Friday, November 14, 2008

SNG Strategy, Stats, Results

I have been on a bad run in MTT as of late, and I know it is something I am doing wrong. It seems like I just cant win a race and when I have someone dominated they hit and when I have them practically crushed they hit as well. I feel like the unluckiest player in the world. With that said I know that this is a combination of a bad streak and me playing bad. I know I am not the unluckiest player in the world and I know that I am playing bad due to some bad streaks, but it just feels this way.

With this in mind I decided to take some time off from mtt and have been playing SNG tourneys. The main reason for this is so that I can have a more stable bankroll while I work Thu this bad streak. I did not want to blow off my whole bank roll and be left sitting there wondering what happened.

With all of that said. I am doing pretty good right now in SNG tourneys. the swings are not bad, but I do have a few questions for all of you.

#1 - I see Fatcats playing a lot of SNG tourneys and cash games. When he is playing SNG tourneys he is primarily playing 50 dollar Ultra Turbo tourneys. I like the Turbo tourneys, but when playing some of the Ultra Turbo tourneys with Fatcats I find that he basically sits back and waits until the blinds are high and then him and everyone else are in a push or fold game. Every hand someone is pushing and most are forced (Due to the Blinds) into pushing with weak hands and it seems like a crap shoot. I have opted out of playing these tourneys and am sticking to the 20 dollar turbo sng. These fill quickly and the play is actually pretty decent (Can be terrible, but that happens at every level). My question is this. Why does he play the crap shoot tourneys? IS it due to the other players not understanding when they need to get aggressive and they blind themselves out or maybe they get to aggressive with weak hands and don't blow off their chips due to not having the tiny bit of patience needed for these tourneys?

#2 - I have become accustomed to researching players stats that I play with in mtt. Are their any sites that have sng stat tracking for UB? I know of Sharkscope, but they do not have UB listed as a tracked site.

#3 - What type of issues should I be looking for with making the transition to sng and Vi's a versa? I know that what my strategy is for SNG and for MTT but I also know that when switching from one form of poker to another even with having a good strategy (Or what I feel is a good strategy) there will be things that I am not executing properly.

#4 - Do any of you have SNG as a primary method of bankroll building or as a preferred form of poker to play? I personally love mtt and prefer mtt.

#5 - What does everyone see as their best strategy for SNG? I have a very basic strategy. I play Extremely TAG early and once the blinds are at the 75/150 level I shift straight to third and start taking down a lot of uncontested pots (Mainly due to them thinking I am TAG obviously). Usually once they actually realize what I am doing we are on the bubble and I take advantage of the bubble and build to a chip lead and then slow down once in the money and start picking my spots to pick up pots however I need to depending on the players left. I know this is basic but it seems to work at this level pretty effectively.

#6 - How long is the worst streak you have had? I have been on a bad streak for about 2 months now and even in live tourneys I am playing in I am walking away from the table with people saying sorry (Which I am tired of hearing) typically from a 2, 3, and sometimes a 4 outer hitting.

I appreciate any input.

3 comments:

The-Prophet said...

In relation to questions 2 and 6, I think a lot of players place far too much value in stats and call/bet against that player with stats in mind.

As regards a downturn, we all get them and usually the follow many days of intensive poker and doing little else in spare time. Balance in life is important in poker as in everything - take a break from poker is my suggestion.

FrankyBgood said...

Believe me, I know what that feels like.

Basically, I think the best method to build your BR...is the one that works. Sounds dumb but when in a bad streak, I tend to either switch games or take some time off, read my Harrington's again, work out. (makin love kinda takes my mind elsewhere too lol)

Playing with a stat tracker (pokeredge or some other) is dangerous in my opinion because you tend to focus on that and forget the rest. I had it for a while and deleted it.

And personaly, I think SnGs are a good way to change pace but in the end, the EV doesnt quite do it for me. I mean, unless you make the $ like 33% of the time then maybe but you don't have the possible ROI that mtts giveya.

Give Stud a shot for while, low stakes, you completly forget Holdem...when you'll get back, you'll concentrate on your game more.

Geez, I just read what I just wrote and it suks. lol...Take some time off bud, do something else for a few days. :-)

evilCrusher said...

I have found that When I am running bad, I have alot less patience.
This is when I switch to 6-man sngs(mostly turbo). They do not last as long, allow me to build my confidence, and rebuild the bankroll.

Also, I like to switch games. Try some Omaha,Omaha 8/b, Stud, or Horse.

If I still can't get things going, then I'll just take a break. Amazing what a few hours/days away from the tables will do for you.