𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗶𝘀 𝗕𝘂𝗯𝗯𝗹𝗲 𝗣𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘀𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝗶𝗻 𝗣𝗼𝗸𝗲𝗿?

[RhinoRyan89]

𝗧𝗼𝗽𝗶𝗰: 𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗶𝘀 𝗕𝘂𝗯𝗯𝗹𝗲 𝗣𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘀𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝗶𝗻 𝗣𝗼𝗸𝗲𝗿 ?

Bubble pressure refers to the pressure a poker player. Especially a short stack feels when nearing the money of a poker tournament.

If you’ve ever been 1-2 players away from making the money in a poker tournament, you’ve probably felt the pressure of the bubble before! Hopefully you don’t bubble.

𝗣𝗹𝗮𝘆𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗰𝗹𝗼𝘀𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗕𝘂𝗯𝗯𝗹𝗲:

Generally anything less than 20 big blinds is a short stack near the bubble.

You can also refer to whoever has the least amount of chips at table as the shorty.

The Bubble refers to the cut off point between players that get paid money and players who receive no payout in a given poker tournament.

Usually a tournament will pay the top 10%-20% of players, so that in a field of 100 players the tournament may only pay 10 places which varies depending on the tournament and or amount of entrants.

The last player eliminated before receiving a payout in a tournament is sometimes referred to as the bubbleboy.

The remaining players will all receive a payout.

The final-table bubble means finishing one position short of the final table.

𝗔𝘀 𝗮 𝗦𝗵𝗼𝗿𝘁 𝗦𝘁𝗮𝗰𝗸 𝗡𝗲𝗮𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗕𝘂𝗯𝗯𝗹𝗲:

Folding everything. Some players effectively click auto-fold on the bubble, mucking everything from Kings in early position to AK suited on the button. This is obviously a mistake, and folding big pairs on the bubble just to sneak in is insanity.Playing extremely passively can be an even bigger mistake. An extreme example would be a player limping a hand like pocket Kings on the bubble when they could just shove. They want to make sure an ace doesn’t flop and then get the money in. A lot of times, doing this allows the player to get bluffed off the hand on ace high flops or invite too much action from speculative hands. You need to play your big hands correctly and not try and take some super passive line that is aimed at just being safe.

There are times where you could be pretending to be passive to induce action as a trap

The flip side of this is that you do need to be patient as well. Don’t force all ins just because you’re scared and want to double up. Don’t force things because you hear good players are supposed to be aggressive on the bubble.Doing so might make you look cooler to the other 8 or 9 people at your table but that doesn’t pay very well.

𝗔𝘀 𝗮 𝗕𝗶𝗴 𝗦𝘁𝗮𝗰𝗸 𝗡𝗲𝗮𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗕𝘂𝗯𝗯𝗹𝗲:

As the big stack, you have everyone covered meaning that anyone who gets in a hand with you is at risk of busting the tournament. You have the ability to kill, they only have the ability to double up.

How do you take advantage of the bubble with a big stack on the bubble.

The big stacks are clearly in the most fun spot on the bubble of a tournament. Just like in satellite poker tournaments, the big stacks have all the tools, room to maneuver and ability to put pressure on everyone else at the table.

This is your chance to leverage everyone else’s fear of busting the tournament on the bubble to gain more chips and increase your chances of bringing home the win.

[TheKnutts]

Letting you know the payout schedule here at Replay.

Less than 20 players pays top 3.
Under 30, pays top 4.
Under 40 pays top 5.
Under 50 pays top 7.
Under 70 pays top 10.
I believe under 100 pays top 15, but I rarely play a tourney with over 70 players.

Winding up as Bubbleboy has been one of my forte’s this year, lol.
As of Sept 12th I’d played 482 T’s, wound up Bubbleboy 28 times! Isn’t that AWEsome

[southwestmba]

Under 100 pays top 15
Under 120 pays top 20
Under 150 pays top 25 (Regional MTT League are typically in this range)
Games that pay tickets are fixed prizes regardless of number of players, though some pay excess funds out in chips or add extra tickets with more buyins (You see this the RPOS Satellite madness)

And once you have played for over 2 and a half hours and didn’t reach the prizes, you will understand Bubble Pressure is very real no matter what level you are at.

[mattiebumpo]

Great post! The bubble is always a tough spot. You’ve played so long to get there that it really hurts to go out with no money. I have been in both positions on the bubble: big stack and short stack. It is sometimes easier to be a short stack because as you said, you still need to play your good hands and hope they hold up. It is very tough when you have a borderline hand and better to just fold than get yourself in a bad situation. It is difficult to keep folding because even if you squeak into the money you will be so short stacked you will need to get really lucky and double up a few times to have a shot at making the final table.

As the big stack, it is easy to try to use your chips to knock people out but you don’t have to be the “sheriff” at the table. I have lost a large chip lead by playing AK multiple times against short stacks only to get sucked out on repeatedly when hands like A4 or KQ get lucky by hitting a 4 or a Q. You want to play aggressively but not overly aggressive. It is a fine balance but your chips are valuable and you need to protect them.

[RhinoRyan89]

Thanks for the information in regards to payout/prize structures here at replay poker.

I enjoy playing Cardschat events held here on Replay so once i have some free time i imagine i will try out some of your schedule here.

[RhinoRyan89]

Thanks mattie

Glad you enjoyed reading my topic.

Also thanks for your comment as i belive it is a great addition to what i discussed.

[Mag_P1e]

Thanks for the wonderful article. On my own behalf, I would like to add a thought that I heard on one of the streams. When we get tight and start playing passively on the Bubble, we seem to agree with the idea that we just have to wait until the minimum prizes and that’s it. In fact, without uninhibited and highly dispersed actions, we will not be able to reach the final tables, and this is exactly what we are here for. In addition, the payouts at the final table are very different, and it is more profitable to take 1st place once than 9th place 10 times. So don’t be afraid to take risks and good luck to everyone!

[antonis32123]

Rarely I will be the big stack at the table near the bubble , usually , or should I say almost always , I am one of the short stacks

It sucks to bubble , especially in a big buy in game or before FT . I am very careful on satellites nowadays , I am prepared to fold anything in order to be ITM . But in normal tourneys I will be very careful or even make very tight golds in higher buy in games . In the normal games that I play , micro stakes , losing at the bubble hurts only if I think the time I vested , not the money . But needless to say before FT , I will extra be carefully . The danger if you play very passively before bubble is that after the bubble you will be blinded out or have only 1 or 2 blinds and forced to shove cr*" hands with no fold equity .

[BrianHarrison]

I’ve heard from a good MTT player that a good player must do a lot of bubbles.

It’s a step that you cannot avoid.

The short stack thing is a controversial topic. The payouts on tourneys are not linear. The gap between the first positions and the last paid positions is monster, so I think if you have the short stack you need to make the move. If you don’t take any risks, then the big stacks will eat you alive. I know, we’ve heard stories from people who won tournaments with 2 blinds, but these are really rare rarities.

If you are the big stack then things change. You can really bully the table without of course getting into reckless play.

[Maxogon15]

Wow! This is an amazing article!
Thank you for your contribution.
Sometimes it seems that we are talking about obvious things or we are afraid to start a topic, believing that everyone already knows everything and it would be just stupid to talk about it.
But, in fact, so many people are joining this wonderful game and so many people will be happy with articles like yours.
Often, even when we find a definition of a term, we do not fully understand its meaning, but we hesitate to ask. But, thanks to such articles, anyone is able to understand all the subtleties of poker.
Thank you very much.

Returning to the bubble.

Of course, if your stack is below average, it definitely can’t help but put pressure on you.
Especially if there is ante in the tournament.
The desire to get into the prize zone makes many players do crazy things: to drop any hand, intending to stall for time. And, in most cases, this is a really big mistake.
How often do we say: I was eaten by the blinds.

We are really afraid to take risks. But, you need to understand and accept that this is poker and this is a normal situation.

Each of us once turned out to be a bubble player and there is nothing wrong with that. This is an experience that will make us analyze our game in the future and understand at what stage we make a mistake. And looking ahead: the mistake is not in how we behave on the bubble, but in our game in the early and middle stages of the tournament.
But this is just my opinion.

[Litenin]

I always try & look at the Bright side If I am on the bubble, I have a chance to get into the chips and have the chance to finish if the final table!

[blackz7]

It is a difficult situation when the bubble is about to burst and you have a very short stack of chips. It has happened to me three times that I come out in that situation but one of them was with a big stack but I lost control of the bubble when I lost that hand I gave up Mind you I exploited it hahaha I think that when you find yourself in that situation to survive you have to consume as much time as possible

[SITE-IS]

Never be afraid of losing, its not what winners do. If you got it push it.

[Craig_Anthony]

@blackz7

Mind you I exploited it hahaha I think that when you find yourself in that situation to survive you have to consume as much time as possible

Yup that’s exploiting the clock to your advantage and many do it. The clock is there to use it as you see fit but using that technique does not a good poker player make.

[Litenin]

@blackz7

It is a difficult situation when the bubble is about to burst and you have a very short stack of chips.

Indeed it is and It is yours to make. The clock is a tool in the game of poker strategies. Everyone has that same tool.

[Balou1982]

I really enjoyed reading this topic because the bubble pressure is often a tricky spot!
But i have to stay if somebody has a big stack i wouldnt play more aggressive than before the bubble except you have very good cards like Queens andd higher because you can loose your top position not against villains with small stacks but agaist middle stacks who try their luck and play like maniacs with suited connectors and have seen many times that QQ or KK loose against 89s or 10-Js!
In my opinion as a big stack player who can put pressure on player with mid stack who play very passive or conservative and if you have positon against this one then a raise/3 bet is a good move.

As small stack you have to play very smart and always look at your position and maybe if you have position like cut off and you have only 3-5BB take ya time and think about if there are so many hands will be played that you are down by antes or react before you get in BB position again. In many cases hands in the bubble are played so slow that you have enough time to think it over.
If the chipleader is reacting behind you on table then you should avoid a bluff or tryin to steal the blinds! Agaist mid stacks there will be more chances i think because they act cautiosly and play very
tight.

[Naforole]

At least one poker site (and I’m not going to mention which one) has made some effort to ease up the pressure during a bubble. Some of their games have an early bird guarantee. This means that a player who has registered to the game before it starts gets his buy-in back if he is eliminated on the bubble.

[PaperBoy73]

Hi @Naforole,

When I’m on the bubble, I’m not thinkin’ about getting paid. Or about the algos. I’m watching the guy in first place.

I bubble out a lot. Doesn’t bother me. Because I win a lot too.

See you soon.

[swamptrash]

David- aceto5 wrote a fine article on a strategy with regards on how to win tournaments, which is the one I use, I tried to find it to repost here without success, if anyone can find it it is worth a read, basically small goals until towards the end of the tourney, he knows what he’s talking about and very good advice I think,
Swamp

[je_amm]

I like your post, I can relate, many times I have come out in a bubble, and it is not a pleasant sensation.