After giving you a strict set of standards, we've discussed all the ways that we should modify those standards based on the situation. At no point in a poker tournament is your play more important. When I was learning to play golf, I remember the old golf pro telling me. "Hit your drive down the middle." (Start with good cards.) "If you come up a bit short, you might have to use a longer approach club, a 5-iron instead of a 7-iron, no problem." (Through the middle and late stage, you might have to take a longer shot.) "If you miss a putt once you're on the green, it costs you a stroke." (If you bust out early during the end game it has cost you some money.) Sometimes it is amazing how real life resembles golf and poker.
The end game begins when the seat prize differences from one seat to the next become significant. Usually this occurs at the final table. In one of the larger dailies this could be significant, $500 for tenth $1500 for seventh and $8000 for first. You don't want to miss a putt here.
Once we're here you can see the importance of the order used to evaluate considerations.
The tournament status is now. This is it.
- If your stack position is short, you've got to play. If not you've a little flexibility but often even the tall stacks might be under blind pressure at this point. Only extremely large relative stacks have an advantage here. Never call, RAISE .
- Your position changes almost everything as a raise on the button is hard can only be called with best hands. Since you cannot play unless you are prepared to call an ALL-IN move by anyone acting after you, the button is a friendly place to be.
- If you have a good read on an opponent at this point of game, it is as lucrative as a pocket pair.
- With the above in play your cards are almost immaterial. You must play marginal cards. You will seldom get a single caller much less two or three. (There will be few multi-way pots.) High cards and pocket pairs are rules of the day.
As the numbers of players dwindle, the value of high cards increases. Ace rag is a pretty good hand against one or two players.
Don't play unless you are prepared to go all-in once the table is short, and one last word.
RAISE.
Good Luck.
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