Blinds are now 2.5k/5k no ante. Chipleader is UTG with about 340k, he folds. Button shoves her last 47k, and hero is in SB with 52.5k total. BB has about 30k. Hero looks down and has QQ. Now normally this is an obvious snap call, but I was wondering if ICM considerations ever make this a potential fold.
So my instinct is this is a call, but I am glad this is a discussion.
I wouldn't consider hero's lead in chip count to be huge over either villain. Hero has about 10BB, villain has 9BB, and short stack has 6BB. Short stack is still a double up from second position. At the current stakes, hero and button each have about 6 orbits left, and it reality, less as the blinds will increase a couple times before 6 orbits complete. So when will hero expect to have a better hand than QQ to defend with in this spot? If you are folding QQ, then you are only defending with KK and AA, and the odds of getting that in the final 20 hands or so before being blinded out, is pretty remote. Not to mention during that time, if the other players win their spots where they gamble, hero is heading for 4th place anyway. (Also not to mention, KK and AA get beat sometimes too.) Hero makes the stand now and wins, he probably assures himself at least second place and now has 19 BB, a far more comfortable stack to try and wait out the 6BB short stack. Hero doesn't make the stand now, he may not find another chance to compete for second place if the other villains win their confrontations when they get forced in, that also requires some fortune.
There are probably situations I would consider folding QQ. If hero is facing a bet and a call where a short stack is at risk, I could see that fold. Hero has a real shot at a jump to 3rd place in that situation. If the short stack were down to 2-3 BB, I would feel a little better about waiting it out with 10BB, but that would still be nervy. But as hero, I don't think a single short-stack open is enough to make me want to fold a hand this good. I would rather lose here, than watch the others possibly gain chips and force me into a far less palatable all in survival where I can end up in 4th place anyway.
Someone can do the math here, but if I were to guess a range, I think I am calling it off here with TT+ and AQ+. I expect button is probably shoving at least AT+ and probably 88+, maybe even KQ.