Only play SnG's and MTT's for June
To be honest, I can't stand playing cash games. I just don't like the style of play cash games invite since people can just keep buying in and can play as absurdly reckless as they want without the fear of getting knocked out. What I find in cash games is it's so many players just trying to put bad beats on other people no matter what it costs them in the long run. Dudes calling 3-bets on the flop with QJ on 233 board trying to catch a Q or J to beat my pocket 9's. Tournament players are really bad and reckless also, but they don't have the room to play and make such idiotic plays over and over. They do that once or twice and if it doesn't work they get knocked out. If it doesn't work for the cash game player they just buy back in and keep trying to suck out.
Meanwhile, my game is to just play really tight, but if you are against 4 or 5 people are playing to see the flop or turn and try to suck out, no matter how deep they have to go into their pockets. In tournaments players don't get to see the flop as cheaply as in cash games and then hope to suck out. Trying suck out in tournament puts your entire tourney life on the line. Tournaments are you folding hand after hand until you get JJ, and the big blind calls you with A2. Cash games they get to see A2 cheap and then decide if they will keep playing. Also in cash games every dollar you win you need to play for. In tournaments you will by folding and letting other people knock your opponents out as you climb in rank.
And this is reflected in my results. All of my winnings are coming from SnG's and MTT's and my cash game is hardly above break even after a year. And it makes sense because I take less risk in a tournament so I play with less pressure. Also I have a ton experience and knowledge in SnG's and MTTs where I played most of my early online poker. And tournaments are just more fun and exciting. Grinding away at a cash game is always boring and often gutt-wrenching. And if you take an early loss its just demoralizing having to play just to break even.
I will come back to cash games when my bankroll is higher and I don't need to worry about losing 5% or more of my bankroll in a session. Which is another important consideration. I'm playing $7-11 tournaments but risking $25 at a time in cash games. I don't really have the bankroll to stomach a couple bad days in cash games. But if I have a couple bad tournaments it is more sustainable. The amount of time I need to play cash games, and the amount of hands I need to sit through to win, and amount of money I need to risk, doesn't justify playing them when you can play an SnG, win 2 hands, and that's enough to get paid in top 3. Really it seems like a no brainer. So my goal is to stick to this plan for June and see how it goes.
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The $15+1.50 buy-in $5888 guarantee this morning late buy. Folded down to small blind at 10-20k, 4k ante. I would have lost if I called an all in with K2 on my big blind. I go all in on my small blind with 16k chips AK suited. Hand held up against A10 and AQ and I'm back up to 80k. Next round of blinds I folded the BB again and I'm forced all-in with A4 in the small blind. A player shoves with JJ and I flop an Ace and it's enough to carry me into the money. I eventually shoved my last 40k when antes were up to 10k with J7 suited and lost.
Some will say you need to pick a better spot sooner. I folded 55 under the gun (would have been called by 77 and KK and lost) and I folded A8 to a shove (would have lost to AT). So I didn't really have much chance to make a move. But this straight out of TJ Clouttier who says he'd rather be forced all-in with the blinds then come in with a terrible starting hand, especially in a raised pot where someone is representing strength. Of course its a lot of luck, but I've seen time how this strategy works out. With all the antes you can play down to M of 1 or even less and end up with a playable stack.
But I don't think I will play this one again because you start off so short stacked (like M of 2). I like to be a little deeper than that in a late buy. I want to be able to last a few rounds on the starting stack and if I double up one time usually good to make it in the money. Or occasionally just fold into the money. But I had a free ticket to use so I went for it. I also played one SnG and shoved AK with a full stack in a 3 way all-in and lost to KJ on flop KJJ. But that's exactly what you want and often see in tournaments.
A couple weeks ago I played an MTT and I lost TT vs AA and was down to 150 chips, less than ante at 250. I won the next hand (I think it was like K junk and I hit a K), then I got 22 w 750 chips left and beat TT with a 2 on the river. Then I shoved K9 and beat 33. And made it into money. Chip and a chair.
