Even if you only have a chip and a chair there is still hope in tournament poker. See if you’re up to the task of coming back to win with a short-stack with the latest PokerPlayer Quiz
Q1. Twos up
Players: 9 Blinds: 500/1,000/a50 Your stack: 14,000 Your hand: 2♣-2♥
Action
It’s folded to you on the button close to the bubble of a $22 online tournament. You have 2-2 and a decision to make. What should you do?
Decision
a) Fold
b) Limp
c) Raise to 2,500
d) Move all-in
Q2. Little ace in the mix
Players 9 Blinds 5,000/10,000/a500 Your stack 90,300 Your hand A♣-4♠
Action
You’re on the final table of a £200 live tournament. The chip leader opens to 25,000 in early position and a fellow big stack calls on the button. You’re in the big blind with A♣-4♠. What should you do?
Decision
a) Fold
b) Call the 15,000 and see a flop
c) Call the 15,000 and move all-in on any flop
d) Move all-in preflop
Q3. Taking a gamble
Players 9 Blinds 200/400 Your stack 7,200 Your hand 6♥-7♥
Action
It’s early on in a live £100 freezeout. You’ve lost a few pots and are down to 7,200 from a 15,000 starting stack. It’s folded to you in the small blind with 6♥-7♥. The big blind has a 12,000 stack. What should you do?
Decision
a) Fold
b) Call the big blind
c) Raise to 1,200
d) Move all-in
Q4. Double or nothing
Players 6 Blinds 200/400/a200 Your stack 6,000 Your hand 8♣-8♥
Action
You’re in the money of an aggressive $55 online tournament. The big stack at the table opens to 1,000 and the button shoves all-in for 8,000. You have pocket Eights in the small blind. What should you do?
Decision
a) Fold
b) Call the all-in
Q5. Button steal
Players 10 Blinds 15,000/30,000/a300 Your stack 480,000 Your hand A♥-K♥
Action
You’re on the final table of a UKIPT main event. It’s folded to you on the button with A♥-K♥ with a 16BB stack. The small blind has 12BBs and the big blind has 11BBs. What should you do?
Decision
a) Fold
b) Limp in
c) Raise to 60,000
d) Move all-in
Answers
- d) Move all-in. With a hand like 22 you will always be in a coin-flip or dominated if called. However, it’s too strong a hand to fold on the button with a short-stack so you must move all-in. As you have 14BBs you still have a decent amount of fold equity, meaning that the blinds will have to pick up a strong hand in order to call.
- a) Fold. On the surface A4 looks like a good hand to move in with when you only have 9BBs. However, due to the position of the opening raise and both players’ stack sizes you are almost certainly going to be called by at least one player and be behind their hand ranges. It is better to fold and wait for a better spot where you can be the person putting the pressure on by shoving all-in with fold equity.
- d) Move all-in. Your hand has decent equity against a wide range that could call, but usually a 17BB shove will elicit a quick fold and you’ll win the pot.
- b) Call the all-in. Pocket Eights is just too strong to fold with 15BBs in an aggressive online tournament. You must call here and give yourself a chance of getting a decent stack and making the final table.
- c) Raise to 60,000. Your hand is a monster and you want to give yourself the best chance of getting all-in preflop to attempt to win a big pot. If you just shoved though you would fold out many hands such as weak Kings and suited connectors that may shove on you if you min-raise.
Your score
0-2 Get shorty
Deary me. You’ve certainly been caught short here
3 Falling short
Not bad, but your short-stack game clearly still needs some fine tuning
4-5 Making short work
Treetops is that you? Take a bow son, take a bow
