On the Bubble

We’ve all been there (hopefully). Only a few players left to eliminate in an online multi-table tournament at PokerStars, Ultimate Bet or at your favorite online poker room before the hours of poker are rewarded with a cash prize. It’s exciting, yet stressful for most because many don’t know what to do. Do I go into a shell and wait for the bubble to pop? Do I keep playing as normal? Do I do something strange that I haven’t even thought about yet? Holdem Bonuses gives you some basic strategies for playing on the bubble, categorized by the kind of chip stack you have.

Big Stack

It’s always nice to be the big stack at the table, but the bubble stage of a multi-table tournament is arguably the best time to have a gigantic stack of chips. Since most players, even if they are really playing to win, do not want to go out on the bubble after working so hard and for so long to get to the money, there is an opportunity for you as the big stack to accumulate chips.

Perhaps more so than at other times in the tournament, now is the time to be aggressive. If the action folds to you, throw out a raise. Punish the blinds. If a medium stack raises, consider putting him to a decision for all of his chips. Put pressure on everybody, except for fellow big stacks. Your opponents are likely to lay their hands down and concede pots to you in exchange for being one hand closer to cashing.

And you can be aggressive without much in the way of hole cards. Even if a medium or small stack calls when you put them all-in or goes over the top of your raise, you can weather a loss, while still having a chance to knock out an opponent. Don’t go crazy with the bluffing, though. Your opponents need to believe you might have something, even if they aren’t sure. If you raise every hand, people are going to catch on quickly.

Obviously, unless you have a monster hand, don’t fool with other big stacks. Even though you are in a position to gobble up chips and advance towards a tournament win, it would still be silly to take an unnecessary risk right before you make the money.

Short Stack

You, as a short stack, are in the unenviable position of sweating the bubble. After every hand during hand-for-hand play, you are probably looking around the room to see if a dealer is announcing an open seat. Fortunately, it’s relatively easy to be a short stack. Either you hunker down into survival mode or actively attempt to double up.

Much of your strategy is going to be based on what your goal for the tournament is. People may scoff at this, but if you just want to make the money then by all means, wait it out a bit. See if someone else falls and becomes the dreaded “bubble boy.” Sure, most poker players will say that you should play to win the tournament, but for some people, making the bottom of the money totem pole can be very important. For instance, if you are a normal, every day person who makes, say, $45,000 per year and you qualified for the Main Event of the World Series of Poker via an online satellite, making the money can make your year. By just ekeing into the money, you can increase your annual pay by about 50 percent. That can really make a difference for your family.

In this case, who am I to say that just playing to make the money is wrong? Now, if this is how you’re going to play it, you still want to make an all-in move before you get blinded off and lose any sort of fold equity you may have. You can’t rely on someone else busting out for too long.

If you are not particularly concerned with the bottom rung of the money, then pick a hand, preferably a strong one, and push all-in pre-flop when you are the first into the pot. This way, you still have a chance to pick up the blinds and antes if everyone folds. You can push over the top of a raise, but keep in mind that as a short stack, you will almost assuredly be called, so it is wise to have a hand in this situation.

At the right table, you may be able to wield your short stack like a big club and actually accumulate some chips. If your table is filled with short and medium stacks, they will not be likely to want to mess with you if you take the initiative pre-flop. Your short stack, should you pick your spots well, may be able to grow by the time you make the money and allow you to have some ammo to move up the pay scale.

Medium Stack

Whereas the big and small stacks have relatively easy decisions to make on the bubble (one bullies and the other either plays the waiting game or shoves), the medium stack is in a tough position. You have too many chips to just go all-in pre-flop unless you have a huge hand. If you just raise pre-flop, which is reasonable in most circumstances, you risk having a big stack come over the top to steal your chips or a small stack coming over the top to try to double-up. Either way, if you fold after making a raise, you very well might become a short stack.

As a middle stack, you will typically have to play tight and hope that the bubble is burst quickly, lest several rounds of blinds get swept out of your stack. If you make a move pre-flop, make sure you have a hand that you are fine taking to showdown. While it may not appear to be the case, you are almost in an “all-in or fold” position, as both the big stacks and small stacks may force you to put most or all of your chips at risk, should they play back at you. You don’t want to lay down a hand after committing a lot of chips to the pot and thus become a short stack.

If the table is mostly medium stacks, however, you may be able to take advantage of the bubble and bully them like a big stack might. You know that the medium stacks want to stay out of trouble, so you might be able to grab some blinds to fatten up your stack.