G0930
Captain Fathermucker, Satty Aficionado
Platinum Level
Depends on what you define as good.anbu210 said:
straddles are useful to build pots. It is common to have a straddle and re-straddle in cashgames.
some always make one and some do it when they are on tilt and hope to restack fast.
And sometimes , just for fun 🙂
Should straddles be considered good for the game?
I also think that it depends on the games, players involved... what I can say is that in my home games (we're mostly recreational gamblers* not everyone are even playing much poker except this friendly games...), we like to straddle as it makes things more fun and/or loosen tight players, helps with building big pots and keeps the game more entertaining.
I also think that it depends on the games, players involved... what I can say is that in my home games (we're mostly recreational gamblers* not everyone are even playing much poker except this friendly games...), we like to straddle as it makes things more fun and/or loosen tight players, helps with building big pots and keeps the game more entertaining.
No straddles are horrible for rec/hobby players which is what a the majority of the poker world is made up of I think sometimes everyone forgets this little fact. But many things poker does is bad for the majority but only gets done because it's good for the high stakes crowd who make up likely less then 5% of the total players.
Good luck getting me to straddle. I have this argument almost every time I go to my local casino. My final answer always comes down to 4 words cause they never seem to stop or get it the first 100 times...."I'm not f**king straddling." If I want I more money in the pot I'll raise or re-raise more then my normal amount.
Cheers!!!
Good luck getting me to straddle. I have this argument almost every time I go to my local casino. My final answer always comes down to 4 words cause they never seem to stop or get it the first 100 times...."I'm not f**king straddling." If I want I more money in the pot I'll raise or re-raise more then my normal amount.
Cheers!!!
I played once and didn't like it. It was always the same player. The player to his left was always the first to act pre-flop and was always at a disadvantage. It's crazy to be the small blind or big blind and have to be the first to act pre-flop. There's no way to be profitable.
Honestly, straddles are a massive blessing for the game, especially in live poker. It lowers the effective stack sizes, builds bigger pots pre-flop, and forces the nits out of their comfort zone. When people start playing blind money, the action just naturally explodes.I completely agree with @Jillychemung on button straddles though—they totally ruin the game. It completely kills the natural positional advantage of the blinds and makes everyone play way too tight.Keep the single UTG straddle to juice up the action and create massive pots, but ban the rest!
Yes it's good for the game, I always try to get the straddle on. The logic used to be that putting money in out of position was -EV so why would you ever want to do that, and that's true, if you're the only one doing it, but if you can get the straddle it going then it really is no different than a third blind and just serves to build the pot. Bigger pots = more action which also serves to reduce the raked percentage of the pot, so there's that; but the main reason I like it is that mid stakes are drying up. $2/5 is almost impossible to find anymore and $5/10 doesn't exists outside major markets or private games. $1/3 is often the biggest game running. Straddling allows a table of regulars to turn their $1/3 game into something that plays like $1/3/6 without needing the room to spread a new stake. Nobody's forcing you to straddle but if everyone else is doing it than it's no less EV than paying the traditional blinds which are universally agreed to be inadaquate to justify the preflop betting as it is. I'm always a bit surprised at players who will call any 5x bet preflop with anything pretty but refuse to toss in a 2x live straddle. If you're uncomfortable with the larger pots than many rooms still offer $1/2 with no straddles, I suggest you go there.
I think straddles are good if everyone at the table enjoys that style of game. They create bigger pots, more action, and make the game more exciting. At the same time, they increase variance and can force players into tougher decisions, so they're not ideal for everyone. Personally, I prefer playing without straddles in tournaments, but they can be fun in casual cash games.
Straddles suck : if I wanted to be playing a higher stakes game that is what I would do. And when someone insists I do, " because everyone else is", my answer is quite simply "**** you", Putting extra money in blind is stupid.
I'm fine with straddles as long as they're optional rather than mandatory at the table. A voluntary UTG straddle just adds action and slightly loosens the game, which is usually good for the recreational players who want bigger pots. Where it turns bad is when it becomes a forced house-imposed thing every hand, because at that point it's really just a stealth rake increase since everyone's paying more per orbit whether they want the extra variance or not. Button straddles specifically annoy me because the straddler already has position for the rest of the hand, so they're adding dead money to a spot where they already had the advantage.
I think straddles can make the game more interesting and create bigger pots, but they can also change the dynamics quite a lot. Personally, I don't mind them as long as everyone at the table understands the rules and is comfortable with it.