My favorite game at the moment is the 6-handed sit-and-go they have on Poker Stars and Full Tilt, mainly because I am (here is a sure-fire way to tempt fate) crushing them at the moment. They are fundamentally different to full ring SNGs, but maybe not in the way you might think. It would be very easy to reel off another "AJ is more powerful at a 6-handed table" article, and if I run out of ideas that is next month’s in the bag. Instead I’m going to explore a little more about the table dynamics of a short-handed game in the SNG format.

The most prominent thing about a short-handed SNG is the bubble, and mastering bubble play is the key to success. In a normal SNG, 3 from 9 make it to a paid spot – in a short-handed game 2 from 6 cash. If you are a math whiz like me, you'll notice that this is the exact same percentage. However, mathematically similarities notwithstanding, it does not play out the same way as a full SNG.

First of all, with only three players to get rid of, the bubble comes around much sooner. As such, if you don't understand bubble play all that well you soon will. No matter how dominant you have played at the table, chances are that nobody has a monster chip lead because there simply aren’t enough chips available to create one. This means that mindlessly going all in is nowhere near as effective, because you stand to get really hurt if it goes wrong.

Whether you are the leader or the short stack, anyone else at the table can hurt you. So you have to be both very aggressive and very selective at the same time. You see a lot less shoving during the 6-handed bubble. You are more likely to see a three times raise even when it would be more obvious to go all in, and you are much more likely to reraise somebody off a hand when they pot committed to make a call. Tread very carefully though. The most important thing is to make your raises credible. I like to give the occasional walk from the small blind if I think it will make the next orbit’s shove seem more credible.

The blinds make a noticeable difference in 6-handed games, too. If you get to the bubble early (as you often will) then you have some flexibility to play some proper poker. You can reraise people or call to see flops because the blinds are still quite low. This is the best time to bully blinds because you are still leaving the others enough chips to fold and stay in the game. As the game evolves, all of a sudden the blinds really do catch up with you (around the 200/400 level). Thus, a chip lead can get blown easily during this time when anyone with anything invested is pot obligated to go to a showdown.

Another huge difference to 3-handed bubble play is that you cannot fold your way to the money. You are either going to have money invested from the blinds or be presented with a hard to pass stealing opportunity from the button. You are going to be investing money in the pot two out of every three hands, which means that you cannot pass on the button every time and are going to have to take a stand with a mediocre hand from the big blind now and then. Three-handed means you are very unlikely to be up against a premium hand, so it’s a necessity to gamble a bit with a medium one. If you are dealt a monster pair then you really have to think about slow playing it down to the river, because you might not get such a chance again.

Knowing the bubble is the fundamental skill in a shorthanded SNG. Try and accumulate a few chips to hold you in good stead when it gets 3-handed, and pick your spots to stay afloat until the bubble bursts.