The “bubble” is the stage of a tournament when there is one more player left in than places paid. In a standard single table tournament (STT), the first three places earn a slice of the prize-money, therefore the bubble occurs when four players remain. The next player eliminated goes out “on the bubble”, leaving with nothing
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It is crucial to play this stage well, because it determines not only whether you win any money, but also plays a part in determining how much. Once the bubble has burst, all remaining players will make some return on their investment.
General guidelines for bubble play
Tighten up your calls
w88 comPlay tends to tighten up on the bubble, as players know that the next one eliminated will leave with nothing. Often, if one player pushes all in everyone else folds. As a result, you should tighten up your calls, as calling an all in bet and losing could mean the end of your tournament. It also means your opponents gain a free ride into the money without risking anything – not a scenario you should create for them.
Push more frequently when first into a pot
This is a logical consequence of the previous point. You can exploit the tendency of your opponents to tighten up by pushing all in with a wider range of hands. You will be able to steal the blinds and antes, therefore keeping your chip stack from blinding away.
Be more aggressive if you are the big stack
w88club mobileThere are several natural advantages in being the big stack, especially on the bubble. You can’t bust in a single pot so you can be aggressive with a wider range of hands. You’re not risking as much as a medium or short stack, so you can take a hit and still play on in the tournament.
You have your opponents covered, so they will have to cope with a threat to their tournament life every time they get involved in a pot with you. They will be less inclined to do so with anything but a strong hand, and you can exploit this.
