The Bubble – a finishing position in a poker tournament which is just outside the money. If a tournament pays prizes to the top ten finishers and someone busts in 11th place, they have burst “on the bubble”.
This can be a tricky time in a poker tournament, when the money is within touching distance, but the key to playing the bubble is to make sure that your strategy doesn’t become tight. It may be tempting to tighten up and wait for a shorter stack to bust, guaranteeing you some prize money, but this is a poor long term strategy. There isn’t a single situation where it pays to tighten up on the bubble:
Big stack: let’s say you’re second in chips with eleven left in the poker tournament and the top ten are paid. The chances are strong that the short stacks will be looking over their shoulders and they’ll not enjoy aggression from players with more chips, as they might have to put their tournament lives on the line. They might even be tightening up, waiting for a fellow short stack to bust, so they are prime targets for your bullying. This applies to the medium stacks too, they would be foolish to take you on without a big hand, with all the shorter stacks around that could bust. Lean on them. Just don’t get involved with the big stack unless you’re holding a monster.
Short stack: this time, let’s imagine you’ve only got eight big blinds. Everyone is looking at you and waiting for you to bust, so they can cash. If you tighten up now, everyone will wait for the antes and blinds to force you in. Be aggressive. Especially if you have a tight table image, the bubble is a great place to change gears. Short stacks won’t take you on without a big hand and medium stacks will be wary of ending up in your position if they take a couple of loose shots at busting you. They’re all looking to the big stacks to do the dirty work, so get in their faces and steal their blinds.
Medium stack: tightening up would still be a bad idea. The short stacks will have either tightened up, to try and scrape into the money, or they’ll be going kamikaze. Play your normal game and use your judgement. Don’t be afraid to call a short stack who is constantly shoving, with a marginal hand of your own – they can’t always have the goods. Similarly, if they’ve tightened up completely, pick on them and pinch their blinds. Do not let short stacks steal and help those that tighten up to ante themselves to death.
So there you have it. Don’t tighten up when the money’s in sight! Best of luck on the bubble.
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