[doflovespoker]

How do others play MTT vs. ring play. It seems people are more loose on ring play (discounting those in a freeroll that play crazy the first few minutes). How does the different style affect what you do? I am trying to figure out how different I should be playing.

[Texas72]

Generally you have to be a little more conservative in tourneys, and pick your spots more carefully. When you have a lot of chips, you can gamble a bit more, but as the blinds rise, etc. you have to play a little bit tighter. It's because the stakes are always rising in a tourney (as opposed to cash game, where the blinds remain the same) that you have to constantly modify how you play. If you're really interested in learning about tourney play, Dan Harrington's books are a must-read.

[nxtyear]

ok so i guess my opinion is a little different from Texas72's

in fact, you should actually be more tight in ring games.
(although i'm not the best person to give you this tip! :S)

ring games you need patience to wait for a hand, and if you play the odds well, you will profit in the long run.
slight changes will be required depending on the table, in an ordinary table (where you will find loose players) it's good to be tight,
but if your table is full of super tight players you may be a bit more aggressive with a wider range of playing hands.

tournaments obviously differ in that the blinds rise, so it requires a change in your strategy as the levels go up.
at the beginning of the tourney, you require very conservative play. and as blinds rises, you should loosen up more.
your play will be affected by the relative size of your stack to the blinds, and the others' relative stack size to the blinds.

this is not the case with ring games.

[doflovespoker]

Ok, good points for both ideas. I am still in the same spot though. Where can I get that book?

[beriac]

I think for MTTs you have to start very, very tight to survive the craziness that sometimes goes on -- especially freerolls or tourneys with rebuys -- but then get steadily more aggressive as the blinds rise and especially if you end up short-handed.

Whereas in ring games, your play is pretty consistent, ideally tight in most games I see.

[Texas72]

Harrington's book is available at Barnes and Noble or Amazon. There are two volumes. Hard to find them in the bookstores, I've found.

Also, you might be interested in reading a little tourney strategy post a friend of mine put together - he's quite a successful tourney player. You can find it here. There are also articles on the subject here at BBP.

[ScottMc]

MTT the better play is tight. The fewer hands with higher pay offs the better. Also in MTT you should not be afraid to get it all in when you are sure you are ahead. Make the drawing monkeys pay.

Ring games come down to table and feel. I am much much looser in ring play than in MTT play. Even more so when I am in a limit game as opposed to a NL game. With ring games, ideally, you do not have the finality of losing your entire stake in one hand like a tournament.

that is just my thoughts though

[beriac]

Definitely agree with you there, ScottMc. Patience will take you a long way in most tourneys -- I haven't played much in the way of high-stakes freerolls, but low-level buy-ins and freerolls it's doubly true. At a ring game, if you can see a flop cheaply, it's often a great way to get more info before deciding whether or not to be aggressive, especially when playing against 'calling stations' who (a) will allow you into a flop cheaply and (b) will pay you if you strike gold.

[doflovespoker]

So what I am hearing - my play should match whay I am seeing at the table, whether it is MTT or ring play. If it is working in low level mtt play it should work in low level ring play.

[AGreen]

I might be doing everything all wrong, but that's how I look at all poker. The buy-in is everything and certain types of players usually play certain buy-ins.