Setting it all up...

[Windbreaker]

2 Table 20+2 buy in. Final 3. Top 4 pay - $160, 120, 80, 40.

Blinds are 300/600. I'm second in chips - with about 11k, chip leader has about 14k, and third place guy only had about 3500 left.

I'm in SB with KK. Third place folded in from the button. I had been stealing a lot in the last few rounds, so I do the exact same thing as I've done in many hands previously and make it 1800 to go - and figure the BB will think it's one of the many steals I've done lately.

The big blind instantly goes all in - I know I'm ahead and make the call. He flips over 88. He makes a full house to knock me out.

Taking a look at the pay out structure, I think I might have made a mistake. I created an uncessairly huge pot by raising so much preflop. It would probably have been better to not get too involved with the other big stack and wait for the small stack to bust out to win another $40.

By making the call I have about an 80% chance to take a huge chip lead and likely go on to win $160. 20% of the time I lose and end up with just $80.

If I made the pot small, and found a way to get away from the hand. It would have been more than likely that I could have placed at least second for another $40 and still had a shot to win.

So I guess the question, is how does the pay out structure affect your decision in SNG's/MTT's?

How much difference in prize money is required to make a fold knowing you're the 3:1 or 4:1 favorite the correct play?