How to play low pairs out of position?

Warrior1961

Warrior1961

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  • #1
Hi evryone.

How to play low microlimits couples being the first to speak,
most of the time since SB?
by low couples I mean 77 for bass.

I am very new in cash NL2 (in general I am very new to everything), that's why I need
some very simple techniques to play low couples being an off-position aggressor.
I still do not differ well in what changes my aggression if the Flop is type

a- J22
b- K92
c- 789
d- AK10

I usually play them as if wearing AA or KK, I climb strong preflop and then I put
3 barrel, I imagine they will only pay me AK, AQ, AJ, in case the villain
link something on the flop and that only AA and KK will make me re-raise, on the river you think?

From already thank you very much.

Greetings.

P.D: I am trying to have a more aggressive game in all the specialties, that's why I post this, since before I played the low couples matching the blind and looking for the set.
 
jadaminato

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  • #2
Hello! You should do a little research on set mining with low pairs. Some hands almost always lose if they don't connect the set. Of course, you can turn them into bluff and try to win the pot, but that won't always work out for you. If you are defending the SB with those pairs, the postflop game will depend on who opened. If the one who opened is a UTG thight, the flop comes AQJ and you have 22, easy fold. However, if you are defending of the button you can certainly do 3bet and be willing to be aggressive. Although if the spot is full of overcards and your opponent shows a lot of strength, be careful.
As for your examples, you have to evaluate the possibilities of the flop. If it is a flop with many projects, then it is a wet flop. If there are no projects, it is a dry flop. If you think you have the best hand on a flop like 789, then you should bet a little more than half a pot for your opponents to pay for their projects. If you get them to pay beyond the odds, then you will be winning in the long run. If the chances of getting the nuts are 20%, then make them pay 50%.
However, if it is a dry flop like J22, there is no need to protect your hand. When you have the best flop hand you will win most of the time. So you can bet small to keep your opponents in the pot and get more chips.
 
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wyoming4paul

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  • #3
Get in as cheap as you can. If there's a raise and a reraise, let it go.
 
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najisami

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  • #4
Hey Warrior, though it's not very easy to let go of a small made hand preflop, especially when facing a raise, the safest play is actually to wait for a better opportunity unless you have a huge stack. but besides all that, it looks like you are looking to be an "aggressive" player no matter what ! That sounds very weird man (at least to me). From over 10 years of playing, I am convinced that poker is about changing gear continually, if we only always knew when. This was just an opinion, good luck all.
 
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Haze777s

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  • #5
wyoming4paul said:
Get in as cheap as you can. If there's a raise and a reraise, let it go.
it's better not to sit down if you feel that things are bad
 
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  • #6
wyoming4paul said:
Get in as cheap as you can. If there's a raise and a reraise, let it go.
i agree totally with this if it is raised i toss it away sometimes they will hit play with gut instincts it works
 
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  • #7
It always depend of the table or more precisely of the players against who you are playing.At first you want to play small connected pairs slowly or just fold but your play of them in the later stages of the game depends heavily of circumstances that you are in.If you regularly start to lose when you play them just throw them off of your repertoire.
 
thetick33

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  • #8
i would play them the same way i would play 10-8 suited so its by position etc..

i want in cheap if im out of position as cheap as possible etc...good news is a lot of times you can get in cheaply even out of position or at least to a small raise:)
 
Matt_Burns88

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  • #9
Position is really important. Just because you have a made hand, does not make it a good one. Being in the SB means you are going to have to act first on every street after the flop. It can be great when you hit your set, but more often you won't and then you're out of position with a weak hand.

If you can set mine (see a cheap flop and hit the third 7), it can be very profitable. But be prepared to let it go if faced with a raise and re-raise, or a large opening raise - these spots will lose in the long term.
 
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fundiver199

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  • #10
It depends on, weather you are the preflop aggressor and got called by someone behind, or if you defended your blinds. If you defended your blinds, you can not go to wrong by just always checking to the preflop aggressor. If you were the preflop aggressor, you need to have a general C-betting strategy.

On a board like J22 you should typically continue at least 1 street with any pocket pair, since its just to unlikely, your opponent hit. On boards with 2 or 3 big cards however, you should typically just give up and cut your losses. K92 and AKT both fit that description. On 789, 77 flopped a set, but the board is extremely wet and dangerous, so a bit of pot control is in order. Ideally you want to see the board pair, before you start piling money in.
 
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Evan Jarvis

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  • #11
Warrior1961 said:
Hi evryone.

How to play low microlimits couples being the first to speak,
most of the time since SB?
by low couples I mean 77 for bass.

I am very new in cash NL2 (in general I am very new to everything), that's why I need
some very simple techniques to play low couples being an off-position aggressor.
I still do not differ well in what changes my aggression if the Flop is type

a- J22
b- K92
c- 789
d- AK10

I usually play them as if wearing AA or KK, I climb strong preflop and then I put
3 barrel, I imagine they will only pay me AK, AQ, AJ, in case the villain
link something on the flop and that only AA and KK will make me re-raise, on the river you think?

From already thank you very much.

Greetings.

P.D: I am trying to have a more aggressive game in all the specialties, that's why I post this, since before I played the low couples matching the blind and looking for the set.

Hey friend,

I think you'll find these videos quite helpful for small pairs.
The key is to put them into the right categories and play the situations that match.




If you want more, there are about 20 more similar theory videos on my youtube channel that will help you build your game from the ground up :)
 
Akinled

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  • #12
I totally agree that calling
low
pairs
from the blinds and playing a headsup pot
oop
is not really +EV, as we have to play fit
 
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  • #13
That's funny, I play them like I have aces or Kings too. Almost all the time it works but like one comment says if ita vs a tight player don't go crazy.
 
Warrior1961

Warrior1961

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  • #14
Hi everyone.

First of all thank you very much for your comments and advice. I am a new player and maybe too tight (NIT?). That is why I am trying to incorporate more hands into my preflop game and know how to play them postflop.
Needless to say, I will take each of your tips and try to apply them in my modest rookie game.

I reiterate my thanks to all of you.

Best regards from Buenos Aires.
 
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63burner

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  • #15
under 7, 66, 55, 44, yes, 33,22 no

If you're trying to play under 7 pairs out of position, if you're not stacked up, 22 and 33 are playable, but 44, 55, and 66are much better. More than once I've made my set, 222 or 333 and been beaten by 444 555 and 666.
So 22 or 33 are a prospective, take a small chance kind of pairs.
with higher, 33, 44 55 and 66 I feel much better, just seen my "I made it" 222 or 333 get crushed too often.
 
Collin Moshman

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  • #16
Nice advice in this thread!

Here are a few more guidelines too:

** You want to be getting 20:1 implied odds pre-flop to call a raise with a low pocket pair. (This means that if you hit a set, stacks are deep enough that you can potentially win 20x your pre-flop investment.)

** You can raise play low pocket pairs first-in from late position of roughly cutoff and later, depending on the exact pair and remaining opponents.

** Post-flop you should stab at dry flops as the aggressor, particularly with two or fewer opponents.

** In heads-up pots, you can bluff-catch dry flops as well when you're not the aggressor, forcing your opponent to show you a better hand if he's betting on a board like 7 3 3 2.
 
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  • #17
It depends a lot on the players at the table! Before playing more aggressive, I try to analyze who is more aggressive and who are fearful, so there is already a basis for billing many BBs.
Good luck in the games.
 
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