888poker: How to Master Short-Stack Play in Poker Tournaments
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If your only move with a short stack is jamming all-in, you're doing it wrong. That's what Ian Simpson, fresh off his £53,140 victory in the PSO Manchester High Roller, says in his latest 888poker strategy feature Don’t Misplay Your Short Stacks!
From redefining what a “short stack” really is, to mixing in min-raises and three-bet folds, to mastering advanced moves like the stop-and-go, Simpson breaks down the tools and thought processes that separate survival from elimination when the blinds are closing in.
How Do You Define A Short Stack?
Many players disagree on what actually counts as a short stack, but Simpson makes it clear, if you think it’s 20 big blinds, you’re wrong. He argues that players have far more utility at that depth than they realize.
For Simpson, the real short-stack zone begins around 15 big blinds and that’s the largest stack he’ll consider open-jamming with. And even when you’re really, really short, he insists that open-shoving isn’t your only option. There are still plenty of ways to manoeuvre and find spots to get back in the game.
What Are My Other Options?
Even with a short stack, there’s far more to do than just shove or fold. Simpson says players should look beyond the all-in button, and that sometimes means making small raises that might look suspicious.
Min-raising off an eight-big-blind stack, for example, can create plenty of positive outcomes. The big blind often calls because they’re getting such a good price, which sets up opportunities to cooler them postflop. Holding aces or kings, you can let them catch a piece of the board and end up committing the rest of their chips.
Simpson also mixes in bluffs with hands like A♣7♥ or K♠8♦, as these are fine to raise-fold. By having both a jamming range and a min-raising range, you maximize how much value you can extract with your premium hands, whether opponents three-bet shove over your min-raise or get trapped in tough postflop spots against your monsters.
Can a Short Stack Three-Bet and Fold?
Modern poker tools like solvers have uncovered some surprising short-stack strategies — including spots where you can three-bet not all-in and still find folds.
At a final table, where ICM pressure is at its peak, preserving your tournament life is critical. Simpson explains that avoiding coolers in these situations can make a huge difference to your results.
For example, imagine you’re sitting on 15–17 big blinds. A player opens, and you three-bet to around 4–4.5 big blinds with a hand like ace-queen. Normally, that hand is strong enough to commit with, but if the big blind shoves and the original raiser then reshoves, the situation changes completely. With two all-ins and heavy action, their ranges become so tight that folding ace-queen is often the right play.
However, if you three-bet small and only the initial raiser moves all-in, their range will usually be wider. In those spots, you can comfortably call off with hands like ace-queen or pocket nines.
What Is A Stop & Go?
Another short-stack move that’s become increasingly viable is the stop and go. It’s a clever way to create fold equity when you’re too short to have any preflop.
Imagine you’re in the big blind with around seven big blinds or less. If someone raises, shoving isn’t ideal as it’s usually just a few more blinds for them to call, meaning everything they open will be priced in. That’s a problem in tournaments, because your goal is to survive, not flip every time.
Instead, Simpson suggests calling out of the big blind with certain hands to generate fold equity after the flop. For instance, say you call with jack-nine offsuit and the flop comes T-8-2. You’ve flopped plenty of equity, so this is the perfect time to open-jam. Your opponent now has to fold some better hands, like ace-seven suited, that simply miss too often to continue.
By using the stop and go, you give yourself an extra way to win pots, and more importantly, a way to protect your tournament life.
Studying Short-Stack Play
To truly master short-stack strategy, Simpson says there’s no substitute for using solvers. Getting access to a solver like GTO Wizard is essential if you’re serious about improving. Running drills, studying specific spots, and seeing how different hands perform at shallow stack depths can quickly sharpen your decision-making and help you understand how to manipulate opponents more effectively.
Beyond solvers, there’s also a wealth of free material available. YouTube channels and Twitch streams are packed with high-level content and a quick search for “how to play a short stack” will bring up advice from some of the game’s sharpest minds, often shared at no cost.
