Double Chance Freezeouts

[billwillo]

I'm looking for some help/advise on playing in a live double chance freezeout.  I assume a double chance is where you buy in as for normal tournaments but you only get half your chips.   If you lose them you get your other half for no extra payment and your back in the game.  Firstly have I assumed correctly or is there more to it.   Secondly does anyone have any advise as to the best strategy for this type of tournament.

[AMRN]

You pay one single buy in, and for this you get a stack (say 6000 chips). By default, you get only 3000 to start playing with, but can take the other 3000 at any time up to the first break - usually 90 mins.  This enables you to play poker early on without putting your entire tourney at risk...... Or, you could take the second half of your stack right at the start and try to "own" the table.

It"s my favourite form of poker, mixing the loose aggresive nature of the early stages of a rebuy, with the more reserved play of a freezout.

As for tactics, I tend to just take half of my stack early on to minimise risk, and try to play standard ABC poker until the break...... there are usually enough playing loose and wild such that you will get paid when you catch a hand..

After the break, all unclaimed second chance chips are delivered, and the game becomes a standard freezout.

[George2Loose]

Good question this one.

I usually take my chips early for two reasons:

1)I want to get maximum value from any hands I might get in the first few levels

2)If I know I"ve for another bullet it sometimes clouds my decisions- eg: Move in with a flush draw instead of flat call. Make a stupid call just cos I have a "rebuy"

For those reasons I treat double chances as a freezout.

[billwillo]

Thanks for your info and views on strategy. When I play rebuys online (not the low buy ins) I try to play as though there is no rebuy and survive and build with the chips I started with, so I"m thinking to do the same with half the stack in the double chance and use the the other half as a bonus if I"m doing Ok, or as back up if I"m struggling.  Thanks again for your help, it"s much appreciated.

[Ken Jude]

I think you need to be prepared to adjust your strategy depending on what happens at your table.

If someone you consider likely to pay you off (if you hit a monster) hits a big hand to double up early, or takes the other half of their stack early, then it would be a shame to miss the oportunity of doubling 6000 up to 12000, and busting him, rather than doubling 3000 up to 6000 and still having him sitting there with chips left that somebody else might get!

That could be the difference between you winning the tournament and not winning it.

[AMRN]

I think you need to be prepared to adjust your strategy depending on what happens at your table.

If someone you consider likely to pay you off (if you hit a monster) hits a big hand to double up early, or takes the other half of their stack early, then it would be a shame to miss the oportunity of doubling 6000 up to 12000, and busting him, rather than doubling 3000 up to 6000 and still having him sitting there with chips left that somebody else might get!

That could be the difference between you winning the tournament and not winning it.

Agreed, but on the flipside to that, it would be nice to lose only half your stack when you run into the guy with the bigstack and your KK loses to his AA