Dear reader, when recreational players decide to take a shot at a big live tournament, it’s usually something they plan in advance, and I encourage them to develop a more rigorous approach to studying in the months leading up to their trip. This time allows you to analyze your leaks, develop better habits, and improve as a player.
However, as the event draws near, and your bags are packed, with the sounds of chips shuffling echoing in your mind, it’s essential to resist the temptation to “cram” new strategies right before the competition. At this stage, you’ll benefit more from refining what you already know than trying to absorb unfamiliar concepts that you might not yet understand how to apply.
That’s exactly how I’m feeling right now! As I write this, it’s nine days before my flight to Vegas for WSOP 2024. My bag is sitting on my living room floor, near the door, where I see it every morning when I start my day. Despite years of serious study and profitable play, I still feel there are strategic gaps to fill — but now is not the time to try and fix them. The same goes for you.
But here’s one little nugget that came up during a RecPoker study group led by Kim ‘PetVet’ Kilroy tonight, which I believe every recreational player should grasp before heading into battle against the world’s best poker players. Having other players share their insights really helped me refine my approach to a critical spot, and I want to pass this on to you before your next tournament.
Why Do Players Sometimes Hold One Chip Back?
You’ve probably noticed players going “almost all-in,” where they hold back a chip or two instead of pushing their entire stack to the center. But why and when should you start doing this, and how many chips should you leave behind?
In every tournament you play, there will come a time when you put your last chip in the middle — likely more than once! When you do go all-in, it’s crucial to wring every ounce of expected value from those hands and maximize your profitability.
The general reason for leaving a chip or two behind is to give yourself a chance to fold later in the hand and continue in the tournament with a few chips, especially in high-ICM-pressure spots. In these situations, laddering up (moving up in the payout structure) is incredibly valuable.
When Should You Use This Strategy?
Here’s a simplified example: You’re at a 9-handed final table, and there are significant pay jumps for each elimination. You’re the short stack with 9 big blinds in middle position. You look at a hand you would usually shove with. The action folds to you, and you have two options: you can jam all-in, or raise to a size that’s almost all your chips (say, 7 big blinds).
Now, imagine the player to your left shoves over your raise, and another player with a similar stack size behind them calls or reshoves. Since you would usually open with some hands that aren’t pocket aces, you can now fold your non-premium hands and have a good chance of laddering up. One of those two players will likely be eliminated, or at least have their stack decimated. As the short stack, your chances of winning the tournament were lower than any other player, so laddering up has more value for you.
Another Example
Let’s consider another case: The player to your left flat-calls your raise, and both the players in the blinds also call. Let’s say for the sake of argument you’re holding a hand like K♠ Q♠. The flop comes 8♠ 5♣ 2♠. Regardless of what happens post-flop, would you prefer to already be all-in for your 9 big blinds, or would you rather have 2 big blinds left and hope another player busts?
One important note is that you would only choose this approach in situations where you would already be shoving. Don’t try this tactic when you’d instead open to a smaller amount like 2 big blinds — the players behind you will likely call your 9 big blinds just as often as they’d call a 7 big blind raise, unlike how they might respond to a smaller 2 big blind open.
Other Considerations
There are other reasons players might hold back chips — for example, on the river with certain types of hands or as a stall tactic on the bubble, allowing more time for action or to use a time bank. But, there’s no reason why you can’t pull the trigger on this profitable play when the time comes.
How Many Chips Should You Hold Back?
The key question is: how many chips should you leave behind when you want to go “almost all-in”? I’ll explain more in part two, where we’ll dive into a key difference in tournament formats that could influence your decision. Be sure to check it out!
