large stack play in MTT

Earwig Eddie

ive always considered myself a cash game player. however after some assidious studying of harringtions 2 tourney books i ventured into a MTT the other night and low and behold i found myself chip leader at the first break with 40 left from 140 (10 places payed).

i soon discovered that i was uncomfortable playing my large stack (considerably larger than any stack at my table, maybe 1.5 times the next biggest). i tried to stay tight, apart from a bit of blind stealing, but got roped into a couple of pots with pot odds and my lead got slowly but surely got chipped away. i know some people get extremely aggressive with a huge stack, but im not sure i like the inherent volatility of this.

long story short i got pulled back down to an average stack and managed to make it to the final table finishing 9th for a pathetic profit, my AK busted by QQ, i would have been sitting pretty with a double up.

now i realise i was only a relatively early chip leader, but cant help but think i could have used it to my advantage a bit better. anyone got any general guidelines or personal preferences on playing a large stack?

roryc

You have to play aggressively when you have the biggest stack. You can keep robbing pots without having to commit yourself. YOU are the only person at the table with the chips to knock anyone out, which makes it a LOT easier to collect chips from playing aggressively.

I understand why you didn't take such a risk as it was your first MTT, but it's the difference between scraping into the money, and having a real shot at winning.

Earwig Eddie

im not gonna say problem solved, but i went on to win an 80 man tourney about an hour after i posted that

cheers rory, any other replies appreciated, i suppose what im after is a few bullet points to bear in mind.

Fatboydim

Play your premium hands as you would normally... Though mix it up occassionaly with these hands so as to get action with AA etc.

When you have position raise solidly pre-flop. They will have to have a good hand to call you.

Try not to get involved with other large stacks unless you know you have them beat.

Play even more aggresively near the bubble.

Ollieboy

Fatboydim wrote:

Play your premium hands as you would normally... Though mix it up occassionaly with these hands so as to get action with AA etc.

When you have position raise solidly pre-flop. They will have to have a good hand to call you.

Try not to get involved with other large stacks unless you know you have them beat.

Play even more aggresively near the bubble.

I agree totally with Fatboydim. The whole idea of the large stack is to allow you to see for flops and also gives you the option to push people of hands, but there's no point in losing 1/2 your stack on a bluff, so keep it safe, more than tight. Use position and take blinds when they are at a big enough level. One thing I hate to see is people stealing blinds at 150/300, its a silly move and gets you into trouble.

My game plan is alway to accumulate as many chips as possible, like all people, and get to the final table. The final table is a totally different game, as people will gamble a lot more and with blinds been so big, its all about playing the right hands at the right time and getting lucky. I've be in the 12k final table with the biggest stack and finish 2nd or 4th more times than I want to remember. Final tables, lack a lot poker play and are more about luck, even more so as the table gets smaller. But remember, you change your play to suit the table also.

ocallagh

I posted this elsewhere (slightly edited for this post)... but this would be my general style if I had a large stack in an MTT.

The key to playing aggressive is not committing too many chips with average hands... The size of your raise is key. you want to find that +EV raise that will win you the blinds but will also allow you to drop to a re-raise.

If someone plays back at you don't get clever unless u know u have them beat. Getting attached to a mediocre hand is a killer. Drop when your opponent shows any sign of strength.. If they're about to put their tournament life on the line you can be sure they have you beat..

Attack the medium sized stacks.. They have more to lose and will fold quicker than a short stack.

Explain to yourself why you are raising before you do it.. If you get into this habit you'll avoid a lot of mistakes.. it forces you to have a quick think about the situation... eg: If you have been playing aggressive, beware of decent players limping before you act.

When following up on the flop or turn, be consistent with the hand you are portraying.

Play your good hands aggressively too.

Position is obviously important.

If a weak player limps in early position, you can take advantage of this and raise in mid position with anything. Players behind you will give you more respect because there is an early position limper.. If the weak player plays back at you fold.. but a lot of the time they won't have a strong hand and you now have great position for the remainder of the hand. Don't do this too often..

If a short stack plays back it is sometimes the correct move to call when you know you're behind (40%-60% shots etc) and you are risking less than 10% of your stack. This opportunity is purely for your table image.. you want to show the table you're not afraid of getting your chips in the middle with the worst of it.

Oh -and NEVER show a complete bluff unless you're thinking of changing to tight aggressive for the remainder of the tournament..

kincsem

My mistake in the past was playing too loose with a big stack. In no time you have an average stack. Then you try to get your big stack back.

Play as normally as possible. Don't be upset if others pass your chip lead. Now and again you can bully with good cards. If the small stacks call you they will be calling a bigger bet than usual.

Sometimes you get on a real roll and everything goes your way. Golfers call it being in the zone. If you have double the chips of the 2nd placed player in the tourney you can nearly steal the felt off the table.

Earwig Eddie

thats excellent lads cheers. ill print this i think.