Limp/3betting big hands

I see a lot of solid players utilising this play - limping with a big hands like QQ and then 3-betting when someone attempts to squeeze, or even raises with strong holdings.

How do you feel about this play? To me it just screams strength but I think it's good for a few reasons, including getting some added value from hands like 99-QQ that you might want to see a 3-bet flop with. Using this play with JJ and then seeing the AK6 flop that crushes your opponents 3B/call range sucks but taking down the extra 4-5 blinds pre-flop would be great when you don't want to risk a flop.

Equally, I feel like it sets up a decent image for yourself. If you limp/raise with AA and then QQ, for example, get to showdown both times and then limp again, perhaps your table opponents will expect you to be strong, enabling you to try this play lighter in differing circumstances?

Personally, I'm a fan of it and you look to use it sometimes but how do you feel about it?

I do enjoy this play as well depending on how deep you are in the tournament levels. Doing this early in a tournament where you can 3 bet and still leave yourself something like 50BBs left is definitely where i would use it. I also like it because against some tighter players i can limp 3 bet the hand and still get more reads on the player that has raised initially in case i want to get away from a hand like JJ or QQ as i dont like them early in tournaments for all my chips. I like to play some big PPs a little bit lighter just in case some people are playing any Ace. It gives me some time to get more reads on the player through more bets and the ammounts that they bet. Plus gives me the added bonus of getting away from the hand if the player hits their ace. I opened with KK recently in a tourney and was reraised by a player across the table, although a solid player i didnt put him on AA but was fearful he may have Ak or Aq...so i just called his reraise to the flop to see what came, if any A hit the board it gave me a chance to get away from the flop without losing much of my chips on a big PP and at the same time if it was a low flop and he continued the bet when i was out of position i could trap him. The flop ended up being all low 10-7-3 rainbow and i checked out of position to him. He bet strong and I immediately pushed all in against him. He thought for a second and called with his overpair QQ. i asked if he had AA and he said No and i said, "Im good" and he rolled QQ vs my KK my KK held up and the table asked me why i played the hand the way i did. I explained that i wasnt trying to trap but more just playing safe wanting to see what the flop produced before i made any big moves. The other players looked at me and then understood why i did what i did. Its not always about playing big hands just for value,but also to give yourself more opportunities at a later time to keep your chips up. I ended up having a giant chip stack in that tourney and eventually chopping. But like i said, I like the limp of hands like99 - QQ preflop and 3 betting them just to get a read on the opponents, not necessarily to get more chips in the middle. So like i said Early in the tournament when you leave yourself a lot of chips to have behind then this is a good play, when you open and only have about 20BBs left i dont like limping the hand and 3 betting becasue you leave yourself too deep in the hand to fold at that point and could end up against a KK or AA or even AK or AQ and you just dont want to have to put your entire tournament on a race when you dont have to. I would much rather just see the flop and then make a move with big PPs. This is becasue people are rarely going to fold their AK or AQ preflop but once they see the flop miss they can get rid of it with your continuation bet. if you trap in that situation you are just giving them 2 more cards to see to catch up to your high PP. So truley its a good play but only early in a deep stack tournament, thats probably why you see a lot of professionals use the play is because they are doing it when they have many chips compared to the blind levels. you probably wouldn't see them doing this when they only had say 30BBs left in their stack. Good luck and keep playing well and make sure you take into account all variables before using a play that professionals have used, just because you have seen them do it. there is probably a lot more at work then just that simple play.

Its a strategy move. More like a repertoire from a tight player.

Its a good move since it ambushes your opponent declaring you have a better hand than him.

It all depends on what stakes you play. In micro or low buy-ins this is a bad game when you limp top range because many players like limp too mostly with wide range and in multiway pot you can overplaying underpair when you already far behind.

I think you can do all these moves. A variety of moves makes you a hard player to be read. The opponents will unknow what hand do you have, and that's for me it's one of the most important things you have to have in your kind of play.

neilv93 said:

I see a lot of solid players utilising this play - limping with a big hands like QQ and then 3-betting when someone attempts to squeeze, or even raises with strong holdings.

How do you feel about this play? To me it just screams strength but I think it's good for a few reasons, including getting some added value from hands like 99-QQ that you might want to see a 3-bet flop with. Using this play with JJ and then seeing the AK6 flop that crushes your opponents 3B/call range sucks but taking down the extra 4-5 blinds pre-flop would be great when you don't want to risk a flop.

Equally, I feel like it sets up a decent image for yourself. If you limp/raise with AA and then QQ, for example, get to showdown both times and then limp again, perhaps your table opponents will expect you to be strong, enabling you to try this play lighter in differing circumstances?

Personally, I'm a fan of it and you look to use it sometimes but how do you feel about it?

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Limp 3 betting with a monster is literally NEVER a good play. You're basically turning your hand face up, unless you also balance it with bad hands, which basically no one does. It's a huge sign of a fish.

I tend to vary so that I am not as predictable. You always want someone to call so the bet is worth the payout.

So long as u balance ur limp 3 bet range to include some wekaer hands too I'm ok with it

I use this play in deep stages of tournaments more than cash games