Joined: Apr '09
Location: Australia
Age: 40 (M)
Posts: 6483
i play short-handed ring games, so I dont buyin with short stack. However, I DO have a strategy against short stack, cause they shouldnt be playing short-handed, so they are always bad short-stackers at short-handed tables.. they tend to limp, and flat call pre-flop (bad for short handers) so I tend to punish their limps, pot commit them when I know they have s**t.
Joined: Feb '08
Location: United Kingdom
Age: 35 (M)
Posts: 1886
I assume you're talking about when you are forced into a short stack situation in a tourney.
It all depends on how short stack you are. In some tourneys you can be a short stack with more than 15 big blinds in which case going all in is a bad idea unless there's about four big blinds in the pot. Otherwise you're only gonna get called by dangerous hands and it's not worth it. If on the other hand you have six big blinds left of course the only moves you have are all in or fold.
You should try and avoid becoming short-stacked in the first place. Don't call away your stack when you've got a middle sized stack and avoid getting involved with similar sized stacks. But sometimes it's impossible to avoid if you both hit good hands.
I think I can play short stacked pretty well. Most people over-worry when they become short and push too much. On the other hand I've seen some people hang on until they've got one blind left. It's a fine balance and you need to know when you've got your best price to push. When you're short stacked you will always have to gamble at least once but you can make sure the odds are in your favour. For example if two bigger stacks are raising and calling loosely call with two low cards, which are more likely to be alive. You'll need to get lucky but you'll only need to get lucky once to triple up.
I play a lot of ring games short-stacked. I know people criticise short-stack strategy but it does make money if you're smart and it's good practice for those hard times in tourneys.
Joined: Nov '09
Location: Australia
Age: 37 (M)
Posts: 715
Posted by awood88: I assume you're talking about when you are forced into a short stack situation in a tourney.
It all depends on how short stack you are. In some tourneys you can be a short stack with more than 15 big blinds in which case going all in is a bad idea unless there's about four big blinds in the pot. Otherwise you're only gonna get called by dangerous hands and it's not worth it. If on the other hand you have six big blinds left of course the only moves you have are all in or fold.
You should try and avoid becoming short-stacked in the first place. Don't call away your stack when you've got a middle sized stack and avoid getting involved with similar sized stacks. But sometimes it's impossible to avoid if you both hit good hands.
I think I can play short stacked pretty well. Most people over-worry when they become short and push too much. On the other hand I've seen some people hang on until they've got one blind left. It's a fine balance and you need to know when you've got your best price to push. When you're short stacked you will always have to gamble at least once but you can make sure the odds are in your favour. For example if two bigger stacks are raising and calling loosely call with two low cards, which are more likely to be alive. You'll need to get lucky but you'll only need to get lucky once to triple up.
I play a lot of ring games short-stacked. I know people criticise short-stack strategy but it does make money if you're smart and it's good practice for those hard times in tourneys.
How about letting us other mobsters post here?? but i agree with him +1
Cautious table If it is allinjeidet it is not granted very much concerning your aggressive increases, it is possible to reduce small one then the increases and the raising his measure. Preflop cut only cca. the original increase 2 – 2.5-x. This the flopnál already anyway allint present, so there is not a difference practically, the adversaries are allowed to grant this on the other hand more easily. The standard 2/3 – 3/4 flop raise somewhat smaller ones though instead of increases, is afraid so around pot. Who only from habit playful, it may be it that he grants this much with a tensile Lapp automatically, and good big one makes a mistake, because the pot does not turn up because of the little stacked-oddsa! Indeed taking courage on this sometimes raise onto you, with which dot you achieve the original aim: you may go allin!
Joined: May '10
Location: Serbia
Age: 45 (M)
Posts: 128
Well, what about the other cases, not just for a tournament. I have ruined my bankroll and have only 33 dollars. What strategy do I use to get back to 200? TAG or something else?
Hi all!!! SSS is a strategy working well. But it is necessary to take notice of the fact that he works if it is played very tightly and consistently only. If – anything from a reason – you decide so, that SSS-t you will be playing: Do not play a table longer if you understand it the strategy stack-limitét! This is the most important rule! Do not differ from the starting strategy. (Possibly if you have much practice already, but then only in moderation) Do not be playing short-handed on a table! (SSS works here, but far not so efficiently) Do not play a tall stake. (At least initially.) And mostly: Do not be playing SSS-t, if you want to develop you can, not only the bankrollod!
Yes it works but so many players know it and it's difficult to find a table with noone playing it And you learn me that it works only if there are no more than 2 players ( including you ) which use SSS
Joined: Oct '08
Location: United Kingdom
Age: 43 (M)
Posts: 1086
All short stacking in cash games is basically damage limitation by poor players. You would be better of spending your time learning how to play properly imo. Plus, its supposed to be exploitable, but its far from that in my experience.
Joined: Mar '10
Location: Croatia
Age: 74 (F)
Posts: 1038
Hi,I have same like you,when I'am short stacked I don't have nerv to play,only all in,I can't understand people who have 4 BB and wait and fold after blind
SSS is a beginner's strategy. It's profitable if your good and it'll keep you out of marginal situations. Bottom line is u basically wait for pairs QQ or better and push all in. U play all pairs. U fold pretty much everything else except AK AQ and sometimes AJ. There's more to it but this is just a summary.
Hello everybody! Many new players think that the situation you’re looking for as the short stack is to get into a 3 or 4-way pot and “quadruple up”. They see a raise, and a re-raise to them and they think “this is my chance, Queen Ten is good enough”. However, this is not the ideal situation for a short stack. In situations such as these, your hand is often way behind. Your chances of actually winning a showdown are relatively slim. You’re far better off waiting for a pot with no players in it to try and steal the blinds. Good luck All!
Joined: Oct '09
Location: Spain
Age: 60 (M)
Posts: 2851
Posted by awood88: I assume you're talking about when you are forced into a short stack situation in a tourney.
It all depends on how short stack you are. In some tourneys you can be a short stack with more than 15 big blinds in which case going all in is a bad idea unless there's about four big blinds in the pot. Otherwise you're only gonna get called by dangerous hands and it's not worth it. If on the other hand you have six big blinds left of course the only moves you have are all in or fold.
You should try and avoid becoming short-stacked in the first place. Don't call away your stack when you've got a middle sized stack and avoid getting involved with similar sized stacks. But sometimes it's impossible to avoid if you both hit good hands.
I think I can play short stacked pretty well. Most people over-worry when they become short and push too much. On the other hand I've seen some people hang on until they've got one blind left. It's a fine balance and you need to know when you've got your best price to push. When you're short stacked you will always have to gamble at least once but you can make sure the odds are in your favour. For example if two bigger stacks are raising and calling loosely call with two low cards, which are more likely to be alive. You'll need to get lucky but you'll only need to get lucky once to triple up.
I play a lot of ring games short-stacked. I know people criticise short-stack strategy but it does make money if you're smart and it's good practice for those hard times in tourneys.
I couldn´t agree more. I mostly play tourneys, so short stacks are just an unavoidable part of the game sometimes if you want to last. And then it´s a thinking man´s game...blind sizes, position, players types at your table, and even the clock when a tourney nears it´s end. Can´t tell you how many times I´ve made the final table or cashed higher by clock/blind play near the end of a tourney. Everyone trying to make first, I just try to move up in the money, sometimes you get very lucky, other times you cash higher than you would otherwise. It´s fun!
Joined: Nov '09
Location: Canada
Age: 55 (M)
Posts: 2387
awood88 has a lot of good points. Shortstack strategy in cash games is straightforward enough, but in tourneys it will vary depending on the situation. Generally I will continue being patient as long as possible, but when the situation demands it I will push with pocket pairs, all the way down to 8-8 if nobody is in and only the blinds are left to speak, and AK and AQ. With AA or KK I might raise only one or two blinds if I want to trap others into the hand, but if several are already in then I push.
I play most of my ring games short stacked, and I try and take advantage of super aggressive players to chip me up. The only way to play short stacked is to push when you've got the goods, otherwise limping will leave you at the point where anyone will call with anything and then it becomes a lottery.
And you learn me that it works only if there are no more than 2 players ( including you ) which use SSS 
