Alright, the way i see it is no you cant just fold and let other people duke it out because of the blinds and antes. But shoving with anything even with an M less than 10 can hurt as well, yes you can double up but you cant just shove from any position every time you get an ace.
I hate shoving from early and middle position, I'll do it if i get something good but i really try and take all of my risks from late position. the only time i like shoving from middle position is when there is no bigstack to my left, and the blinds are medium stacked across from me. I never like to shove from early position and wont do it unless the blinds will severely cripple me.
Here is my basic strategy, from late position with a medium stack you can shove with almost anything imo, anything suited, pocket pairs, small aces and of course anything thats really good as well. Even in a shovefest if you're the first one entering the pot from late position you have a great chance at taking it down right there. Everyone seems to think omggg we have to double up shove with any ace. The blinds and antes are growing so large though that they alone can improve your stack significantly.
Situation:
150 people left, you have 80,000 chips, medium stacked, 3000/6000 blinds, ante 750. M = 80,000/ 3000 + 6000 + 750x9 (nine person table) = 5.08.
Say every 2 rotations you steal 3 times, twice with marginal hands and once with a good hand. If the blinds and antes stayed the same, for every two rotations your stack would go up 1 BB, 1 SB and 1 Ante pack. 3000 + 6000 + 6750 = 15750. Your chip stack is then 95,750, after three rotations say you then picked up kings or something, instead of shoving you make a 2.5xBB raise from early middle position, a shorter stack of about 60,000 shoves and you call them down and win. Say you didnt steal at all those three rotations and just waited on those kings, 3 rotations without the blinds and antes going up would have decreased your stack to 32750 and in deep trouble. If you had gotten those same kings you would have only doubled up to about 64000 chips instead of getting a big stack of about 170,000 chips.
This is all from stealing 3 times in 18 hands, now its impossible to tell when someone will wake up with a hand in the BB, we cant help that, but we DONT want them to call, get your chips in with a good hand and get them in first from good position. You dont have to shove from any position with something like AT, or call with 55.
Also I'm sure some of you are like people are eventually going to pick up a 'big' hand and kill us. Yes this is true, but remember we only stole 3 times. Once was with a hand like AK and the other two were just plain steals. We did it from position, Button or CO, so only 2 or 3 people could go ahead of us. Thats a lot less people to possibly have a hand. You'll never be certain, but its poker, never being certain is just about the only certainty preflop.
