Freeze Out or Shoot Out

Alright I’m not a poker guru and so far from even being a really good poker player. But somehow, I know how the game is played. I’ve been through several transitions in my game play. So far, I know there are two types of NLHE namely; ring games (or cash games, as some may call it) and the tournament style.

Whenever I play tournaments, it is usually the Tournament Director software that directs which person will move to which chair. Until recently, we encountered a game where they said it’s a “shoot out”.

Huh?

Sorry for my ignorance, but during that time I really don’t have a clue what that is. So, I discovered that the game I’m used to is called a freeze out type of NLHE. You know… those types that players will be transferred to another seat to balance the players in each table. So when a certain number of players are eliminated, the designated Tournament Director will call on players to move to a certain table and seat number. For some games, the computer software will do the math for you. But ideally, there are international standards set for moving players--- that, you can research on the web or ask Nick G.

I am still not that familiar with a shoot out game. All I know is that, each table is like a sub-tournament. There’s no moving of players until there’s a winner for your table. It’s usually the 1st place per table. But some would take the 1st and 2nd place for each table, say there are 5 tables. So the 1st and 2nd place of each table will make up the final table, which is a total of 10 players. As I’ve gathered, it really varies. Rules depend on what the organizers declared or at least, adhere.

Call it familiarity, but I’d stick with the freeze out. I think it’s fucked up. But maybe, it’s just beyond my comfort zone. I dunno. Like what if 120 people showed up, is the final table gonna be made up of 12 people? Maybe some of you can enlighten me about this matter. It’ll be greatly appreciated.