Lesson 3: EV and M-Zone Foundation

To make money playing sit 'n go poker tournaments it will help if you understand a couple of key measurements--EV and M. What are EV and M and how do they help you become a winning sit 'n go player?

"EV" Defined

EV stands for "Expected Value" and is the average amount of big bets a starting hand is expected to win. In other words, EV is a number calculated and assigned to each starting hand based on the amount of money that hand will win at showdown. The numbers are calculated based on a sample of over 1 million hands played by average players. Starting hands with higher EV are stronger, and hands with low or negative EV are weaker.

In the downloadable and printable version of the Basic Stratety, I have provided a link to a Starting Hand Expected Value Chart for you to reference. The sample is a simplified version showing the average EV for each starting hand. However, the actual EV for each hand changes depending on the position you are in at the table and the number of players that are left in the tournament.

For example, if you have QcKc in first position at a full table, the EV will be lower than if you had the same cards on the button. I have also provided a chart that shows starting hand EV adjusted for position. However, this information can be difficult to use during a game. I use and recommend a tool called Tournament Indicator which automatically shows on-the-fly the actual EV of each hand adjusted for table position and number of players.

"M" Defined

I am not really sure M stands for anything, but I can tell you what it is. M is a measure of your chip stack divided by the total of the starting blinds and antes. For example, if the blinds are 50 and 100 with no ante (total starting pot is 150), and you currently have 1500 in chips, your M is 10.

• (Chip Stack) / (Blinds + Antes) = M
• (1500) / (50 + 100) = 10

Once you know your M you can quickly determine your M-Zone. M-Zone is a term popularized by Dan Harrington in his book Harrington on Hold'em, Volume II. There are 5 M-Zones:

• Green Zone = Your M is 20 or more.
• Yellow Zone = Your M is between 10 and 20.
• Orange Zone = Your M is between 6 and 10.
• Red Zone = Your M is between 1 and 5.
• Dead Zone = Your M of 1 or lower.

You must keep track of your M and the M of each of your opponents. You can do this manually, or you can use the tool I referenced above, Tournament Indicator, which calculates and displays it for you. In the screen shot below you can see the EV for the starting hand of
QcKc is 0.67 and my current M is 13.3 putting me in the Yellow Zone.


In the lessons to follow I will teach you how to use EV and M to make solid decisions about which hands to play preflop, and how to play them.

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