Depends on those people but I would say at early stages when stacks are deep. Allthough the real expensive mistakes happen probably later on final tables where a big part of the prize money gets distributed.
Yes i still make mistakes but i try to minimize them. Which not always works 😅
Yes i still make mistakes but i try to minimize them. Which not always works 😅
I think it depends on the situation. Players often make mistakes when the blinds get high and the pressure increases, but bad decisions can happen at any stage. Experience helps, but it doesn't mean you'll stop making mistakes. I still make them myself sometimes
I'd argue the middle stage and the direct bubble are where mistakes cost the most.
In the early stage, a mistake costs chips, but you usually have time to rebuild. By the middle stage and bubble, ICM implications kick in heavily. Making a bad call or over-bluffing when stacks are shallow can bust you right before the pay jumps or force you to survive on a micro-stack, completely killing your chances of making a deep run.
In the early stage, a mistake costs chips, but you usually have time to rebuild. By the middle stage and bubble, ICM implications kick in heavily. Making a bad call or over-bluffing when stacks are shallow can bust you right before the pay jumps or force you to survive on a micro-stack, completely killing your chances of making a deep run.
I think the early stage is the most dangerous because the big blind is low, and sometimes we play hands we shouldn't. Personally, I address this by setting rules for my game and following them whether the big blind is low or high.nabmom said:
If speaking of people in general it could be at any stage. There are plenty of mistakes to go around starting from being too loose/tight from the beginning. Long tournaments can be grueling and brainfarts happen even to good players when one is enough tired. And in poker it is easy to become set in one's ways, no matter how bad they might be.
Tournaments require a reasonable capability to concentrate. A skill that many of those "glued to their phones" might not have.
Tournaments require a reasonable capability to concentrate. A skill that many of those "glued to their phones" might not have.
Definitely the Bubble. The fear of bubbling makes people play so sub-optimally.
I used to make this mistake a lot, but studying ICM helped me overcome it. In my opinion, it’s a classic case of picking up bad habits. A lot of players just rely on 'feel' rather than mathematics, so they never correct their leaks.
I used to make this mistake a lot, but studying ICM helped me overcome it. In my opinion, it’s a classic case of picking up bad habits. A lot of players just rely on 'feel' rather than mathematics, so they never correct their leaks.
I think players are more likely to make mistakes when the blinds get higher and their stacks become shorter. At this stage, the pressure increases, and some players start making desperate calls or pushing all-in with hands that are not strong enough. The late stages can be especially difficult because every decision can have a big impact on the final result.I still make mistakes myself, especially when I know my hand is weak but find it difficult to fold, or when I become impatient after losing a big pot. I'm trying to improve by reviewing my decisions and understanding what I could have done differently.I believe being a beginner is part of it, because we are still learning how to read opponents and understand different situations. However, bad habits can affect experienced players too if they don't recognize and correct them. For me, the most important thing is to be honest with yourself, learn from your mistakes, and keep working on your game.
I believe that early in a tournament, players are most likely to want to see more flops because they have plenty of chips, and consequently, they end up making more mistakes.nabmom said:
I have always been a very disciplined player. When I first started playing poker, I watched many videos by top Brazilian players, and they consistently emphasized that a very serious mistake beginners often make is trying to play too many hands.nabmom said:
Consequently, you will rarely see me playing a large number of hands—especially since I play almost exclusively in freerolls, a type of tournament where it’s common for players to want to play more hands.
Yes, this happens primarily because they are beginners.nabmom said:
However, I believe that over time, players gain experience and stop doing this.
Of course, it also depends a great deal on the tournament buy-in; at lower stakes (micro-stakes) and in freerolls, players tend to want to play more hands, so it becomes a habit.
In later stages of tournaments where table size changes and pre bubble/bubble dynamics mean players need to move through gears both fast and slow. Combined with sunk time cost most players, including me, make psychological errors.
If I were to analyse any given tournament of mine where I survived the bubble, and forced to think through each decision I made, I suspect there are many basic errors, still.
If I were to analyse any given tournament of mine where I survived the bubble, and forced to think through each decision I made, I suspect there are many basic errors, still.
I think the most costly mistakes usually happen in the middle and late stages, especially around the bubble and final table. That's when ICM pressure, stack sizes and blind levels become very important. Early-stage mistakes can also be costly, but there's usually more room to recover. I believe experience helps, but even experienced players can develop bad habits if they don't review their hands and learn from their mistakes.
Pretty much this. The biggest punts are made early in the tournament by people, who dont know how to play with a deep stack. Especially in tournaments that begin unusually deep like 250BB. But the most expensive mistake are made at the final table, because at that point we are playing for significantly more money, than we bought in for.Sunz of Beaches said:
Which is also why, even though an MTT player only spend a small percentage of his time at final tables, its still very important to understand and learn the adjustments, that relates to ICM. And an excellent way of doing that is to play MTT SnGs, where fields are smaller and final tables reached more often. Or small field MTTs with maybe 50-100 participants.
I've seen people do the dumbest things at every stage of a tournament.
Early:
Playing too wide, limping and limp-calling at high frequency.
Stacking off pre-flop way too deep, calling jams with any 2 broadways or any pocket pair 100bb deep, (even multiway).
3-betting min.
Calling ANYTHING when suited (like ANY 2 suiteds) and continuing to check-call on backdoor flush draw.
Trapping with AA or KK 100bb, 50bb deep (trapping ANYTHING worse than AA or KK at any time).
Calling large 3-bets with the bottom of an opening range.
Flat calling squeezes without closing the action (usually is a mistake).
Using ONE pre-flop range for any seat at the table.
C-betting checked flops 100% with large sizing, announcing bluff frequency.
Limp-calling pre and donking a wet flop.
Middle:
Still trying to limp in and hit at 20bb or less.
Trying to trap with JJ, TT type hands.
Flat calling a short stack all-in with multiple large stacks still to act behind (especially with a hand like JJ or A8s).
High frequency limping with an aggressive player on left.
Limping the SB when folded to (like ... a ... FISH!).
Bubble/ICM:
STILL trying to limp and hit with less than 10bb or even less than 5bb (hell, even 2bb!! yes, seen this many times).
Limping in with a micro stack and FOLDING to flop bet (facepalm!!!)
Folding tight tight tight, praying that someone will bust before them while waiting for prime.
MASSIVE stacks refusing to call short jams or to bully isolated short stacks (come on, man).
Staunchly opening 3x or more at final table, refusing to size down to 2x for most situations.
Overvaluing A-rag when stacking off and getting dominated.
I'm sure that there are a bunch more.
Early:
Playing too wide, limping and limp-calling at high frequency.
Stacking off pre-flop way too deep, calling jams with any 2 broadways or any pocket pair 100bb deep, (even multiway).
3-betting min.
Calling ANYTHING when suited (like ANY 2 suiteds) and continuing to check-call on backdoor flush draw.
Trapping with AA or KK 100bb, 50bb deep (trapping ANYTHING worse than AA or KK at any time).
Calling large 3-bets with the bottom of an opening range.
Flat calling squeezes without closing the action (usually is a mistake).
Using ONE pre-flop range for any seat at the table.
C-betting checked flops 100% with large sizing, announcing bluff frequency.
Limp-calling pre and donking a wet flop.
Middle:
Still trying to limp in and hit at 20bb or less.
Trying to trap with JJ, TT type hands.
Flat calling a short stack all-in with multiple large stacks still to act behind (especially with a hand like JJ or A8s).
High frequency limping with an aggressive player on left.
Limping the SB when folded to (like ... a ... FISH!).
Bubble/ICM:
STILL trying to limp and hit with less than 10bb or even less than 5bb (hell, even 2bb!! yes, seen this many times).
Limping in with a micro stack and FOLDING to flop bet (facepalm!!!)
Folding tight tight tight, praying that someone will bust before them while waiting for prime.
MASSIVE stacks refusing to call short jams or to bully isolated short stacks (come on, man).
Staunchly opening 3x or more at final table, refusing to size down to 2x for most situations.
Overvaluing A-rag when stacking off and getting dominated.
I'm sure that there are a bunch more.
I believe the "bubble" stage—the point just before reaching the money—is when the most mistakes tend to happen, perhaps especially as one gets closer to the final table. In my own case, I can identify certain errors I make, but I often end up repeating them; it’s frequently a matter of bad habits that need to be corrected.
The bubble is where most players misplay hands because rising blinds trigger two costly extremes. Driven by fear, most players over-fold, while others limp too many hands, forgetting that short stacks require strict, disciplined hand selection.
the field is generally unprepared for high blind play as the bubble approaches , when ICM situations become paramount . its easy to see why , as stacks get smaller and every move is critical . there is nowhere to hide with a small or middle stack ; both nerve and luck are required !