Tourneys V Ring Games

I always assumed that most people felt the same as me about this.The cash games are the grind and the Sng's are where the real fun is at. This was until I read a couple of fellow bloggers who took the opposite view.I did note that Matt from ThePokerchronicles.com said today that he plays tourneys for the excitement but he just won $20k in the Party Poker Million so maybe he's biased.

I prefer ring games because thats where I'm comfortable and where I've made most of my online poker profits. I've only played 244 tournaments and have 68 wins which isn't bad as that total includes tons of freerolls and lucky dollar tourneys at Pokerroom.Including my player points tourneys I've made a profit so why not play more? Why am I happy to sit down at a cash table with $100 but reluctant to pay more then $5 or $10 to enter a tourney?

I think its because I consider my entry fee as spent when I buy into a tourney but when I buy into a cash game I usually have a postive expectation.In tourneys I feel more able to play more carefree poker whereas in the ring I'm thinking about my roll and how to guard it against traps etc.

Perhaps compared to the pot averages at $1 nl the prize for winning a $5 or $10 sng doesn't feel like a big bankroll boost.I can play a tourney for over an hour for a $17 profit if I win or I can win $50 in one pot in much less time depending on the cards at $1nl.

Perhaps I should try some higher stakes Sng's or simply play enough $5 and $10 ones to give myself an idea of wether its +EV for me over a longer run.

Tourneys appeal to me more than cash games for several reasons.Until they are knocked out the players stay the same so over the course of the SNG its possible to get at least an idea of how everyone plays.The escalating blinds force the action meaning especially late on its more about what your opponent doesn't have than what you hold.I love making my opponents make uncomfortable decisions.I love the adjustments you have to make to your play depending on the size of your stack.

I love coming back from a chip n a chair and kicking ass.I love the heads up battles at the end of tourneys. The fun of working out when theres 4 left and 3 pay wether to play your QQ in the face of a raise and 2 calls as if you do you may get the chip lead but could crash out and if you don't you may make the money but be well behind the other two.I enjoy the freedom I get from feeling my buy in is spent and my chips are tools I can use to push people around to increase my stack.

I love the Pokerroom feature of showing both players hold cards and % chance to win when both are all in.( the % changes as the cards fall like on tv).

Tourneys just seem like more of a psychological battle.More of a battle of minds rather than simply 2 players who've both waited patiently for a monster hand putting in their money and hoping their monster is best.

One of the other reasons I don't play more tourneys is the time factor.This may be partly because I really should go to bed earlier.I'm usually up until 12.45-1am and it does leave me very tired some days.Crazy when I play 8 or 9 hours sessions some weekends but I like to know I can leave anytime and haven't got to commit my time.

I did buy my new mattress today so looking forward a better sleep from Thursday night onwards. I did ask for one that sounds an alarm if the occupant is detected as still in his poker cupboard when he should be sleeping but I'll just have to settle for hopefully sleeping better when I do eventually hit the sack.

Didn't play at all last night.Mark was up for a night on the PS2.

Florida Mark has changed the night we're going out to Thursday which suits me as my other team the mighty East Kilbride Thistle are playing in the semi final of the Sectional league cup v Dunipace at 6.30 tomorrow night.We won it in 2002.It was the clubs first trophy in about 20 years and tomorrow nights game will be the biggest EK have played in since that final.Its just a shame a town with a population of aprox 80,000 can't get more than 50-100 fans to turn out for the local Junior team.( Junior meaning partime not Under 18)

C'mon the Thistle.....