Lesson 6

Fewer players, different stacks

Two things change during a night without anyone announcing them: how many people are still at the table, and how many chips each of them has. Both should change how you play.

When players leave, the early seats disappear

What makes a seat tight or loose is the number of players still to act behind you. Each one is another chance that somebody holds a better hand. At a nine-player table the first seat has eight players behind it. At a five-player table the first seat has four, which is the same situation as the hijack at a full table.

So you don't need a new chart for each table size. Count the players behind you and use the chart for that count.

What else changes short-handed

• The blinds come round faster. You pay 75¢ every orbit. At nine players that is about 8¢ a hand, and at four players about 19¢. Waiting for premium hands costs more, so you have to open more of them.
• Winning hands get weaker. With fewer hands dealt, top pair and even second pair win more often. Value bet them more freely.
• High cards go up, small suited cards go down. Hands like king-jack and ace-nine make the best pair more often against two opponents than against six. Small suited connectors need several callers to pay off, and short-handed pots are usually two or three players.
• Raising first matters more. There are fewer players to get through, so a raise wins the blinds more often. Limping is even worse than at a full table.
• You play the same people more. Their habits show up faster. Use lesson 5 harder.

Heads-up

With two players left, the button posts the small blind and acts first before the flop, then last on every later street. Almost any hand is worth a raise from the button, and any pair or any ace is a strong hand. If the other player folds too much, raise every button. If they call everything, raise your better half and value bet relentlessly.

Do your chips matter? Yes, the smaller stack sets the game

In any hand, the most you can win or lose is the smaller of your stack and your opponent's. That number is the effective stack. If you have $140 and they have $20, you are both playing a $20 hand. If you have $20 and they have $140, the same.

Measure it in big blinds. At 50¢, $50 is 100 big blinds.

Three rules that depend on stack size

• Set-mining needs 15 to 20 times the call behind. Calling a $2 raise with pocket fours is fine against a $50 stack and a mistake against a $15 one.
• Stack-to-pot ratio decides how far to go with one pair. Divide the effective stack by the pot on the flop. Around 3 or less, top pair plays for everything. At 8 or more, it usually takes two pair or better.
• Bluffs need room. A player with $6 left in a $10 pot is getting too good a price to fold. Don't bluff short stacks.

Winning, losing and topping up

In a cash game every chip is worth exactly its face value, whether you are up $80 or down $80. There is no lead to protect and nothing to win back. Play each hand on its merits and ignore your running total, except for the rebuy limit you set before you sat down.

Because you can rebuy, a short stack is a choice. If you are playing well and the game is soft, keep at least $50 in front of you so that your big hands can win a full stack from the players who call too much. If you are tired or tilted, a small stack limits the damage, and leaving limits it more.