Limits are So Limiting

E-mailer D.E. first dipped his toes into icy tournament waters two years ago. He now finds that his tournament winnings are outweighing his cash game results, which he attributes to his "strong adaptation skills in tournaments," adding that he has "a knack for surviving when necessary and attacking when needed." Sounds like he's found his niche, right? However, he has hit some snags in both venues.

First, he has found that he has a limited ability to maneuver in cash games vs. tournaments. "I play $5-$10 and can barely tolerate all the nonobservant calling stations," he noted. "I have tried playing drawing hands and the strategic elimination of players, to no avail. I'm a little frustrated, to say the least." It isn't that you can't maneuver in cash games, D.E., it's just that the maneuvers that you make are different from those that you make in tournaments. I define "maneuverability" as the ability to come into a pot with different types of hands and in different situations with high expectations for a positive outcome. You usually cannot manipulate the comparatively loose players who so often frequent the low-limit cash games, because they are virtually bluff-proof. In these small games with so many multiway pots, bluffing and making other strategic moves simply are not options that will pay off for you. Therefore, you must play in a more straightforward fashion and show down a hand at the end.

"Might I find players responding more theoretically in medium- or higher-limit games?" D.E. wonders. Yes, but not all of them. The higher the limits, the more players will be playing a more reasonable strategy, although that isn't uniformly the case. In the medium-limit cash games in California, many (if not most) of the players may be playing in a rather unorthodox fashion. Dr. Toast, a frequent contributor on rec.gambling.poker, has said, "If you haven't recognized the sucker within 30 minutes, you're not playing in California." Interpretation: The wild and weak players in the California games are fairly easy to spot. (Recognizing that the way that people play limit hold'em is not always "by the book," so to speak, T.J. Cloutier and I discuss the changing world of hold'em and how to adapt to it in Championship Hold'em.)

Second, D.E. finds that even in tournaments, he sometimes can see no "openings in which to maneuver," which frustrates him. "This happened to me recently in a limit hold'em event," he lamented. "My only play was to raise with pocket sevens in late position, resulting in the blinds and one tight caller folding. That's all I could find! I need the voice of experience to tell me that this happens, regardless of how hard I try to find profitable openings." The problem in tournaments, D.E., is that based on your chip position, there is a smaller margin for error when you're trying to make a move. In other words, you can't go back to your pocket for more chips if your play fails. If you don't have a premium hand, you have to look for the best situation. That's why you sometimes play hands in tournaments that you ordinarily wouldn't play in cash games, and occasionally you just have to take a stand with hands like your pocket sevens.

D.E. seemed to find some light at the end of the tunnel last week when he played his first no-limit hold'em tournament: "I can see that maybe no-limit will offer me the maneuverability that I believe I excel at. I think the 'limits are so limiting.' Any comments?" In all forms of limit hold'em, including tournaments, most of the time you're going to have to show down a hand. In that respect, "limit" poker is limiting. No-limit hold'em tournaments do indeed offer more maneuverability and more options for skilled players to outplay their opponents. Plus, you can put all of your chips in the pot at any time, applying more pressure on your opponents and protecting your hand better than you can in those "limiting" limit games.

Here's another note of encouragement to those of you who are just starting to play no-limit hold'em tournaments. After playing limit tournaments with success for many years, my friend and poker student Don Vines took the plunge into no-limit about a year ago, and has found himself in the winner's circle several times. Last month he ventured back into limit play and won the limit hold'em championship tournament at the Peppermill in Reno, plus second place in another limit hold'em event there. "Playing no-limit hold'em has taught me to be more patient in limit hold'em tournaments," he told me. Obviously, playing a controlled, patient, and selectively aggressive tournament strategy is the key to success, no matter what the game.

Stay patient, pick your best spots to maneuver, and surely we will meet one day soon in the winner's circle.

Editor's note: Tom McEvoy is the author of Tournament Poker and the co-author (with T.J. Cloutier) of the Championship series: Championship Hold'em, Championship No-Limit & Pot-Limit Hold'em, and Championship Omaha, all of which may be ordered from Card Player. For more details, visit www.pokerbooks.com. Send your comments and questions to the authors at [email protected].