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No Limit Hold 'Em Ring Games - Playing the Low Hands |
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If you have ever played in a cash game you will notice that a lot of
people love to call big raises with those low suited connectors and
those low- to mid- pocket pairs. This is actually a pretty good play
sometimes because it is easy to fold the hand if you don't get the flop
that you want. However, doing it every chance you get can hurt you
bankroll in the long run.
There are several things you should consider when you want to play that 7/6s or that 5/5. Firstly, how many people are in the pot? If there are a lot of people in the pot and it costs you relatively little to see a flop, then it might be worth it to call with a "weak hand." Secondly, you should look at how much money each person who is in the pot has. For example, suppose a game's standard buy-in is $10. You have $10; there are 4 people in the hand at the moment; and the pot has been raised but each of them only has an average of $4. In this case it may not be justified to call the raise with a weak hand because you only stand to win a maximum of $4 in an all-in situation. Even if you happen to win against two people all-in, that will still only be $8 and not quite a double up.
In general, you can play weak hands if it is relatively cheap to do so and/or you stand to at least double up. Ideally, there should be a lot of people in the hand (at least 4 including yourself). Having a lot of people in the hand gives you the "odds" of calling and it increases the chances that someone will hit something, giving you action for your set of sixes or what have you.
Sometimes people like to call huge raises, which indicates K/K or A/A, with lower pocket pairs. Again, the main thing to consider is how much money you stand to make. If you know your opponent to be extremely aggressive with overpairs then it may be worth it. If you know your opponent is not capable of folding over pairs, then it may be worth it.
Some notes about "weak hands:"
- The closer two cards are together, the more straights it can make. For example, 5/4 completes more straights than 5/3.
- When holding a pocket pair, your chances of hitting a set on the flop is about 11% or 1/9. |
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