The Blind Structure Solution

I’m tired of the complaining about blind structures, including my own whiny little self regarding WPT final table structures. Rather than continue to complain, I have decided to propose a new way of looking at tournament structures.

In order to solve the problem, we first have to define it. In my opinion, the problem is that up until now it has been impossible to please everyone regarding structure. I have been in a tournament talking about the structure of the tournament with the players at my table, and one says, “This tournament is too slow, I like a faster structure, so I don’t have to sit around all day.” Another player says, “I like the structure, it gives me a chance to play”, and believe it or not, a guy across the table says, “This is too fast, we are going to lose half the field after 4 levels.”

I have a couple of concerns about our existing structures. Even though the structures are printed before the tournament, players don’t know what they mean in terms of average stack size compared to the blinds at each level. Also, it’s hard to determine how fast players will be eliminated based upon just seeing the structure sheet. The tournament might have been planned for a slow structure and turn into a fast one based upon the timing of player eliminations.

I think it would be great to know that when you are in a tournament, the average stack size as compared to the blinds will most always be a constant. Therefore, before you enter a tournament, you would know that this tournament will adjust the blinds only after enough people have been eliminated in order to justify an increase in the blinds to keep the same ratio of average stack size to big blind.

For example, at the main event at the WSOP, each player starts out with 20,000 in chips and the blinds are 50-100. This means that at the beginning of the tournament, the ratio of average chips to big blind is 200. Therefore, the average stack size has to be 30,000 prior to the blinds moving to 150-300. The increase in blinds is based upon the number of people eliminated, not the clock. Now instead of having a blind structure sheet, tournament directors would say that the main event is a “200-times structure.” Now you know everything you need to know.

If you are playing in a 10-times structure tournament, you know that it is a real fast tournament. The average stack will always be 10 times the big blind. Very few tournaments would be a 200-times structure, and maybe the main event wouldn’t be either. Other alternatives would be to say the tournament will start at a 200-times structure for the first 4 hours and then it will change to 150 for another 4 hours and then stick at 100 for the rest of the tournament.

If you don’t like fast tournaments, my guess is that you would not enter a tournament that is a 10-times structure. You might make all your tournament “play or don’t play” decisions based upon this one “x-times” number. How simple. It would be hard for a player to complain about the tournament structure. Now, making the final table will give you a chance to maneuver if you have an average stack and will make for some great final tables.

This takes all the guesswork out of the tournament and all the complaining, except for one group of people, the companies paying for the filming. It will make more play at the final table which can increase film production costs, but oh well, the tournaments are for the players. Aren’t they?

And yes, I said get rid of the clock! (except for bathroom breaks, of course)