.
Working with Sitngo Power Tools or an ICM calculator will help you to make those late stage decisions correctly, but as a general rule controlled aggression is definitely the way to go.
An example -
The blinds are 300/600 and the stacks look like this -
Hero - 2500
Button - 2500
SB - 3000
BB - 2000
And you look down at J9s.
Of course you've been watching these people, and they have been fairly tight. No on eat the table is excited about calling all-in bets, but the button has been stealing fairly frequently.
The correct play here? PUSH!
I know it seems risky, but the likeliehood of being called is quite low. They see an all-in push from under the gun, and none of them is ready to get knocked out before the money. Most players will muck hands as good as AJ or 88 here, and some will be even tighter. The big blind still has more than enough chips to fold, and can't knock you out even if he does call, though it will have you all-in on the next hand.
In most SNG's at the $30 or higher level you will be called less than 10% of the time here, and with 3100 in chips you will in great shape.
If you are called you are probably less than a 2 to 1 dog against most people's range of calling hands here, and if you double up you are in great shape to win this thing. If you're called and lose that is just life, it won't happen often and you can't let it stop you from being pushy in the future.
A little work with PokerStove will help you undertand how well your hands will play all-in against various ranges of hands your opponnets might call with. There are times when you would rather have 67s than A2o, simply because yourt opponents calling range is filled with Aces that have you dominated. Strange isn't it?
Don't go overboard with your aggression, I hate to cost you money with my writing, but look for more and more situations to be pushy and you'll start to make a lot more money.
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