~ P O K E R L E S S O N S ~
Poker Tournament Stats: BB, M, and Q
During tournament play, there are several key figures pertaining to the size of your stack in relation to the tournament level that are going to - or at least should - effect how you play. For the most part these are general rules of thumb and quick calculations that you can do in order to get a grasp on where you're sitting, though they're more valuable in that they are measurable guidelines rather than basic mantras such as "big stack's should bully medium stacks" or "short stacks need to push or fold." Not that these are inaccurate, but they do not clearly define what a "big" or "short" stack is, and how you should go about playing it in varying situations.
For the time being we are just going to concern ourselves with understanding the concepts of these basic statistics, their definitions and formulas, and how they can be of use when contemplating key tournament decisions. We won't go in to great depth in describing varying situations, as this is just meant as an introduction to some underlying poker tournament strategies that deal primarily with simple math.
Our first and easiest tournament stat is that of BB, which for our purposes just refers to the number of chips in your stack in relation to the Big Blind. We can calculate it very quickly as follows:
BB = Chips / Big Blind
Example: We have 2,500 in chips and the Big Blind is 100
BB = 2,500 / 100 = 25 BB's
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The rule of thumb that you'll probably hear a lot regarding BB's is that when you have 10 or less, you need to start going in to push-or-fold mode, meaning don't even bother making a standard raise before the flop, just push all-in or fold. This is especially true for mediocre hands where you would really just prefer to pick up the blinds rather than play guessing games with where you stand on the flop, or allow players behind you to come over the top and put the pressure back on you to decide your fate.
So basically with the BB measurement you are becoming aware of your stack size in relation to the blinds, and accepting the fact that if you do not continue to accumulate chips then the blinds will continue to take larger and larger chunks out of them, until you will become a desperate and puny force at the table. We can get a better reading on our status though, with an improvement upon the BB measurement.
M is similar to BB, though it also takes into effect the size of the Small Blind, and any Antes that may be implemented at higher tournament levels. M is essentially a measurement of how many rounds you can last given your amount of chips and the current level of the tournament. For example:
Given that...
M = Chips / (Big Blind + Small Blind + (Ante x Number of Players at the Table))
or...
M = Chips / Size of Initial Pot (before anyone acts, with only forced bets)
Example: We have 10,000 in chips, the blinds are at 200/400 with an ante of 25, and there are 8 players at the table
Size of Initial Pot = 400 + 200 + (25 x 8) = 800
M = 10,000 / 800 = 12.5
Thus we can survive 12.5 more rounds, or 100 hands (12.5 x 8 players) before being blinded out.
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What our M calculation really gives us though is a relative sense of urgency that we should be feeling due to the increasing blind levels. Generally the smaller the M, the more we'll need to make a move and start going into push-or-fold mode, and the larger the M, the more we can make standard raises and sneaky moves. I will not go in to the specific degrees of M, but Dan Harrington does a great job of covering this in Harrington on Hold'em Vol II.
Our final tournament stat is that of Q, which deals with our stack size compared to all of the other stacks rather than to the blinds. Though a little less useful than the other two calculations, our Q tells us whether our stack is above or below average, and can be calculated as follows:
Q = Chips / Average Chips (Average Chips = Starting Chips x Starting Players / Current Players)
Example: We have 4,000 in chips and the average stack is 5,000
Q = 4,000 / 5,000 = 0.8
Our chip stack is a little below average
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Two quick notes regarding Q: first of all, a Q equal to 1 obviously represents a perfectly average stack, though this does not necessarily give you an accurate reading on where you sit relative to your opponents at the table. Secondly, it would be wise to only consider the significance of your Q upon already calculating your M. For instance you may have a Q of 2.5 (2 and a half times the average stack), but have a M of only 5 (i.e. 3,000 chips and blinds at 200/400), and still find yourself in a tight spot.
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Always remember to use these guidelines and measurements in conjunction with your playing style and general strategy, but also realize that they are key determinants in how your playing style and strategy should change as you progress through tournaments and your chipstack fluctuates. They are not the be-all and end-all of how to play tournament poker, but they are vital in becoming a better player, and in understanding what the better players at your table may be doing. For a greater explanation of M, Q, and other poker tournament concepts, I would sincerely recommend picking up a copy of Harrington on Hold'em Vol II.
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