As we all know, the 2021 World Series of Poker (WSOP) live festival is fast approaching. It will get underway on September 30 at The Rio in Las Vegas. If you are one of those players planning to attend the WSOP and win a gold bracelet this year, it’s important to prepare yourself for the big challenge ahead. The good news is, you still have over a month to study, practice, and improve your strategy.
Surviving the Bubble
When it comes to winning poker tournaments, one of the most important things you need to learn is how to survive the bubble. The bubble stage is the point in a tournament where the next player to leave the table will not be taking home any winnings, while the remaining players are guaranteed a min-cash.
For example, if the tournament you’re competing in states that the top 50 players will walk away with some cash and there are 51 players left, the very next player to be eliminated will not be taking with him or her any money. This is called the bubble stage, and the unlucky player exiting the game empty-handed becomes the “bubble player”.
When you go past the bubble, you are not only assured to take home some cash; you’re also bringing yourself closer to victory. So if you want to succeed in your WSOP journey this year, make sure you know how to play the bubble.
Players employ different strategies as they reach the bubble stage. Some will shift to a tight playing style, while others tend to become more aggressive. It’s either they’re doing their best to survive, or they’re simply in it to win. These strategies depend on key factors, such as the size of a player’s stack and the number of players left at the table.
We can share with you some advice on how to survive the bubble and improve your chances of winning a WSOP gold bracelet, but to make things less complicated for you, we’re boiling down everything to these three major tips:
Stack Size Strategy
You can’t go wrong with this tip. As we mentioned earlier, a player’s stack size will very much dictate the type of strategy they’re going to adopt during the bubble stage. Prepare yourself for possible changes in play style by your opponents; at the same time, you must also be willing to adjust your play according to the amount of chips in front of you.
If you have a big stack, then you can employ a more aggressive strategy to try to accumulate more chips. Your main target should be the shorter stacks as they’re expected to avoid risks. Set them up via steals, resteals and traps to grow your stack. If you have a medium stack, you can adopt the position poker strategy while still keeping an eye on the short stacks. Or, you can also target the big stacks that aren’t initiating that much action at the table.
If you have a short stack and eventually fall into the danger zone, there’s not very much you can do other than go all in.
Be The First to Enter the Pot
At the bubble stage, do your best to become the first player to enter the pot. It doesn’t matter whether you are the big stack or the short stack. The aim is to get in there first by making more continuation bets and opening with good starting hands. But also make sure not to force things. There will be times when your cards are simply incapable of winning pots and the best thing you can do is to keep to your strategy and let it pass.
Play It Safe
When you reach the bubble stage, your main goal is to survive and proceed to the next level of action, especially if you’re left with a small to medium stack. Do your best to not take unnecessary risks. The big stack might trick you with their all-in shoves or check-raises, so be careful. You don’t want to make that one bold move and completely lose your chance at winning the tournament.