Are you cashing or winning too much?

Believe it or not, both could be red flags if one is at the expense of another.

An area where there is a lot of confusion is how often you should be winning a whole tournament and how often you should be cashing them.

A player who cashes too much (let's say 20% of the time or more) is often a red flag because it's a sign they are playing too conservatively. They often struggle over the line to make the money with a small stack, which means they have no chance of getting much further.

A player who wins a lot of tournaments, believe it or not, could be a red flag too. If that player is getting the W a lot but is not up a huge amount in profit, it means they are playing too recklessly. The wins do not compensate for the many times they, for example, could have gotten 3rd but got 7th.

Be ICM award

In both situations, it is a sign they are not prioritising the right things. More significantly, both are signs the player is not ICM aware.

A player who cashes too much may think they are ICM aware, but they are ignoring spots to put ICM pressure on their opponents.

A player who wins a lot but is not up a massive amount in profit is punting when ICM pressure is significant.

The player who can do both is often said to be able to 'change gears' but what they are actually doing is simply playing appropriately for the situation.

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