Live MTT: Do you chop?

[JeffreyGB]

Yesterday I moneyed a $55 live MTT with a field of about 100. We chopped at the final table, where I had the chiplead and as such got an extra $100 from the rest of the table. I took the chop after some consideration because I had 4.5 times the BB and was UTG. The chop equated to about 3rd place money for me. Do you take the chop there?

Here's how the stacks lined up:

me: 92,000
UTG+1: 30,000
UTG+2: 9,000
MP1: 90,000
MP2: 50,000
MP3: 80,000
CO: 45,000
BU: 70,000
SB: 45,000
BB: 40,000

Blinds were 10,000/20,000 with a 1000 ante, giving me an M of 2.3 with the chiplead

[ChrisTheFish]

Nope, by time blinds are round again, a few shorty's will go busto then you can deal for just that little bit more :P

[JeffreyGB]

Nope, by time blinds are round again, a few shorty's will go busto then you can deal for just that little bit more :P

True, but I probably no longer have the chiplead, meaning I'm not getting the extra $100 from the shorties. Assuming an even chop, it has to get 5-handed for me to have a significantly better take, and that's assuming that whoever is chipleader then takes an even split.

[KoRnholio]

I generally don't like chopping with so many people left, but with those ridiculously high blinds I think it was probably a good move if you're not willing to gambol a bit.

If you don't chop and shorties start to push/bust out, unless you're in there busting them, your chip position is only going to get worse and probably get less in a chop later on.

[Alexos]

Yeah I would chop, you say its the equivalent of a 3rd place payout, and still 6 players to go before you get there...with the blinds this huge its a clear and easy chop for me.

[drmcboy]

yes

[WildBobAA]

good chop, ridiculous structure

[JeffreyGB]

ridiculous structure

Yeah...unfortunately, that's the rub for lowish stakes live MTTs in Oklahoma. What I didn't mention above was that the blinds raise every 15 minutes, so it's only getting worse from here. Thankfully these small "turbo" live tournaments have been a slightly better than break-even way for me to get some live experience in preparation for playing some more realistic games (there's a series of tourneys at the end of the month ranging from $300 to $1k, which I'm all over).

[phantom_lord]

That's pretty sweet geting an extra 100 when your chip lead is effectively worth nothing.

[pokerroomace]

You should type the numbers into an ICM calculator to see how much your stack is worth and you can then determine if you made the correct decision or not.

I realize that the blinds are big - but they're big for everyone.

[JeffreyGB]

You should type the numbers into an ICM calculator to see how much your stack is worth and you can then determine if you made the correct decision or not.

I realize that the blinds are big - but they're big for everyone.

I don't think that ICM can even come close to properly modeling the crapshoot nature of playing with blinds this big. In three hands, I am no longer close to having the chiplead.

That said, from my ICM estimations (could only find a calculator which took into account the top 3 places), I about got what it would predict.

[pokerroomace]

here's a link: http://sharnett.bol.ucla.edu/ICM/ICM.html

but i don't know the original payout structure so i can't fill it in. also, what was your total payout. if you were each paid out $10k then taking the extra $100 was a bad decision - but if you were each paid out $100 then taking the extra $100 seems to be a great decision.

i'm guessing everyone got about $450 and you took $550.

also, i realize that the blinds are big and that there is a lot of luck involved - but that doesn't mean you should take a bad deal. if you played that same situation 100 times then you would make more than the average player at the table and deal you make should be at least that if you want to make the optimum decision.
if i was in your situation i would have taken the deal - because that kind of money means quite a lot to me - but that doesn't make it a mathematically correct decision and it should not really influence your play.

since you are UTG it might be bets to take the deal. you would probably have to go allin within the next 2 hands and you would probably be behind - so i say you have to take the deal. but if your the big stack and your sitting on the button then taking the deal is probably incorrect.

[JeffreyGB]

That said, from my ICM estimations (could only find a calculator which took into account the top 3 places), I about got what it would predict.

here's a link: http://sharnett.bol.ucla.edu/ICM/ICM.html

This is basically the same thing I used...can't be considered completely accurate for an MTT wherein every place is getting paid.

FWIW, I got $425, 2nd place got $375, most of the table got $325, and three shorties got $275. Under the original structure, first got $900, 2nd got $550, 3rd got $425, 4th got $300, and it continued down from there with 10th getting $66.

[thenonsequitur]

UTG+2 got a great deal then. The blinds were coming at him soon, he had an M of less than 1/3 and also less than a third the stack of the next bigger shorty.

[JeffreyGB]

Yes, he did. He was one of the ones contributing to the big stacks to get us to agree to chop.