Min-Cash

Also known as: Min Cash, Minimum Cash

The **smallest payout** in a tournament — often around 1.5× the buy-in. Reaching it is nice, but in top-heavy MTTs min-cashing is **not** the goal.

What a min-cash is

The min-cash is the lowest prize a tournament pays — the bracket the bubble bursts into. It is typically only around 1.5× the buy-in, so after rake a string of min-cashes barely beats break-even.

Why min-cashing is not the goal

MTT payouts are top-heavy: the winner often takes 100–200× buy-in while the min-cash is ~1.5×. Almost all of your long-run ROI comes from deep runs and final tables, not from sneaking into the money. Playing scared to lock a min-cash sacrifices the chips you need to reach the real money.

The bubble tension

ICM still makes survival valuable right on the bubble — busting one spot short is the worst outcome. But the correct read is nuanced:

• Very short near the bubble → tighten to secure the min-cash if pay jumps are steep.
• Healthy stack → attack the players hugging the min-cash; their over-folding is your pay jump printing press.

Secure the cash when ICM screams, then immediately re-shift to accumulation once it is locked.