To Raise/Go All In On The Bubble

[ozrock]

I have heard two different theories. 1. On the bubble, fold until you get into the money, 2. Play super aggressive with big pocket pairs, etc. I guess it is how bad you want to get into the money versus how badly you want to have a large chip stack once you are in the money. Other opinions?

 

[mariale_1990]

These 2 options depend mainly on how many chips you have at that moment, are they enough to play aggressive? They are very few and do you have a chance to wait and for the bubble to end? or you have few chips and there is no way you can expect the bubble to end and therefore you must take a risk, you also have to consider that it is not to play aggressive and now, I think it also depends on the reading you have of your opponents

 

[mushthebush]

From my experience, it depends on the circumstances and there are a few questions that I ask myself when I'm in the bubble. Firstly, how long do I think the bubble will last (I check number of players, low stacks and other potential factors)? Secondly, will my stack be enough to pay the blinds and get me past the bubble? Thirdly, what players do I have around me? And lastly could I steal some blinds with my stack? Then I make decisions on how to proceed. The aim is to reach itm by any means necessary.

Of course, I've run out of chips in the bubble and of course, I have risked my stack and lost in the bubble. Also as a big stack I played the usual aggressive. So, with time I adjusted. But I don't think there is an "always this or that". Poker functions better with words like "sometimes", "most of the time", "frequently", "rarely".

 

[ph_il]

i think majority of the time, i'm folding into the money. i'm not doing this because i'm afraid of bubbling, it's usually because-in most scenarios-i'm just not picking up hands the folds are completely standard.

there will be situations where i might pick up a hand and i have pay a bit more attention to the bubble. for example, i pick up 88 in mp1 with 9 bbs on the stone bubble. now i have to look at remaining players and stack sizes. it wouldn't make sense to jam and lose on the bubble against someone with .5 bbs that's already folded and waiting for h4h to end. i lose a ton of value in that spot. if bottom stacks are near even, then jamming 88 with 9 bbs will be the better option.

then there are hands i play and i'm not even considering the bubble at all. hands like jj+, ak. maybe even 1010 in some situations. here, my focus is all on maximizing value for my hands. yes, i could easily bust with aa on the bubble when i get in for 60 bbs effective preflop and, yes, it's mighty silly for someone with .5 bbs to cash at my expense, but i look at the big picture. the times my hand holds (which is more often than not), more than make up for times i bubble.

 

[samersv]

if the tournament is expensive and you have a short stack then of course you can fold even with aces against 2 all ins for example.

 

[valetgll]

I think it depends on which card is constantly coming to you. There is a lot of good and there is almost all the time bad. So you sit with a bad card and go all-in occasionally with a small stack.

 

[nuttea]

I have heard two different theories. 1. On the bubble, fold until you get into the money, 2. Play super aggressive with big pocket pairs, etc. I guess it is how bad you want to get into the money versus how badly you want to have a large chip stack once you are in the money. Other opinions?

If you have a big stack, you need to get aggressive, steal the blinds and force your opponents to fold on a dangerous flop. If you are a chip leader, none of your opponents will get involved in a confrontation with you without a good hand. The opponents will play very tight. Each of them will want to get into the prizes. Rather, they will, gritting their teeth, throw out a lot of hands just to stay in the tournament. But do not use such techniques against aggressive maniacs.

 

[perrypip]

Playing tight on the bubble leads to a lot of min cashes. You'll make a bigger profit taking risks and going deep.

 

[Miguelpaniura0893]

already inside the bubble if you can risk going with everything but before near the bubble do not go all-in even if they have given you AA except if the villain has much less than your stack

 

[bertaS1234]

I will wait for prizes, I do not want to risk it

 

[x patrice x]

If I have a big stack, I play aggressive. Most throw their hands in this phase to get into the money. You can steal so many chips. If myself a small stack, I play on time and throw every hand, except A-A.

 

[63burner]

fold and play..

At the bubble, with sufficient stack, folding to get ITM is a rational play. However, keeping sufficient stack, with rising blinds, you can't just fold your way ITM. You have to play a hand, or bluff at a hand, to get your stack to make it.
Trying to fold your way ITM is difficult, it is almost necessary to keep playing. Going all in is worth it, risk/reward, depending on stack size. If you are close to only 10 Big blinds, you should shove, the risk is huge, but the reward is enough chips to stay alive.

 

[Mamkin_Pokerist]

I came to the conclusion that it is necessary to play in a bubble, focusing on the strength of the hand. If the hand allows you to steal the blinds without risk, then go ahead. It's not worth taking risks because of a couple of blinds. The opponent may have a stronger hand, and this may have a bad effect on your stack

 

[La reytor]

not always, it is better to be patient depending on how many chips you have if you have a good stack there is no need to be aggressive

 

[LFC_yllnwa]

I think this is absolutely the right thing to do! When you don't have the opportunity to fight for victory, but enough to earn, you have to do it and throw away even KK won't be a mistake against a player, who forces you to go all-in, against any other short it's pressure and aggression

If you're lucky and you reach in the money, any opportunity to double or triple your bank it's all-in without hesitation, I think it's very simple and understandable!

 

[dallam]

I think this is absolutely the right thing to do! When you don't have the opportunity to fight for victory, but enough to earn, you have to do it and throw away even KK won't be a mistake against a player, who forces you to go all-in, against any other short it's pressure and aggression

If you're lucky and you reach in the money, any opportunity to double or triple your bank it's all-in without hesitation, I think it's very simple and understandable!

With KK we are favourites against every combination expect AA. If the tournament is in his/her bankroll, I don't see a point to fold especially against a player who definitely have an opened-range because of making pressure on us.

My view on bubble is that bubble is really overrated. It's nice to have something after long hours in an MTT, but your aim is to always make as deep as you can.

So with high-stack you can push a little bit more, with low-stack you only have to fold the insecure combinations. Otherwise you can make actions especially with KK.

 

[Justashot]

A lot of it does depend on how many chips you have. For the most part though, I play conservative at the bubble.

 

[zipocool]

I've heard two different theories. 1. On the bubble, fold until you hit the money. 2. Play very aggressively with big pocket pairs, etc. I think how much you want to get into the money, not how much you want to have a big stack of chips. as soon as you find yourself in the money. Other opinions?

It all depends on the number of chips and the structure of the tournament, if you have a large stack then it makes sense to put pressure on players with short stacks, if you have few chips, then of course it is better to play more tight