tbettingen

Hey Pietro! Welcome!

Don't worry, you're not offending anyone and you're asking a valid question!

The MTT Learning Path does include some older videos, but those mostly deal with parts of tournament poker that don't really change over time, especially regarding the fundamentals of tournaments. Even though some of them are a couple of years old, they still are a great resource to get started in tournaments and will have you learn enough to be comfortable in most tournaments.

As you go higher in stakes and opponents become tougher, some strategies may be outdated and in those cases it will be better to focus on more recent videos not found in the MTT Learning Path. All categories and videos currently in the MTT learning path are intended to be more or less timeless and will always be a decent guide in helping players get started playing tournaments and assist them in improving various parts of their game as they get better and move up in stakes.

In short, the videos may be older, but their content is still very relevant.

Hope this helps! :)

Even against someone that spewy, pre is still a fold. T7o will hardly ever connect well enough for you to be able to comfortably check/call 3 times against his high frequency of bluffs, plus you're OOP and giving the Big Blind the option to squeeze and exploit your overly loose call.

If you want to loosen up against a player like this, you should first include high equity hands that can connect easily postflop and produce strong/nutted hands (e.g. A2s, K8s, T9). Also, try and play pots in position as much as possible. Additionally, you can widen your value 3betting range and up your 3bet frequency against this opponent, trying to isolate him with reasonably strong hands as much as possible.

As played I don't really see us folding river, not too much you can do at that point.

Thought process here looks good and I think you're also correct about the river, so calling seems fine. Not a spot to be thrilled about, but I don't think you can fold the river.

ICMizer is likely the voice of authority here and will assess this spot correctly.

Even against a wide range as you described, you're not a huge favorite. Additionally, there is another short stack at the table that will make you busting in this spot relatively more costly for you when compared to a situation in which it's you as the short stack and three large stacks.

I would believe ICMizer and fold.

There are ways to calculate these spots manually (assuming you can arrive at a somewhat reasonable estimates for ranges), but given the amount of scenarios, stacks, and ranges to consider that would be an unreasonably time-consuming endeavor. Instead, it will be better to become familiar with tools such as ICMizer to get a better understanding of these spots.

Having said that, this feels like a close fold, with ATs/AJo potentially being the cut-off point for this spot.

My opinion is that you don't need to call, you already have a healthy stack, 9 bb are nothing but for that reason is not a bad call. If it were a KO would be a clear call for the bounty.

Unless there are some significant ICM implications, your reasoning here is flawed. Our stack and it being healthy or not, and how much we stand to win compared to our stack, does not matter. If a spot is profitable (+chipEV), there is no reason outside of ICM to not take the spot. Our goal in a tournament is to accumulate all chips in play, so if we, on average, gain chips by calling in this spot, we should always be making the call.

If you change (increase) your sizing BvB consistently, then people shouldn't be able to read very much into it. As you have implied yourself, opening bigger BvB has its merits and is something that you'll likely want to implement in your game as well.

Even if micro stakes players will react differently to a larger open size in that particular spot, you can't control their reaction (whether they perceive it as value or as a bluff sizing), and you can reasonably expect for the different responses to even each other out. While some opponents may perceive a larger open size as weaker, others may perceive it as stronger - overall, you shouldn't be too affected by it and if you think that opening larger BvB is a profitable adjustment to your game then you should make it.

Pre is pretty close with 20BBs and might be a fold. While I agree with Samu above that you can generally flat a lot of (suited) hands from the BB with these odds, 52s will definitely be at the bottom or just out of that range.

As played I'm not that thrilled to be shoving the flop but we should still have enough equity against their ranges to get it in profitably so I'd also shove the flop now.

Calling SB's shove, assuming a range of JJ+, AKs, AKo, nets you 160 chips or 1.3BB, making this a clearly profitable call.

However, depending on the payout structure of the SNG, you likely want to also take ICM into account which may make this spot a lot closer.

To decrease overall variance, you should seek to increase your win rate as much as possible. The higher your EV in a set of tournaments is, the less severe downswings will be.
To reduce variance over time, playing as many tournaments as you can will reduce the length of swings. However, be mindful not to play too many tables at once or your win rate might drop and offset the reduction in variance you gained by playing high volume.

With regards to particular play styles, there is no set formula for which play style will offer the least variance.

If you simply tighten up your game without a deeper purpose, it is likely that variance would increase rather than decrease. The more you are dependent on the exact hands you are dealt, the more subject you are to variance. If you learn to take your spots well - either playing a TAG or LAG style - you will increase your non-SD winnings and learn to chip up without hoping to win favorable all-in situations.

Basically, try to work on your game as much as you can and play as much volume as you possibly can without it hurting your focus and/or your game.

If you search for videos containing the term "Pio" you will find hundreds of videos that involve pros using the software. I'm sure you'll be able to copy some of their study methods and approaches to recording their findings, such as through use of spreadsheets.

Generally speaking, it will likely help to consistently use Pio to study to get a better and better understanding of various spots that you encounter regularly. Additionally, Excel spreadsheets or Google sheets will likely be a good way to track your simulations for future reference.

Perhaps you can even find other members interested in creating a shared document and to discuss your respective results!

Having no fold equity preflop shouldn't affect this decision too much, as you will almost always be committed anyway. Also, AQo will likely do well against villain's range, so if we are going to play this hand we should just get it all-in preflop.

Depending on the size of the mincash and the average stack (or the shortest stacks left in the tournament) you could maybe argue to fold into a mincash. Generally this is unlikely with 30 players to go until the money, conventional min-cash amounts and a stack as short as 10BB.

I think this is a shove pre.

Although it is good that you're actively thinking about blockers, make sure to not pay too much attention to them in spots such as this. While you are blocking the nut flush, villain has a huge amount of spade flush combos in his range seeing as this is a limped pot. Just because you are blocking the nut flush does not mean villain will be betting flushes any less. If he has the lowest flush possible (42ss), I would fully expect him to bet regardless.

Postflop as played is mostly fine (flop cbet can be bigger), but if you are going to 3bet preflop, you need to make it a little bigger, especially when playing from OOP.

As others have pointed out, against a thinking regular either reshoving here (for reasons of balance) or flatting will yield the best results. Though it is less likely that it will be necessary to be balanced in this spot in low stakes.

Assuming villain limps 100% of hands and calls ~11% of hands (55+, A9s+, KTs+, QTs+, AJo+, KQo), then in 89% of hands you will win his limped blind + antes = 21,250 chips. In the 11% of cases in which he calls, you will lose ~150k in 75% of cases, and win ~161k in 25% of cases.

Return = 0.89 * 21,250 + 0.11 * (0.75 * (-150,000) + 0.25 * 161,000)
Return = 18,913 + 0.11 (-112,500 + 40,250)
Return = 10,965

If your assumptions are correct, then this play nets you ~1.1BB on average.

However, it is very unlikely that villain actually limps 100% of hands, and only calls 11% of hands (as villain calling with T7 shows).

As soon as villain calls a wider range and therefore more frequently, your return drops significantly. Assuming villain limps 80% instead of 100% and against a calling range of 28.7% (66+, 44, A2s+, K6s+, Q7s+, J7s+, T7s+, 98s, A5o+, K9o+, QTo+, JTo) it looks like this:

Return = 0.625 * 21,250 + 0.375 * (0.71 * (-150,000) + 0.29 * 161,000)
Return = 13,281 + 0.375 (-106,500 + 46,690)
Return = 13,281 - 22,429
Return = -9,148

As you can see, with more reasonable ranges you lose almost 1BB on the play.

You certainly have the right idea regarding exploiting a weak limping range by shoving over it fairly wide, but 62o for 15BB is just too wide for the play to be profitable in almost any scenario.

Likely yes. With 15 players left, payjumps will be comparatively insignificant and ICM won't affect your decisions too much (apart from spots where you are the chipleader and commit to a close spot against the 2nd in chips, for example). ICM will increase in importance exponentially as you reach the final table bubble and at the final table all the way to heads-up play.

There are plenty of videos discussing how to prepare for live tournaments coming from an online poker background. The large majority of these videos talk about adjustments for and experiences from the WSOP, but I'm sure their concepts can very easily applied to other live events.
If you use the search term "WSOP" you will find a large library to choose from, but here are some examples that come to mind:

Live Poker Primer by John Andress
Live Lessions: 2014 WSOP by Nick Rampone
Lessons from Vegas and the WSOP by James Hudson

Hope this helps!

I'd just bet the flop and expect our opponents to call with all sorts of weaker hands.

Turn sizing looks fine as played. Given that this is among the worst rivers in the deck and a previously passive villain leads with a pot sized bet, we will have to fold to his bet. It's an annoying spot, but I don't see villain get to the river with many bluffs and like you have explained yourself, a ton of flushes, straight combos, and Ax two pair get there.

Apart from potentially betting the flop there is not much you could have done differently to prevent being in this spot. It's a terrible river for you, but that is simply going to happen from time to time.

Unless villain has been super tight this is a clear call.

If villain shoves 55+, ATs+, AJo+, KJs+, and KQo, you have 37.7% equity:

equity win tie pots won pots tied
Hand 0: 37.719% 33.44% 04.28% 755905860 96630798.00 { KQo }
Hand 1: 62.281% 58.01% 04.28% 1311073824 96630798.00 { 55+, ATs+, KJs+, AJo+, KQo }

Calling against this range in the above spot (having to call an additional ~99k), you make a profit of ~13,145 chips or almost 1BB on average.

Even when villain shoves a tighter range,

equity win tie pots won pots tied
Hand 0: 34.731% 28.97% 05.77% 470189628 93583914.00 { KQo }
Hand 1: 65.269% 59.50% 05.77% 965906736 93583914.00 { 77+, AJs+, KQs, AQo+, KQo }

we still net an average of ~4,255 chips or 0.3BB.

So unless villain is going to shove a super tight range here, this is a profitable spot and thus a call.

Though please note that this is based purely on chipEV, and ICM may dictate a different action. But as there are still 15 players left, I believe that the ICM factor will be very small and should still make this a call.

Looks 100% fine to me. I think you can write this one off as a cooler and be happy with the way you played the hand.

Alternatively, you can also consider leading the flop in spots like this. You have a decent chance at taking the pot down on the flop by generating fold equity (as opposed to having everyone check this flop - I don't expect the button to c-bet wide at all here). If you get called or raised, you can continue the hand with a ton of equity against almost all hands.

I think most MTT videos consisting of live play should be great for your purposes. You'll be able to get a good idea of what ranges different pros open from various positions and how they apply aggression in the later stages of tournaments.

Videos such as Seth Davies' Sunday Grind Review will be a decent resource. But again, if you filter for live play videos in the library, you should be able to find tons of videos with lots of mid-/latestage footage.

You'll likely want to bet the flop slightly larger to set up a turn shove - betting 4,500 leaves you with ~16k into 20k.
Even though the turn is a Q, I'm still in favor of shoving the turn. I would expect villain to call with a number of draws, 9x, the occasional TT/JJ and all his Qx combos. He should still call with enough hands that we beat to make shoving this turn the better play.
As played river is looks like a call given the price you get.

If villain is 16/7 over a reasonable sample size then folding is fine and I would expect villain's range to be JJ+ and AK, weighted more heavily towards AK.

With a big bounty on villain 3-betting with the intention of getting it in against the opener can definitely be good. Especially if villain is opening somewhat wide, a 3-bet will likely be your best option here.

As played flop looks good, but turn is tricky. Unless you have reads on villain that indicate he might be spewy and show up with JJ-KK or KQ sometimes, the turn will likely have to be a fold, even with his bounty.
He really shouldn't cbet (into 2 people) and shove the turn with pocket pairs, and it is unlikely that villain will open A9- from early position with that stack. As you lose or chop against all his AT+ hands, turn will probably have to be fold.

I think you described pretty well yourself why the river is a fold.

Especially when he begins leading the turn into your fairly strong range it is very likely that he is simply going for value. As you don't beat many or any value combos with KK, river should be an easy fold.

Have you ever taken a look at the Tournament Learning Paths?
They are a pretty comprehensive guide to anything MTT-related and working through even just all the Essential content in this path should be able to provide you with a very solid foundation in tournament play.

Why do you think he will be betting the flop with AQ+ and maybe KQ+? He wasn't the preflop aggressor and is betting into 3 people, 2 of which haven't acted yet.

II would expect his range to consist of, like you said, a lot of 9x, 55-JJ, and occasionally (but rarely) hands like A5 or 56.

I prefer calling the flop, there are no draws to protect against and there are still players left to act. Raising will likely fold out all his air and gutshots, and somewhat frequently also 55-88.

As played, I would bet the turn with a small sizing and evaluate river. When not betting the turn, I would also bet the river as played - I would expect you to have the best hand almost always.

Preflop I still think isolating the limper is best, even if he does occassionally trap JJ+, he will - like you said - still have a lot of weaker Ax and other weak hands that you'll be doing well against.
As played on the flop I agree with Samu, calling seems a lot better than raising for the reasons that Samu has already listed.
You can probably also bet the turn, the K should hardly change anything.

Although your call worked out and you won the hand, your reasoning might be a little flawed:

the thing is that I dont think he would shove with this monsters since he would get no value

Especially in lower stakes, a lot of players seem to compensate for missed value on previous streets by large bets/overbets on the river. Given that you called with a T, he would likely get value from his monsters when shoving the river.

Although the hand history says BB, it looks like you flatted from the SB?

I would generally recommend against flatting weak offsuit Aces such as A8o from the SB as they don't play well postflop and will often put you in a spot where you're dominated.

As played the fold doesn't seem overly nitty and is likely okay without reads.

Is it this one by chance? WCOOP Main Event featuring PlayinWasted

What Samu has said above is absolutely correct. With shallow effective stacks and a flush draw on the board, you can simply bet the flop a little bigger and have a perfectly sized turn shove lined up.

If you bet 4k into 6.7k on the flop, you will have 11.5k into 14.7k on the turn. Again, this keeps your range wider (including flush draws you may bet flop, shove turn with), allowing him to call draws and weaker made hands, and keeping villain's range wider by allowing him to call it off with draws himself.