in the SB

[Penguinfan]

I never call a raise with a hand that I would normally not play, as far as if it is not raised, well I probably make a mistake here but if it's a hand I would normally play then I limp in, if it's a hand I would normally throw away I will still limp in if there are 4 callers or more before me, I mean you know the pot will have 6 bets in it and for the discount price I think any two are worth a peek.

EDIT to add: I am assuming a cash game here.

[Kidd7138]

If I'm in the SB and there arent any raises I would play a lot more of the mediocre hands that I normally wouldn't play. It's a cheap way to see if you can get lucky if you limp in with connectors or one high card.

[eddo31]

i will play many more hands in the small blind. generally, for half a bet, there arent a whole ton of hands that you arent getting the right odds to call with. what i look for in small blind hands is usually how connected the two cards are. if they are suited that is a bonus, and if they are high cards, i might have played them anyways.

[Aequitas58]

Cash Games
-Generally, I never call a raise when I'm in the blinds. I'm in the worst position after the flop. I'd really have to have good cards to call.
-If there is no raise, and more than two callers, I'll usually play any suited cards or connectors. Also big cards, but usually not any ragged high card.
-If all fold but the button, and there is a raise, I will call with less (because I'll put him on a blind steal.) If I have anything decent, I'll re-raise.
-Any A or K, and I'll attempt to blind steal if noone else has limped.

Tournaments
-A lot of it has to do with chip count, type of players, the bubble/cashing situation, and what the cards are (obviously).
-I'm tighter in a tournament than in live play. For whatever reason.

For addtn'l information, Tommy D (?) has a really good article about calling a raise from blinds. Check it on Cardplayer.

Hope this helps.

[junYUN]

does help a lot, just trying to increase my poker IQ as much as i can. where would i find this article? sorry if i'm ignorant but where would i find cardplayer?

[GeoffM]

I usually like to protect my SB when playing O8B. You tend to hit a lot more flops well and I hate throwing away chips without seeing the next 3 cards.

[eddo31]

i actually tighten up in the blinds in o8. essentially i think that playing too many ahnds, and having poor hand selection is the biggest mistake that i can make in that game. playing marginal hands, and then getting married to them postflop has always been a good way for me to lose money.

of course, if i just threw away the marginal hands postflop, everything would work itself out, but i find that more difficult than folding out of the small blind.

[Aequitas58]

If you're into expanding your poker IQ, then check out this page:



TONS of articles by a lot of players. You can spend weeks just going thru all of them. Some of it is really interesting stuff.

[junYUN]

funny thing is right before i read this i had just found this page, tons of info. wish danny n wrote more "how to," but what are ya gonna do, eh?

[Aequitas58]

Yea. He does have good info in his articles, but usually it's just a description of one big hand in a recent tournament.