LOVE/HATE relationship

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 09/10/2011 (5139 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Playing tournaments can be a great way to pad your bankroll. They can also be a detriment to it if you aren’t in the right frame of mind and let your ego get in the way.

Since the beginning of my poker career I have spent about 90 per cent of my time playing cash games. I guess the entire reason I love playing poker is the freedom it allows me. I can work when I feel like it and not be tied down by a schedule.

Tournament players don’t necessarily have the same luxury, as they are forced to play at certain times and can’t leave until they are knocked out or win. Many times, they will play for several hours in the same tournament only to come up short on money or not make enough to justify the time they spent playing.

On the other hand, the return on investment difference between the two types of players is nowhere near comparable when you are fortunate enough to take down a tournament. In cash games you can really only win double the money you are playing with. In a tournament you can turn a small buy in into more than 100 times your entry fee, adding a substantial comfort level to your overall bankroll.

The pros and cons are basically the reason why I always seem to debate on which of the two I should do more of. It isn’t uncommon to play 20 or more tournaments in a row without cashing a single time. This can get extremely frustrating and start to play serious games with your mind, affecting your play.

So, over the years I have played mainly cash games, throwing in the occasional tournament — and let me tell you it always feels nice to go deep in a tournament.

The other day I decided to play a few tourneys and before I knew it I had amassed a very nice stack in a $109 buy in with just shy of 900 entries online. I hadn’t really been in any tough situations as the chips kept coming, eventually landing me the chip lead after the following hand came up.

There were 12 players left, so we were playing six-handed on two tables. A player who was terrible at best decided to limp in and another player called. I was in the small blind with 10 9 off-suit and decided to complete. The big blind checked. The flop was 10 9 2, so it could not have been better for me as I flopped top two pair. I checked but unfortunately it went checked around. The turn was a 5 and I bet. Without hesitation the big blind raised. Everyone else folded and I shoved when it got back to me. To my delight I was snap called as the big blind tabled 9 5 for a turned two pair and a very unfortunate turn card for him. My hand held and I won a massive pot.

From there I was able to get to heads up play exactly even in chips. First was $16,000 and second $11,500. We battled it out for a bit and when I got all in with Q Q vs. his K Q I thought I was poised to take down the tournament. The flop was J 8 8 but the K on the turn sealed my fate as I wound up taking second place.

Turning $109 into $11,500 is never anything I’m going to complain about. I will, however, be very honest and say that even though I had a huge return on investment, I was still very upset that I wasn’t able to seal the deal. I guess this is why I have a love-hate relationship with tournaments!

Follow Marco Carreira at @DontCryRebuy