Early stage Turbo SNG strategy
There’s been much debate about when it’s appropriate to steal blinds during a single table Turbo Sit and Go. Some say it’s a free-for-all once the game begins, others say wait until the blinds reach the middle stages of the tournament. The folks that are members of the “wait till later” school of thought reason that it doesn’t make much sense to steal blinds when they are so low relative to your stick. The folks that advocate stealing early and often say that even if your opponent play back, you may get lucky on a flop and bust an opponent.
What Table Image do You Want to Project?
In reality the timing of your steals should be a reflection of your personal playing style, or at least the image you want to portray at the table. In other words, a loose/aggressive playing style would lend itself to stealing early. A tight/aggressive player may wish to wait to begin stealing blinds because they’ve established a tight reputation at the table. Also, by waiting until you’ve made it clear to the other players that you’re only playing solid starting hands, they’re more likely to fold when you try a steal from the button.
Don’t Wait for Premium Poker Hands
Regardless of your playing style, it’s generally a good idea to attempt to make a few key steals during game play. The accelerated nature of a Turbo SNG means that you simply can’t sit back and wait on premium hands before making a move. Ideally, you’re mixing in steal attempts while also waiting on semi-premium hands to win a pot here and there. Speaking of semi-premium hands, the reason I use the word “semi” is because you can’t wait on a big pocket pair or Big Slick to get dealt to you if you’re looking to finish in the money. There are steps you must take to consistently win Turbo Sit and Go tournaments and this is one of them. By opening up your starting hand range you allow yourself more opportunities to take down pots. Not to mention, the odds of your opponent having you out-kicked in a same pair type situation are very small. In other words, you can very often feel confident with an eight or nine kicker along with your Ace that just paired on the board.
Consider Table Position
If you’re going to go after the early blinds and attempt to steal you may want to try to find scenarios where a few limpers come in before you. If you’re a few seats away from the button this is ideal because if you’re able to run off the button and the blinds, you’ve at least “bought” the button if the early limpers do decide to call. So you can benefit from being last to act after the flop, you can continue to press the action and attempt to steal again post flop. At the end of the day however, you must use your own better judgment and play accordingly based on who called and what the flop brings. Try to mix this strategy in the next time you play a Turbo SNG and you may just find yourself cashing more often!
