Blind schedule preference?

Zithal

Hey all,

It's been a while since I rethought my own blind schedules, so I wanted to get some feedback on a small change I was thinking about. I can see both pros and cons, so I wanted to get some feedback from the forum...

The format for the tournament is a two rebuy max, low buy-in tournament, for 1,000 chips. Currently, we usually get a number of rebuys nearly equal to the number of players in the game. The blinds look like this for the first few levels...

10/20, 15/30, 20/40, 30/60, *50/100, 75/150, 100/200, 150/300, 200/400

Rebuys end just before the beginning of the 50/100 level, which means people that rebuy near the end of that level are still pretty short stacked. I was thinking of changing it so that the rebuys ended with more play for people...

5/10, 10/20, 15/30, 20/40, *25/50, 50/100, 75/150, 100/200, 200/400

So, I've added an initial 5/10 level, replaced 30/60 with 25/50 and removed the 150/300 level to keep the timing of the event the same. This is my quick list of pros/cons..

Pros:
- WAY more play in the intial levels, and overall timing is not affected. Note that instead of a final rebuy of 10BB's, the final rebuy is now 20BB's. A strong Pro for myself and the people I play with I think.

Cons:
- Having the final level before rebuys be 20/40 instead of 30/60 doesn't put the same kind of pressure on stacks, which may mean less rebuys. (a good or a bad thing depending on your POV) of course, if could just as easily mean more rebuys as there's greater value in the final rebuy.
- The net change of BB's is not as smooth as the original schedule. (ie. Now it's +10, +10, +10, +10, +50, +50, +50, +200!!) I could fix this by removing 75/150 and throwing 150/300 back in? (ie.... *25/50, 50/100, 100/200, 150/300, 200/400) ...or leaving both in and extending the tournament by 20 minutes..?
- 5/10 may be too small a level for the format of the tournament.

Thoughts/comments/suggestions?

Unknown

I am not a big rebuy fan but I thought I might add a comment if it may help. Was there any thought in allowing rebuys earlier possibly once you fall below your original stack value and possibly adding an add on to your tournaments while keeping your original blind schedule. I believe the end result to this is
1) the same size pot( if not more)
2) it still allows for agressive early play( if not more)
3)and then allows everyone to add on and have enough to play (10 to 15BB)minimum after the rebuy period is over.

That would be the kind of structure I like. I am more in favour of a gradual and steady blind structure.

Just my thoughts. Hope it helps

beanie42

I haven't played in a rebuy yet (tonight's my first), so take this with a grain of salt.

Under your current structure, rebuying later is penalized due to the increased blinds, while the new structure would "allow more play".  To me, this means that aggressive/loose play would be a much better strategy in the new tourney, since you can now take a run at the chip lead, with far fewer disadvantages if you rebuy.  It also means that the "normal" player is less likely to bust out during the rebuy period, because of the lower blinds.  Overall, the number of rebuys is dependant on how many loose/aggressive vs. tight/conservative players you have.  In the limited time I've been at your place, I'd probably say it's around 30/70% (+ Mario ), so I'd expect a decrease in rebuys.

As far as the blind changes, and from just reading your article, it seems to be significantly increasing the pressure on the players who make it to the end while opening it up for the earlier players.  I think the blind changes would significantly change the texture of the tournament and probably make it more fun for the majority of players, but the final players will have more of a crap-shoot.  In hope of making a final table, I'd prefer to have more choices near the end, so I'd favor the gradual schedule.  As an alternative, how abnormal is it to have variable round length?  What if the earlier levels were 20 mins and the later levels 15 mins?  This still accelerates the blinds, but does so more gradually?

As far as add-ons, I personally really dislike the concept.  If you don't take it, you're immediately at a disadvantage, so it's almost a "forced purchase".  I much prefer knowing the cost upfront, and possibly choosing to "try again" with a rebuy.  For those of us with a smaller bankroll, add-ons mean our wallets can help us lose, rather than our poor playing ability

Just some thoughts from a fairly new player.

Psi

Why not:
5/10, 10/20, 20/40, 30/60, *50/100, 75/150, 100/200, 150/300, 200/400, etc ...

Unknown

You can also go without the add-on. I agree that add-ons are just there to boast the pot. It depends on what you are looking for in the tournament. I think the new structure promotes agressive play and makes the tournament possibly more of a crap shoot. Early stages the rebuys will promote play and later stages blind structure will promote play. Sounds like fun now that I think about it. LOL. Rob your tournaments are good. Try the new format once and see how it feels. Sometimes it is best to play with it to get a true perspective.

AcidJoe

I personally much prefer freeze outs. That said, for my own tournaments I don't have a cut off for the rebuys. The cut off point then naturally evolves. Tho given the 2 formats Zithal I prefer the one you currently run. It fits my own style of play better I think. But that's just my 2 cents worth.