I play no limit poker. Oftentimes, I win. Typically, I just win enough but at least on a regular basis.

In general, I consider myself as an analytical player who is usually bothered psychologically. Over the years, I’ve tried to change this by increasing my skills or the like. I’ve also tried to discuss some related matters over my mind.

At a certain point, I question myself about the reasons why should I call rather than fold or raise post flop. Well, there’s no problem when I am into a full game, most especially in a multi-way pot. But unfortunately, not in short handed games, specifically when there is a heads up confrontation.

Any piece of advice? Do you have any idea about calling a bet on the flop in cases where ordinarily a player would either fold a marginal hand or re-raise with a hand that is more or less ahead?

I’m not sure to say this, and I also don’t want to sound defensive but the thing is short handed poker is the hardest to master for an analytical player like me. Well, I’m not sure but this is what I feel.

Thanks for your time.

Allie

Allie,

Short handed and heads up confrontations are situations where marginal hands and draws tend to pick up value. As far as calling as opposed to raising, I would continue to raise if I were you when you are ahead. Otherwise you are inviting players to outdraw you regularly. In relation to calling as opposed to folding, you will need to probably look into staying in with your marginal hands that connect in some way or with your draws more in a short handed game.

For an instance, in a $5/10 NL ring game you are holding 99,TT, JJ in Middle position and in early position facing three times raise from a tight aggressive player, would you call and eventually consider pair as a “set catcher” or just re-raise and treat it as a premium hand instead?

By the way, besides from likely holdings, are there some other factors to consider?

Thank you.

Steve

Steve,

I would consider nines and tens as set catchers. Jacks I would lean towards a set catcher. The TAG could be also raising with a hand such as A-K suited as well.

Other factors to consider are how long it has been since this player has played a hand, and what they are capable of showing.

I love poker. But just recently, I’m starting to get bothered because of a certain hand that took place in one of my NL, .10/.25 online games.

What I can remember is that I had pocket 5′s under the gun and I limped in with some of the players. Then, a player who is in 5th position raised about 4 times the big blind and so a result got a call from the player in 8th position. Right after, it was folded around to me, I called.

Finally, the flop came 5-6-7, 2 spades. Well, I hit my set back then, however, drawing potential was still very prevalent even for me. I then bet out about 80% of the pot, because I was thinking that I’d have at least one caller from two players behind me.

Afterwards, the person in 5th position re-raised me, the amount was really big. Because of that re-raise, I got into conclusion that he is keeping a very large hand or was trying to bet me out of the pot. For some reasons, the person in 8th position called that large raise, so somehow I was relieved from delight.

To be honest, I’m not sure of what I had back then. There was a chance for a straight and flush draw, but somebody at the table might be holding 7-7 or 8-8 so the way to winning wasn’t that sure yet for me. As a result, I went all-in.

In just seconds, both my opponents folded. Well, I’ve taken home the pot, and I was so happy then. But still at some point, I still feel I’ve messed up at the table. I don’t know if I was able to maximize everything, the hand, chance,etc. What do you think? Do you have any comments or advice for me?

By the way, I’m very open to suggestions and even for bad comments so you can say everything. You don’t have to worry.

Thanks!

David

David,

I’m going to go with the assumption you had the set of fives for this scenario. You bet 80% of the pot, was raised and another player called before action returned to you. I would say that there is a good chance that you were against a large pair such as Aces and maybe a draw. I am surprised that both players folded to your bet. My only guess is that they maybe thought you had flopped a straight.

After betting out 80% of the pot, I would have been concerned with a big raise and a call ahead of me. I would have at least put one of them on the straight, even if it seemed unlikely. With that being said, you still had a 40% chance to make a full house even if you were unlucky enough to run into a straight.

Moving all-in did seem like a bit of an overbet, but if I were you, I would be very happy with both players folding. If they were on a draw, you prevented them from outdrawing you.

I am a recovering successful poker player. Why have I said this? Well, it’s because I’m patching things up in the literature of middle limit NL holdem games.

Before, the tight aggressive strategy at the table is effective and in fact I win effortlessly because of the said strategy. But lately, in the modern middle limit NL holdem games, things have been a little different. I noticed that players usually play using the same strategy and for that beat me in the end.

Hoping to find clarity unto what’s going on, I tried to search for some articles about poker particularly about middle limit NL holdem games. I stumbled on so many sites but it is your site I find really interesting. From your site, if I’ve absorbed things right, I’ve learned that players now have to play more raggedy looking hands such as 64s and A2s by limping in preflop and hoping for a good flop and trying to break someone with TPTK or a high pocket pair.

However, one idea bothered me. Is it true that if possible players have to see flops cheaply with suited connectors or gappers? What’s your idea on this.

How about in these situations for an instance:

1. You are seated at a table and everyone else has tightened up. With 75s, you are in middle position and no limpers to be found. What will you do? Are you going to limp or raise and why? And if you limped on then the guy on the button raised to about five times the big blind, will you call or fold? Say you feel he has AA or something close to it and both of you are sitting on about 100 Big blinds.

How about the 75s, will it hit enough?

2. You are seated at a table and almost all others seated were playing tight. Then several guys raised four to six times the big blind preflop with a majority of their hands. But later on they just check fold if they can’t hit or make a continuation bet. If they encounter action, they give up.

Say you then have 75s and was actually seated in MP. Suddenly, a guy raised 5 times in EP, what will you do? Call, fold or re-raise?

3. I’ve tried to call a raise with a rag hand or the like. Have you also tried doing so? If so, what are the things you’ve considered before doing it?

At some point, I’ve tried to limp in and call raises only when I have reason to believe they have a big pair in the hole and are breakable actually. But things for me seemed out of the track. Any idea to share with me?

William

William,

I’m going to address your questions one at a time.

1. 7-5 is a hand that can hit big but also can lose you a lot of money due to the weakness of the straights and flushes it hits. Lets say you have 7-5 and the flop comes 6-8-9. You have flopped a straight. What about when the turn fall a 10? You now have a sucker straight. If you flop or turn a flush, its going to be the weakest type of flush you can make. You have to play these hands carefully. You really want to limp in with these hands. Calling big raises is not a smart play.
   
2. The player raised in early position. This is not a good time to play your rags.
   
3. When I consider calling a raise with a rag hand, the first thing I consider is how many people are in the pot? If I am getting good odds on my money, I will call. If they are particularly weak-tight, then I might consider the call. Obviously, I want position on this player.

I’ve heard that aggressive poker is actually a good poker, and that an aggressive player always wins the pot. Is this true?

How about if an ABC player raise with preflop (AA, KK, QQ, AK), and some suited connectors or AQ or even AJ in late position will be added, what do you think will this be sensible? I guess it will just increase the rate at which I’m losing, so it’s nonsense at all.

How about for an instance in a $3/6 NL game online the players are pretty decent so when you bet 2/3 the pot at a 842 flop, they have just figured out you are just betting overcards, therefore they just thought of either calling or re-raising. What’s your insight on this? I have actually experienced this one and I lost about 1/6th my buy in.

Do you think being aggressive at the table is the better way out and the better way to win the pot? If not, then should I tighten up? But I have already tried to tighten up and it wasn’t that effective.

How about if I try to be passive? Well, I also tried to be passive once and the results were not that good. But at some point, I thought that maybe everything was because of a bad beat or maybe wrong moves that came out of the blue.

So what now? I think I need some improvements. I think I need to develop sort of aggression on my plays. Also, I need to know when to slow play or re-raise a good hand as well as on how to get paid off with your good hands, particularly when you are playing ABC poker.

Can you help me? Please.

Thanks!

Carter

Carter,

Phil Gordon likes to state that “aggressive poker is winning poker.” Aggression is good for driving people out of pots. If you have what appears to be the lead or the clear edge, you need to bet to force players out or make them pay to draw out on you.

When you have good hands, you need to be aggressive with them. Slow playing should be done when you flop a monster hand or pick up a monster on later streets. With slow playing you need to be sure you are not giving them opportunities to outdraw you, such as slow playing a set when there is 2 spades on board.

I’ve been playing at NL 1/2 level of 6 person per table for months now. I believe I played well in most of my games, and also was able to build my bankroll for the next level. However, there are some things that I’m really bothered of. Hope you can help me.

Well, I usually play tightly but I’m not into bluffing that much. I typically win because of tight and crazy players at the table. But against tricky players I usually do not win. I guess the problem is on how I re-raise. In fact, in one of my unforgettable situations at the table, I’m not sure if I re-raised just right in time. I was in the first position then and I placed a bet on the flop top pair. Eventually the second player raised me 3 times. At that instance, I was not sure if I would re-raise or what.

In your opinion, if you know that your opponent is a tricky player, able to raise with a draw should you re-raise or what?

And by the way, how many times do you think should I re-raise? Well, I’m not sure about when should I re-raise or how often should I make some. I believe that the pot builds up very quickly, and just with one mistake, you will lose all your buy-in, your bankroll.

By the way, how about doing the check-call the flop and then check-raise the turn? Any idea?

Thank you in advance.

Hayden Alexander

Hayden,

The problem with a tricky player is that when they reraise, you are not sure if they are on a draw or if they have you beat. That is part of their style. With tricky players, the best way to play them is to push your advantages against them. If you flop a pair and you think that they are on a draw, make them pay for their draw. Whether or not your re-raise will depend on where you think you are at in the hand. If you think you are ahead, or know it, then reraise.

Check-calling the flop is good if you are slow playing a big hand, but you usually want to be the aggressor. Check-raising the turn is a standard move if you are ahead. Be careful for using aggression just for the sake of aggression. Sometimes it works, but a tricky player usually has enough experience to sniff out a move.

I would like to ask your opinion about how I played a certain hand in one of my games. I believe I’ve played it almost perfect but of course I also want to hear the opinion of others.

The hand actually took place in $1-2 NL in a casino.

Back then, for 7 hours, I had worked my stack up from $160 to $380. On the button, I was dealt pocket Ad Ac. Afterwards, many players have folded so to be sure there’ll still be some action, I raised to $7. Then BB player raised me to $20, and so to trap him, I called.

Then the flop came, 9h 6h 3c. As a sort of strategy, he placed a bet out $40. I re-raised him to $100 total, and he went all in as a result. After that, I remember I have about $200 in front of me and the pot was actually $760.

Finally, he turned over Qs Qh. I don’t know but I thought I was ahead after that. But unfortunately, the next two cards are runner hearts and so it was then over for me.

After the game, somebody told me that it was a mistake that I didn’t re-raise the preflop. Well, I am not sure, but I think my table image was tight, so it’s not a good idea to re-raise his bet on the flop. In your opinion, was it really a mistake?

Also, if I re-raised preflop to $50, and slowed him down on the flop, what do you think might have happen? Bet him out and made $50 bucks or what?

Hope to hear from you soon. Thanks!

Railey

Railey,

I probably would have reraised preflop as well. Honestly, I think that all of his money would have went in either preflop or on the flop. He bet out on the flop, you raised, and then he moved all in. I don’t think raising preflop would have changed anything based on this flop.

Now, if you would have raised and then a king or an ace hit the flop, you might have been able to induce a fold. Based on the information above, all the money was going in regardless of when you raised him. Other than that, you just got unlucky. Such is poker.

Well, I drop by again because of some more questions about NL cash game and tournament questions.

1. Just few days, ago I noticed some people in no limit cash games love buying in with less than the maximum. Say for an instance, in NL100, people are buying in with $10, $15, $20 or even may be $40. To some extent, I understand that playing the short stack has some advantages, but I’m wondering, how should I play with them when I have a full buy in?

Assume that I limp in with 88 in the early positions. Then with only 20 all folded to a short stack at middle position. A certain guy raised to $4 and everyone else even the small blind and big blind folded. My turn came and I don’t know what to do. I am sure either of the two, call or re-raise, won’t bring in positive result so I just thought of folding. Am I correct with this one?

By the way, do you have any idea about short stack specialist? Any helpful advice about it?

2. At times, I play NL tournaments. Well, I believe NL tournaments are far different from cash games. As my chips are limited, if I keep calling a raise with small pocket pairs, I would spend much chips before I hit my set in NL tournaments. On the other hand, I can always reload, and always have the opportunity to win back the money in cash games.

Well, in NL tournaments, I always find some ways to balance everything. However, I can’t still get the hang of some stuff. I don’t know how can I accumulate lots of chips and then proceed to the final table all the way. Also, I don’t know what kind of hands should I play. Can you help me?

3. I like GSN’s High Stakes Poker a lot. One thing I noticed in most of their games is that pros typically play loosely. Say someone raises with A4o, unexpectedly someone calls with K9s. And when flop hits a 9, player with K9s would assume he got only the best hand and nothing else follows. Well, I don’t totally understand what’s going on. Please, I need clarity on this.

Thank you.

Regards,
Carter

Carter,

1. Short stack specialists are trying to find a hand to pretty much double up with right away. Your best bet in playing these type of specialists is to pick a strong hand or pick a hand and hurt them when you flop well. The pocket eights you mentioned above is a good hand to hurt a short stacked specialist with. Call their bet and see a flop. If you hit your set, chances are you are going to extract bets out of them. Your best bet with a short stacked specialist is to play small pots and see cheap flops. Don’t put yourself in a spot to double them up.
2. The key to long term success in tournaments is being able to steal blinds and antes on a regular basis and use position to your advantage. Most tournaments do not begin until the antes kick in. Once that happens, the person that can successfully steal blinds on a regular basis in addition to catching some hands is a person that can go deep in tourneys.
3. You need to remember that these players are the best in the world and they spend their entire lives dedicated almost exclusively to poker. These players are mixing up playing hands with being able to play the player as well. If you watch closely, each player has their own unique styles. Just as a word of advice, watch very closely how Phil Ivey, Jennifer Harman, Doyle Brunson, Barry Greenstein, and David Benyamine play when they are on there. You will see a little more sensible play. Benyamine and Ivey right now are 1 and 2 in the world in amount of money won in cash games online.

I limped in with pocket 3′s in the middle position. In late position, a player raised to three times that of the BB ($70 stack). Subsequently, the button called $80 stack. Well, thinking that both players are having fairly deep stacks, I called the extra 2 bets for the huge implied odds.

Then, the flop came – 6 Clubs, 4 Hearts, 3 Clubs and so as a result I checked to the raiser who placed a bet out $10, button folded and I re-raised to $25. My opponent went all in which of course I immediately call.

Unfortunately, the turn was 7 Diamonds and river was 5 Clubs. Finally, he flipped over Ks and we divided the pot with the straight on the board.

Now, I’m wondering. Is that the way you actually play over pairs without fear of the set? And about my opponent’s options – fold, call, re-raise, or all in, how will you rank them and why will you rank them that way?

Well, personally I ranked his options as fold – call – all in – re-raise.

Thank you in advance.

Carl Vince

Carl,

In the scenario above, I would rank his options as re-raise, all in, call, fold. A player will only flop a set 11% of the time. Most players are not going to instantly give you credit for a set. The more likely option would be that you have a pair such as 10’s or jack, or a flush draw. I almost bet that he put you on a flush draw or a weaker pair. He wanted to try and make you pay to draw out on him. He didn’t realize that he was the one that needed to draw out.

I know I’ve been a tight, aggressive player. But I also know that being tight and aggressive won’t really help at all. By being such kind of player, I know I can’t triple or quadruple my buy-in. Only those who are usually LAGs can get paid off big. What do you think, am I just playing too weak tight or what?

By the way, my real reason for dropping by is because of these questions:

1. At all positions, I played all pocket pairs and will call a raise whenever my opponent has stack size bigger than 10 times of his raise. Also, I raise with AK s/o, AQ s/o, and try to limp with AJ s/o, A10 s/o, and all Ax suited. Not to mention that I also limp with KQ s/o, and may be KJ suited as well as all suited connectors from J10 down to 54. Do you think I’m being too tight as a player?
2. Against a raise, I love to play small pocket pairs for if I hit my set, I’ll get off big. But one thing I notice is that suited connectors win over. For an instance, 78s vs KK is 21% again 79%, which 33 vs KK is only 19% vs 81%. In your opinion, should I just call a raise with any suited connectors? I am not sure about raising with any suited connectors because I know almost all suited connectors are net losers and the real big money makers are all pocket pairs.
3. Normally, when I’m dealt AA, KK or QQ, I feel my adrenalin rushing. But along with this is the worry that someone at the table might give me a bad beat or flop a set that eventually would cause me to lose big bucks. Do you have an idea on how can you be sure when to lay down your big pocket pairs? For an instance you get AA, flop 7 5 2 with two diamonds, and when you bet 2/3 pot, someone re-raise you twice or went all-in. What will you do next? Lay down your pairs? Do you think it’s the sign you are waiting for? Does it mean you should lay it down? But how about when they call your flop bet, and when you bet ½ or 2/3 pot at turn, they re-raise you all-in then?
4. I’m now wondering as it seemed to me that playing at full ring NL1000 like a tight “set miner” is still okay. Any idea or suggestion?
5. On a certain forum, I learned that once I can get to mid stakes like NL400+, the money would be very good. Any idea about this?

Thank you.

Loise

Loise,

1. In some ways you are playing tight and some too loose. I would stay away from suited connectors below 7-8 and add some face cards with 10’s to your hands such as Q-10 and K-10. The reason I say stay away from low suited connectors is that while sometimes you can win big with them, there are many times they will make a sucker end or a weaker flush and cost you more money when two players happen to hit.
2. Playing pairs on a raise can be profitable when you hit your set. Playing suited connectors are much more tricky. I would stick with calling a raise when you do choose to play suited connectors. The value in them is when they hit big and you can win a big pot. If you raise with them and miss, you are just giving away money.
3. For your first scenario with the aces, you will want to call them on the flop or put them all in. Chances are they are on a draw or trying to push you out. As far as knowing when to get out with a big pair, when you have an underpair such as kings or queens and an ace hits the flop, there are times that you will have fallen behind, especially if you raised preflop and was call or have multiple callers. Also, sometimes you will need to lay down a big pair when the board has straightened or flushed or even paired. Knowing when to lay down these hands depends a lot on what you put your opponent on and their style of play.
   The best thing to do is to try and thin down the field the best you can when you hold a big pair.
4. In the long term, a solid player will be a long term winner. To be really successful in NL, you usually have to open up your style of play a bit.
5. The potential amount of money is greater as players have more money on the table, but the success that you will have at a game is directly relative to your ability and the ability of your opponents. You should strive to play the game that is most profitable based on your style and your opponents. If that means playing at NL200, then play there.