How do you play medium pairs early in a tournament?

Medium pairs being 66 77 88 and 99. Say you are in late position and a player in early position raises for 3x the big blind. Do you call or fold? What about if you are in early position? Do you limp or put in a small raise?

My strategy is to limp with 66 77 or 88 in early position, but raise with 99. If someone raises from early position and I'm in late position with these hands, I will just call. But often times when I call from late position, the raiser has a bigger pair like KK or JJ or 1010, and I can get into some trouble when the flop comes rags like 2 2 5. Is it best just to fold these hands when someone already raised?

ALL IN

i still believe it is best to play those middle pairs all throughout the tourny but be conservative in the very early stagges in the tourny since studies have shown that the first 15 minutes of an online tourny are usually the tightest period. so odds are ull be up agaisnt an over pair or high cards.so play with caution.in the middle of the tourny i think u should raise strong with them to avoid donk plays but always play ur opponent not ur cards

I limp & call up to 5 times big blind 22-99 hoping to hit set.
All else raise 4-5 times big blind works for me real well.

Being that the beginning stages in a tournament are so volitile, calling up to 3x the BB would be advisable in hopes of flopping a set. Otherwise play them soft and don't get too married to the hand if you don't hit. The key here is survival. Many of the players at this stage will draw to any Ace or King since the blinds and bets tend to be cheap.

pantin007 said:

since studies have shown that the first 15 minutes of an online tourny are usually the tightest period

Click to expand...

What study is this?

Oh Yea, there was a big Study. I read it the Journals.

rob5775 said:

What study is this?

Click to expand...

The study he made up to make his post seem credible.

rob5775 said:

What study is this?

Click to expand...

Yeah, I'd like to know too as in my own personal experiece the first stages of an oline tournament are the loosest and the wildest.

vanquish said:

The study he made up to make his post seem credible.

Click to expand...

Well, hell... I do that all the time.

rob5775 said:

Well, hell... I do that all the time.

Click to expand...

According to a study, that's a lie; you never do that.

i just limp. if someone raises, I fold usually. exceptions include if i'm shortstacked or if raiser is shortstacked.

of course, this varies, but definitely don't call too much before the flop

vanquish said:

According to a study, that's a lie; you never do that.

Click to expand...

Well, according to this study I kick ass.

I beleive in limping anything below 1010...in any position....if im in late position ill call a min raise to see the flop.....plaing small or medium pairs is easier than playing 1010 JJ QQ or even KK because if any overs hit its hard to let go to some people and money can be lost....but with small pairs if you dont hit let go just throw them away no worries..understand what im sayin?

According to a study I just saw Vanquish and rob were recently outed by JK Rawlings.

who said 4 players all in preflop isnt tight?

mrsnake3695 said:

According to a study I just saw Vanquish and rob were recently outed by JK Rawlings.

Click to expand...

I read that study in question...seems they were found to be moderators on this site...Gay Magick

Seriously how do you find these sites lol? Did you just search for "gay magic" in google just to make fun of Rob and me?

C+ at best

I never find the begging of tounaments tight, but im playing at a lower level in my experience it tightens up near the bubble, So near the begging i would probally just call the bet as a re-raise will defenatly be called by at least the initial raiser and maybe someone else. Get your money in cheap and hope for a set if you miss it dont put anymore in.

mrsnake3695 said:

According to a study I just saw Vanquish and rob were recently outed by JK Rawlings.

Click to expand...

Mrs. Nake, whose JK Rawlings? Didn't he write the Harry Poter books? Whats that have to do with me kicking ass?

belladonna05 said:

I read that study in question...seems they were found to be moderators on this site...Gay Magick

Click to expand...

I thought belladonna was a drag queen name. Seriously.

vanquish said:

Seriously how do you find these sites lol? Did you just search for "gay magic" in google just to make fun of Rob and me?

C+ at best

Click to expand...

C-... they could google **** way funnier.

Early in a tournament, when blinds are small, you can play small and medium pairs from any position. The intention is to flop a set or fold.

Limp whenever you can or call a small raise. You should never re-raise with these hands or call big raises. This only creates a big pot with a drawing hand and reduces your implied odds. Often a big raise will compoletely kill your odds to draw to a set(roughly 7 to 1 implied odds).

When you have medium pairs, you will sometimes flop an overpair to the board. This is a very dangerous situation becuase you have terrible reverse-implied odds. Here are the problems with an overpair to the board when the pair is not big:

1. Someone may have you crushed with a bigger pair
2. Players with high cards often call bets, especially AK, AQ. They have 6 outs to improve.
3. Your hand is unlikely to improve. You only have 2 outs drawing to a set
4. The lower your overpair, the closer the flop cards are which means there are str8 draws on board. If the blinds are in the hand, it is likely they connected with that flop, either with a draw, or a pair.

These problems are the same you would encounter if you played a garbage hand like A8o and the flop came 8-high. Your objective was to flop a set, not an overpair. So post-flop an overpair should be played very carefully. If you are OOP, it is extremely difficult to play it profitably. If in position, and it is checked to you, you can bet. If there is a small bet, you could call with the intention to fold if there is more pressure. You should definitly not go all-in with a single overpair. It is better to fold a better hand with little chance of improvement, than to go broke with a single small overpair.

In summary, early in a tournament I play medium pairs like small pairs --- with the intention to draw to a set.

Clear and concise as always Cheetah!!! (you going to become my new hero)

As to the rest...studies ?? awe no! more???? I got enough to learn

vanquish said:

Seriously how do you find these sites lol? Did you just search for "gay magic" in google just to make fun of Rob and me?

C+ at best

Click to expand...

well yeah..im lazy and it doesnt take any effort but a few random movements of my fingers...

I thought belladonna was a drag queen name. Seriously. [/quote]

Lol , you been looking for drag queens on youtube...your hole is getting deeper
YouTube - Drag Queen Belladonna as Melissa Etheridge