Joining a tournament late.. What's too late

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Katie Dozier said:
The number of big blinds that I’m willing to buyin for varies greatly based on the buyin.

For tourneys well below my average buyin, I’m sometimes okay with playing for as little as around 20 bbs, but for tourneys at the top of my buyin range It would be very unusual for me to start late-especially since I often base my whole day around playing them!
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Pretty much agree with Katie. If I am playing a tournament near the top of my buyin range, why would I want to give up any edge by not being there from the beginning or at least very early like within the first 1-2 blind levels? I can also learn something from watching, what other good players do. If however I just started my session, or perhaps I busted from some tables shortly after each other, then I will sometimes add new tournaments, which are already running, rather than wait for the next one to begin, if these are in the middle or bottom of my buyin range.

OP also asked about R+A tournaments, and these are something completely different. When the add-ons are purchased, the value of each chip in the tournament goes down. So in these events its a completely viable strategy to register in the very last moment, fold 1-2 hands and then purchase the add-on. In this way you will have paid less per chip than its ICM value, and this compensates for giving up on skill edge by not being there from the beginning. If you are not sure, you even have a skill edge, this is actually the optimal strategy. Which in a way makes the format a little bit silly. It also seem to be going out of fashion on PokerStars, while 888 Poker still runs a lot of them.
 
bb

I always look at the starting chips and what the BB is and how many people are left and how many levels of late reg are left.
 
Absolutely....some of these dumb 4 hour late reg tourneys. Much more advantageous to join 2 hours in.

As for joining one 45 minutes in with only 15 minutes late reg. Rarely.

I rarely join a tourney over half way into reg. The only time I do is if it's an add on with a heavy chip stack for cost which will put me near itm.
 
If you cannot register with at least 20bb - its too far gone. You can get lucky and run up your stack once in a while off of 15bb or less - but there just isn't enough breathing room to play well.

Personally I love late regging tournaments. I either do well, and make the $$ - or I bust and don't have to bother with that table any longer.

Anyhow long story short is you can still play good poker off of 20bb, therefor that is my solid minimum for late regging.
 
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If u get busted early after registering late mayb it was too late 😉
 
At 888 I have, for one reason or another, joined late, and have made the $ without even playing! I prefer to register early, so I can see as many hands as possible while the BB is lower 🙂
 
Joining late is risky

It’s a lot harder in a live tournament in my opinion but anything after 7 levels I’d say is pushing it unless you want to gamble.
 
For me it depends on the time of the blinds, the total time of the late registration and the amount of initial chips, if the registration is something like 3 hours I register when half the registration has passed, if the registration is 1 hour and the tournament is turbo I register no later than 10 minutes after starting the tournament, my friends used to register in the last minute of a tournament and did rebuy, add on, they had their strategy to play in the last minute, I think it worked for them
 
Yupp.. as long as late registration is open then thats enough time for me.. only a closed registration is too late for me =)
 
I would say that joining a tournament with less than 20BBs is too late.. Unless of course you're willing to buy-in multiple times since you'll be going all-in often.,,
 
Its best to be on time for tourneys and get in there and accumulate chips at the beginning in a deep stack scenario. I do however understand that some tourneys have way too long late reg scenarios uh hum, ACR.

I used to look at blind levels when coming in with late reg but I don't like going on that alone. I look at the average stack and what my stack will be in entering. I also look at the structure as well and how quick the blinds increase as well to determine this.

The more deficient you are of average stack and the blind speed you are, the more higher variant you have to accumulate chips to get a good stack at final table. I used to be the one that would hit the tournament up at 20bb or more but there is huge value in getting there on time, getting the chips you need deep and maybe have a good stack coming in when you are at the money bubble and final table bubble.
 
one time I accidently register in the last minute, and made it ITM, but I doubled up twice in the first 3 hands - extremely lucky. I usually gage if my started stack is near the half of the average stack. If I can reach average stack (or close) with a one double up, that is my limit. Anything below that, and it's case by case basis (sometimes its involves case of beer, lol)
 
It may be too late when the other players already have big stacks, but anything can happen, right?
 
mercyscercy said:
Curious what everybody's thoughts are on playing a tournament but starting 45 minutes after it started and 15 minutes remaining until registration ends. obviously you will be joining with a limited amount of chips compared to the size of the blinds when you start. obviously you wouldn't want to start a tournament so late that you have 10,000 chips starting and the blinds are 1,000-2,000.. but I'm curious if you are starting with 10,000 chips what's the latest you'll play? 200 - 400... 300 - 600... 500 - 1,000... what's everybody's thoughts? Also maybe if they have add on break if that affects your decision?
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The only thing that affects my decision in late registration its how many BB's I will enter the tournament. Most of the time I prefer to play after some time, because in the beggining with hundreds of big blinds, people used to play more loose.
 
I prefer a 2 level cushion before the end of late registration. This way I can scope out the tables leaderboards. So if I don't go all in with the leaders of the tournament, in other words its never to late
 
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I think that joining a tournament late is very difficult to go back since those who are early have more chips and one has less ability to acquire chips, but everything is a matter of stake and chance
 
i hat ewhen the blinds at a late registration are so high that it still for one hand is that the most bad on late registration but good for all early starters with a amount
 
I dont like to late reg, maybe only at freerolls or super micro buy-ins, its very hard to get a good stake when you start with 10-20BB... I can do late reg if the overlay is high, or if i have around 60% or more BB that the supposed to start (if normal reg gives you 100BB, maybe i can late reg if i start with 60 or more BB, but no less)
 
I think the ideal is to enter the beginning of the tournament, the more chips we have the better.
Entering a tournament with an already low stack we will have to rely a lot on luck to be able to increase the stack, which for me is not ideal.
Much better to play with 50bb or more than with a stack of 15bb or less.
 
I've regged the last min and come in with 5 blinds before. I only do this in the low buy ins and when over 60% of the field is already gone, and when you are close to the money or a ticket if it is a saty. You get a big ICM boost from this as a lot of people are already out and there's good value to still being in the tourney even with a small stack. A lot of the times you can get a double and make the money and sometimes even spin it up further.
 
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