We have all been there in poker tournaments at one time or the other. You took a bad beat and now your monster stack got chopped down to one-third of what it was one hand ago. The blinds are crashing down on you and you need to double up quickly.

Now what?

Well, being short stacked is familiar to anyone that has ever played a poker tournament. It is particularly familiar if you play Sit N Go tournaments where the levels are fast and the starting chips are low relative to the blinds. Here are 3 things you can do when you get short on chips and the blinds are coming your way:

1. The basic rule of thumb is if you have less than 10 Big Blinds you are in major trouble. That is true but I will go a step further and allow for 8 Big Blinds instead. This allows me one more orbit in an attempt to pick up a hand just in case I am absolutely cold decked. Sure it may cost me an extra few bucks when I do double up but at least I have a better hand and don’t have to push with just any two cards.
2. Any pocket pair, Ace Suited, King Suited, Queen Suited or Jack Ten will do. Some will say you should at least have pocket Fives or better. To me when you are short it really doesn’t matter how small the pair is. You need to double up NOW! Take a shot and hope for the best because it’s very likely you will have the best hand pre-flop.
3. Try to be the first in the pot. It gives you just a little bit of an edge. Even with only 8 Big Blinds left you can still do a little damage to the mediocre stack and most likely they will need a decent hand to call.

So, the next time you get short stacked don’t be afraid to get your chips in the middle. You’d be amazed at how quickly you are back in the game after a couple of double ups.