Upcoming NLHE Rebuy Tourament

djw

I have a few questions about what strategy to use when playing an upcoming No Limit Hold Em tourney at our local casino (Club Regent Casino) here in Winnipeg. Here are some details:

Buy in: $50+$5
Chips: $400 TC
Rebuy: $400 TC ($20)
Add-on: $800 TC ($30)

Conditional rebuys may be purchased if:
* The player has less than 401 chip values in level 1
* The player has less than 801 chip values in level 2
* The player has less than 1201 chip values in level 3… etc (not sure what etc means)

Here are the betting limits:

Conditional rebuys for 1 hour.

Level 1
Blinds: 5/10
Time: 20 mins

Level 2
Blinds: 10/20
Time: 20 mins

Level 3
Blinds: 20/40
Time: 20 mins

Break - Add-on Option available

Level 4
Blinds: 25/50
Time: 15 minutes

From here on the blinds double every 15 minutes (!!!) and there is a break and colour up every hour.

Prizes are distributed by % from 1st to 10th (33% .. 2%).

Here are a few things I know about past events:

* 99% of the players rebuy immediately at the start.
* There are a lot of rebuys during the rebuy hour.
* The last event had 70 players, and a total prize pool of $11,000 with first place getting $3800+/- a few bucks.
* 3 players at the final table of the last event were basically all-in if they called the BB at the start of the final table round.
* The tournament started at 6pm and ended at 12:30am

Now, the starting chips and the maniacal rebuy schedule is in place because the casino is worried about this tournament going to late. The casino MUST close it's doors by 3am, so it has to have everyone out way before that.

I think that because the schedule and chips will be very tight, I will need to get some chips early. Obviously everyone else will think the same thing. I will rebuy immediately to get to $800 TC, then I will play pretty tight looking to double up. If nothing comes up in the first two rounds, I may rebuy again if I am under $800 TC. If I can double up in the early rounds, I will probably sit on that for a while until everyone calms down (after the rebuy/addon). In those rounds, I will be very careful about the short stacks trying to double up, and take what pots I can.

After that I will try and play solid obviously, and I hope to get some good cards to carry me through.

What do you think about this plan? What should my strategy be through the rebuy portion? I have enough bankroll to play really loose in the rebuy and attempt to double up with pretty much anything, but I would rather not go that route obviously.

Any ideas/tips would be appreciated.

Thanks,
djw

djw

I took this from another thread with a similar topic:

ScottyZ wrote:

Personally, I wouldn't enter this tournament due to the steep blind structure.

But assuming I did enter, I need to build up a lot of chips early.

If the tournament is pre-flop passive:

1. Rebuy immediately, and whenever possible, including a double rebuy if I go broke.

2. During the rebuy period, I limp in with any two cards on any hand when I feel there is unlikely to be a raise. This includes AA and 83o. Of course, I will always limp in with any hand that I'm willing to move all-in with pre-flop (which is a *lot* of hands).

3. I slow down quite a bit if I move up to ~3,000 chips, and shut down this strategy completely and revert to normal early tournament play if I get to ~5,000 chips.

Not exactly the tight Scotty we're used to is it? :cool:

If the tournament is pre-flop typical:

1. I barf. Shouldn't have entered.

2. I play typical but am not overly averse to busting out of course, and take rebuys at every opportunity.

If the tournament is pre-flop crazy:

1. Sit back and wait an opportunity to catch a crazy who makes a big bet with a random hand when my own hand beats a random hand. (This probably isn't as hard as it sounds.) Move all-in myself with premium hands. Rebuy at every opportunity.

ScottyZ

ScottyZ

Due to the (bizzare) changing rebuy condition, I think I'd play this one totally different.

I'd basically engage Scotty-Super-Rock^TM mode, rebuy at all opportunities, and take the add-on.

I wouldn't take this too far though. Picking off a maniac is *always* going to be a viable option.

It's true that I would still need to build up chips early, but the rebuy structure actually allows me to do this.

ScottyZ

djw

Well it wasn't too bad. I stuck with the strategy of taking the rebuys/add-on when allowed, playing uber tight, and then went on to blind steal my way to 2nd place at the final table. My biggest tourney win at $2200!

Thanks for the suggestions!