The Endgame

The Endgame
by The Shrike on 8/27/2006 00:30


I received some compliments on my play in a recent $109 rebuy tournament on Pokerstars, including one from legggggggy indicating there was something to be learned from the skills I showed that night. I have always been told my short stack game is very good, so I thought it might be a decent time to offer my thoughts on short stack end game play.

There are many things that go through my mind when I am in that spot, but I always keep in mind that odds aren’t everything. At times during this tournament, I was the smallest stack by a lot. Frankly, I don’t remember a ton of specific hands, but I can tell you that there are always times late in these tournaments when I have to stop and think, where some players might say you have to call because you are committed.

Mostly, what I am referring to is being in the big blind, with say ¼ of your chips in the pot already. You look down at K10 or A2, and since you have ¼ of your chips in, you pretty much have to play for your tournament life, right? Well, not necessarily. Conventional thinking is that if you fold, you won’t be able to make a decent raise, and you will get called, so you can’t allow yourself to fold and become that low where you have no ability to make people fold to your raise. Again, this is not necessarily true, in my opinion.

I trust my instincts. Suppose I have 83 off suit in the big blind with 2000 of my 5700 chips invested in that big blind. A guy raises who isn’t a huge fan of Ace rag, a player who is a little tight in general in that spot normally. If I fold, I have 3700 with blinds at 1000-2000, which is not very appealing. And yet, I have to think: what hand do I put that raiser on? Maybe it is overs and my cards are live, but it is very possible that he has a pair, middle or 99 and up.

Many people would say you have to call anyway, and people have criticized me at the table and from the rail for folding. True, I can’t put a solid raise up now, but if I know the table and the players, I can pick a spot to still get my chips in ahead perhaps, and I have 7-8 hands to get better than 83. In this tournament, for example, Beatiful Man was huge and had been raising with a wide range of hands, especially Ace rag. I hate Ace rag, but if in the next 4-5 hands I get A7 or A9 with him raising in front of me, I may very well be ahead, and there IS a solid raise (from him) that can’t just be called by anyone behind me. If I win the hand, I now have 3700+3700+3000 in blinds and the antes. This “jumping in” behind a raise is a play I have used with great success. I’d rather trust my instincts and “reads” in that way than simply give up with 83 and be up against 99.

Furthermore, reads are possible online. I often have a very good idea of the exact hand people have online, as many of my friends could tell you. Sometimes you just know when someone has AJ or A10, and I might very well fold in my big blind with A6, if I am sure. I like my chances in picking a spot to jump in and call underneath a raise and either be ahead or be live, and I’ll play that way no matter what the railbirds think.

Right or wrong, this has been a very successful short stack end game strategy for me, and I get endless amounts of praise for my late play; so do what you will with my thoughts, and good luck.