Playing the Short Stack with Men Nguyen
Men "The Master" Nguyen doesn't seem to play the short stack very often, considering that he owns six World Series of Poker bracelets (limit trip draw, limit stud, limit stud high-low, limit Omaha high-low and limit hold'em.) He has more WSOP cashes than any other player. The three-time tournament Player of the Year has 3 first place finishes and has won more than $5 million. But when he's down to the felt, he doesn't panic.
Question: What is your general advice on playing the short stack in a no-limit hold'em game? What if you are given 10,000 chips and you are down to 1,000?
Answer: Well, it also depends what the blinds are at. If you are down to 1,000, and the blinds are at 100-200, you have to find a hand to move in with.
Question: Can you bluff on the short stack?
Answer: You know they are going to call you, why would you put your money in with a bluff? Sometimes, you have some kind of hand that you move in with, like A-5 suited, 8-9 suited, K-10 suited, and hopefully you can catch the cards and double your chips, but you are not going to bluff because you don't have enough chips to bluff somebody. Let's say the guy in front raises you, and you have like 400 left. If you move in, it's hard for him to throw the hand away. He is going to call you because you are short stack. If nobody raises in front of you, though, you move in. Maybe you can pick up the blinds and antes, but it's kind of hard to bluff when you don't have enough chips.
Question: Do you play differently against the short stack?
Answer: Most of the short-stack players who are good players, they shove it in, baby! They go all-in. If they have a hand, and you play, hopefully you have a better hand. If somebody calls you with a better hand, sometimes you need to hit the flop to win it. Sometimes you get lucky and you can double your chips, and you can bet it again. Otherwise, you're done. But the short stack always has to find some hand to push it in. That is what I suggest for all short-stack players. Sometimes it is good for them when they are the short stack. Some people raise in front of them, and they take a chance to move in and play heads-up. That's the best way.
Question: Say you are in the blinds, and you don't have a great hand, should you call just because the pot is giving you correct odds to call?
Answer: It depends on how many chips you have. If I have 6,000, and I have to call someone 1,200, it hurts me. I don't have to get involved in that, but if I have 11,000 or 12,000, then yes, pot odds are that I have to call because I have a lot of chips. If I have 6,000, though, no. I cannot call because it (losing) hurts me. I'm not going to try to bust a guy if it's not good for me. If I lose the hand, I have 4,800 or so left, and I would be doing a lot better if I had the 6,000, instead of 4,800. Even if you know the pot odds are good for you, but you don't have enough chips, no, you can't call.
Question: Is it better to call the blinds or go all-in?
Answer: If you call, many other people are calling, too. If you move all-in, probably the big blind will call you, or next to the button, whatever... the people behind. If you move in under the gun, sometimes someone with a better hand than you can't call because there are five people behind and hopefully the guy who has the big stack will not have a hand to play.
Question: Do you like to be aggressive with a short stack?
Answer: The short stack is kind of hard to play aggressive; I don't see how other players can play aggressive when they are short stack. If you push it in with short stack, somebody is going to call you, for sure. Why rush it, if you have that kind of short stack? It also depends on what you mean by short stack. With 3,000, that's a short stack, now you play aggressive, you move it in; you move it in to pick up the blinds.
Men is quite a personality at the table. He loves to talk to other players, tell jokes and laugh. You will often see him with a beer in his hand or wandering around to other tables to socialize, sometimes with one of the corps of Vietnamese players he's coached. This doesn't put him off his game, though. More than anything, he puts others on tilt and usually avoids becoming the dreaded short stack.