The Gap Concept in Sit and Go's

The gap concept may sound unfamiliar to some of you.  The theory was proposed by David Slanksky, a famous poker writer.  It first appeared in his book, The Theory of Poker.

The gap concept states that you need stronger hands to call and weaker hands to raise when you reach the middle limits of a sit and go tournament.  The reason being, if no one has shown any strength in the pot, you are probably at an advantage when you raise with a weak hand.  Also, if someone has come in for a raise, your marginal hand is no longer valuable, because the raiser most likely has you beat.

The distance between what hands you can call raises with and what hands you should raise with if no one has entered the pot is called the "gap".  The gap can actually vary based on the tightness/looseness of the table.  If a table is tight, then the gap widens.  If the table is loose, the gap narrows.

This means that if you are playing a sit and go with many tight players, you should be entering the pot raising with lesser hands, but only call raises with absolutely premium hands.

The opposite is also true.  If you are at a loose table, you should be calling raises with only marginal hands, but raising with only premium hands.

So, if you hold a hand like 33, Ax, or two face cards, you should be coming in for a raise if no one has entered the pot.

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