Big stack can give you options

Playing a big stack deep into a poker tournament is an intoxicating feeling. And while it’s correct to alter your strategy when you accumulate chips, many players make the mistake of adjusting too severely. Either they become drunk with power and attempt to win every hand, or they grow risk-averse and try folding their way into serious money.

Often, the best strategy is finding a balance between those two extremes — by increasing pressure on short-stacked opponents but also remaining willing to confront other big stacks.

I found myself in such a position this summer at the World Series of Poker.

It was late on Day 2 of the $1,000 no-limit hold ’em event, and a field of 2,400 entrants had been reduced to about 50. The blinds were 3,000-6,000, and my stack of 525,000 put me among the leaders in the tournament. Most of my opposition at the table was substantially shorter, but one young player on my right was sitting on nearly 450,000.

We hadn’t played a hand together when I had to post the big blind, and my largestacked opponent raised from the cutoff to 12,000. The players between us folded, and I peeked down at Kc Kh. I paused for a moment, reached for chips and raised to 37,000. My opponent thought briefly, then made the call.

The flop came 10d 4h 2s, and I bet out for 35,000. This time my opponent thought a little longer before calling the bet.

The turn was the 7d, and I cut out a bet of 90,000, then slid it forward. My opponent briefly stared at me, then looked at the dealer and calmly said, “All in.”

It certainly wasn’t what I expected him to do, and I sat back in my chair to consider the hand. If I called, whoever won the pot would have a substantial chip lead and be in a great position to reach the final table.

I knew it was possible that he could have a set, but I also thought that on such an uncoordinated board, he would probably just call with a set and give me one more chance to fire on the river. I didn’t think any two-pair combination was likely (maybe 10-7, but most players don’t call preflop with that hand), and I figured he’d usually four-bet preflop if he had aces.

I decided most of his combinations were drawing hands, and I flicked in a single chip to declare my call of his all-in. My opponent cringed at the sight of my chip landing on the felt and tabled Ad Jd for a 12-out draw. The river was a black 7, and an enormous pot was pushed my way.

I’ve been playing live tournaments for over 10 years, and I doubt I’ve ever had so many chips before. I gradually organized the columns of orange and yellow into a colorful mountain and resisted the urge to order a celebratory drink. There was still work to do.