Daniel Dvoress and John Jaffe on Non-Technical Skills in MTT Poker

Poker professionals Daniel Dvoress and John Jaffe delve into the nuances of non-technical skills in Multi-Table Tournaments (MTT) poker, using hands from the WPT Seminole Hard Rock Hollywood tournament as illustrative examples.

Dvoress initiates the discussion by asking Jaffe about the minimum stack size for open-pushing in a tournament situation. Jaffe suggests mentally multiplying the stack size by 1.5 to determine push/fold decisions, providing a simple heuristic for players transitioning from cash games to tournaments.

The conversation also touches on the concept of risk-premium in tournament poker. Dvoress emphasizes the importance of considering the risk-premium when working with final table simulations, noting that a stack above average against a larger stack will always have a risk-premium of at least 15%, sometimes closer to 20%.