Unusual Table Balance Situation

[txgameshowfan]

At my league's most recent game, the tables were somewhat unbalanced at 9-7 when three players at the lower table went out on the same hand. After moving the button, I was faced with the bizarre sight of SB, BB, and UTG all as newly-open seats. This is the point I began to guess: I brought two from the higher table, making balance 7-6, seated them between button and the new BB. (This was for convenience, as there were four open seats up the middle of this table.) I then moved the button to the player right of the new BB, and instructed to play with a dead SB for the next hand, thus preserving the blind structure.

Did I handle this right? How could I have done better?

'Brian

[K-Lo]

At my league's most recent game, the tables were somewhat unbalanced at 9-7 when three players at the lower table went out on the same hand. After moving the button, I was faced with the bizarre sight of SB, BB, and UTG all as newly-open seats. This is the point I began to guess: I brought two from the higher table, making balance 7-6, seated them between button and the new BB. (This was for convenience, as there were four open seats up the middle of this table.) I then moved the button to the player right of the new BB, and instructed to play with a dead SB for the next hand, thus preserving the blind structure.

Did I handle this right? How could I have done better?

Hi Brian:

It's difficult to picture what happened from the written description...  But if you've already moved the button at the short table, and then the SB, BB, UTG seats were all vacant, could you have not simply moved the next BB & UTG from the other table to the corresponding BB & UTG seats at the new table respectively (thus leaving everything else the same including the button, with a dead & vacant SB)?

K

[Nick C]

Hello Brian,
 What K-Lo says keeps everything in compliance with moving players from worst position and not putting a moved player in the SB position. Without knowing the seating arrangement I'm going to guess that it probably wasn't that easy.

 I can tell you what I've done many times without complaint; I actually would re-draw for the new button position, and sometimes new seating assignments. I've found that most players accept "the luck of the draw" as fair, when they might otherwise complain. I'm sure it would not work for the WSOP but, if I can make a nice smooth transition whenever I consolidate tables without complaint, I know I've made the right choice.

 I've worked tournaments, when I let players know beforehand, we will be re-drawing for new seats and the button for the final table.

Brian, my guess is you had some mumbling and grumbling at the table. How did it work for you?

 

[txgameshowfan]

I was lucky enough to not have any grumbling, but there was some confusion.

Because the remaining players were in seats 1, 2, 8, and 9, with BB at Seat 8, I thought of another solution after I wrote my original post: Simply move the remaining players to sit physically closer together (5, 6, 8, 9 for example). That would allow the new players to sit between BB and Button.

K-Lo's suggestion also would have been fine, but I didn't think of it at the time!

As for the point from Nick about re-drawing at Final Table, we also do that and have never received a complaint about it. (Except of course, from the player who had just been a BB and gets it again thanks to the redraw.)

Thanks for the feedback. I appreciate it!

'Brian

[K-Lo]

Hi Brian:

From your further description, it looks like the button might be in seat 2, with seats 3-7 open? 

If I get confused when I'm balancing tables, I always go back to first principles:  I move the player that is supposed to BB at the old table, into the new table, preferably as the BB but if that seat is not available, then the next available seat.  So if you move the BB at the old table to a BB's position at the new table (e.g. seat 4 is available here), you've moved one person.  Now you just repeat it again for the next person (the UTG at the old table would have been the new BB, but he also must be moved, so he goes to the next seat available which is seat 5) and so on until the table are balanced. 

The downside of moving players 1 & 2 at the short table to vacant seats is that you are now bringing new people behind seats 8 & 9, when in a standard balancing of tables, they should be behind 1 & 2.  You may get some complaints about that.

[WSOPMcGee]

From your further description, it looks like the button might be in seat 2, with seats 3-7 open? 

Assuming K-Lo is correct. Very simple solution here.

Because tournament play is governed by the dead button rule the procedure is as follows:
Seats 1, 2 (button), 8, 9 occupied
Seats 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 open.

Move  UTG and BB players from 9 handed table to 4 handed table.

Place BB player in Seat 3. Place UTG player in Seat 4. Seat 3 will have 1 BB for one hand. On the next hand the button does NOT move (Stays at Seat 2). Seat 3 takes the SB and Seat 4 take the BB. Play continues as normal.