Raising with small pocket pairs

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Tricky123bet

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I googled "opening hand ranges full ring" yesterday. I found a .pdf with two charts, one "semi-loose starting hand chart" and one "tight starting hand chart".

Even the semi-loose chart suggest open raising UTG with every single PP, all the way down from pocket deuces and up. I know you want to raise them because you can flop sets and such, and I always open raise them when I'm IP, but in my experience I have to fold them way too much postflop when i raise with 44 UTG and get called by 2 players. You have a positional disadvantage and it's hard to play them postflop when you have 2 callers behind.

Is the value of flopping sets simply so great that it outweighs all the downsides of playing PPs in all positions, or what is the reason for this? :confused:
 
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braveslice

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Most of that comes from fold equity, so opening all pairs is not something you want to do in tables happy to call. If you play with lose image, you kinda have to play them because there aren't really better hands to fill you VPIP. Most charts I have seen for 6max for micros usually start from 66 UTG, so opening pairs full ring tables UTG sounds quite funny.

It's possible though that those charts are quite old and made on period when players were happy to play stacks with top pair type hand and fold to cbet. If you are on the table full of calling and happy to play stacks like that, then opening for set equity is not bad plan.
 
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paulsmall007

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If the blinds are low enough to raise with small pairs why not, but wouldn't get to risky in multi way pots with just any pair put there. U miss on the flop someone is continuation betting and ur just getting outs the way, gotta think about what happens if I miss and not just if u hit. Slow down and think it out if it's worth it, of course if your 4-5 to 1 then it's easy
 
George Lewis

George Lewis

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Nobody knows for sure what you have when you raise UTG for example. So you raise with 44 and get two callers and the flop is 2 suited with an Ace. You can c-bet or check raise and these other players must consider whether or not you have an Ace or some other reasonable hand. You will be contesting 70 plus percent of these flops once you open so you may as well do so here. If you are planning to check fold without hitting a set then do not play these small pairs in early position as they will be a loser for you in the long run.
 
Bogdan Pyts

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44 utg easy fold on full ring table.
usually small pocket pairs playing for set mining on a flop.
not hit in set - easy fold.
 
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chronical

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UTG - ~88+is a raise, everyrthing else? fold You will loose money in the long run !BUT you should consider the table. If you have "staions" full limping is 'key since you can see flop (?set) for basically free
BU - raise basicaly anything 55+
BB - check with anything <66

t\raiong every prai from UTG is too lose for my taste. Any over card scares the hell out of you... so whats the point? hopping for a set every pair?
 
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651crusher

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I am a loose aggressive player I love to three bet with any pair and be the aggressor so that way I have the initiative to take the pot and if I do flop a set I play For stacks - small pairs are the most Valuable part of my game. Many times I will 3 bet less with AQ AK than with 22 33 etc

Small pairs are my favorite starting hands in full ring games. When u hit your set in a 3 bet pot with low cards on the board most of the time overpairs will overplay at small stakes and when I look at which hands I'm getting the most money from its these situations that I get to stack someone. .05-.10 .10 .25 stakes... when you move up to .50 1.00 stakes the players are more cautious and it's harder to get value from them.

I know many players are limping or making a min raise utg or early position trying to sneak in there cheap to set mine so I will occasionally make a large squeeze bet then steal the pot on the flop with a 3/4 pot size bet. It's almost always a small pair that has to fold after limp calling or min raise call to 3 bet on the flop so to disguise your small pairs I suggest playing them just like any other big hand from early position because it's too obvious to try and sneak in cheaply w them
 
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Sidetracked

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Yes, the value of flopping sets is that high.
 
1HotPepperIV

1HotPepperIV

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Raising small pairs?

Someone once told me if I can call I can raise.
My thoughts on small pairs aren't to hit a set.
It's to get as many out of the hand pre-flop.
Then, chips available, I can raise the flop in position
and eliminate others who didn't hit the flop or have a
pp.
Now i'ts about the player, position and chip stack for me.
I won't start a pot with a low pair when a bunch of limpers
are ahead of me. Just to many out there to risk my stack.
I also keep in mind that 22 beats the heck out of AK in
many situations...IMO, a little humor keeps me sane.
I see AA get busted so many times it's scary.
I do have a silly obsesson with 6 9 suted but it works for me.
Agression works for me more than not.
 
Edubb78

Edubb78

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Every game is different. Look at how you want your table image looked at. Maybe not raise preflop in any position. Just get a feel of how the cards are coming out???? But you always gotta get a feel of who's who at every table.
 
AntonEast

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I usually only play pocketpairs from 55 and up when I play 6-max, but of course it all depends on your table image and the whole situation.
 
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bkr3026

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Low pocket pairs, really don't matter to me. I use them as almost a surprise factor for catching sets. I rarely try to raise preflop with low pocket pairs. They can get you into trouble alot of times. I'd say take it easy with them and if you are close to being knocked out, then use them as an all in approach but not all in a regular playing manner
 
Aces2w1n

Aces2w1n

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remove other starting hands and add baby pairs if you want to keep a tight image
 
antonis32123

antonis32123

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Pocket pairs is sth that troubles me as well . For the time being , from UTG , I would raise only 99+ ,at least when the blinds are low or on the mid level . Now , I'm working on what position to play effectively what pairs , I want to stop limping mid and low pairs from MP LP and start raising more . The charts... There are many charts , I think most suggest very aggressive play with PP , maybe it's for late tournament play ???
 
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ksidrew

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Raising is better than limping. You can just win the blinds immediately. You build a pot for when you do flop a set. You thin the field so that you can win the pot with a continuation bet.
 
fly2tsky

fly2tsky

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33 55 are scary pairs to any of your villains. They would not be able to read that when you hit the flop and so on.
 
firstcrack

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Playing sm pocket pairs is no different than large, in some respects. It's about trusting yourself in tough situations. As a general rule, I do prefer to raise whether I have a small pocket pair or a large. For small pocket pairs, a raise gives you a chance to win the pot outright, or, and more commonly, to represent a different hand post flop (not just an Ace). For large pocket pairs, I am protecting my hand pre-flop, and again, keeping my options open post-flop in terms of representing a different hand. Now, here is the key, in either case you must trust yourself post flop. If I have a plus thirty BB chip stack, I am going to do my darndest to not get pot committed with either a small or big pocket pair. I know that I have proven ability to lay down a large pocket pair when the situation dictates it, pre or post flop. So, I look at my chip stack, the situation in the tournament, the other players at the table and make my decisions pre-flop on where I need to be. Finally, I do not let 'results poker' influence my play in subsequent hands. Now, am I perfect? Of course, not, but as a rule I do have the confidence that I have seen many, many hands and I have had decent results in my style of play. That is what I hang my hat on in the tough spots. (All thoughts here are IMHO, I do not have an exaggerated opinion of my abilities. I have just found a style that I am happy and reasonably confident with--and the fun is that there are always finishing touches that I can put on my game to improve.)
 
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the0

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I play 22-AA for a raise that is the same for all these pairs from any position. The effect of position is overrated these days in poker and on flop, turn and river play.
 
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skaterick

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I hope theo is talking about 6 max ring games ! In tourneys , after about 5 levels , when the stacks are not usually very deep , playing tiny pocket pairs up front at 9 or 10 handed tables sounds like a leak to me . I'd have the same worry at full ring , unless my opponents were very weak and or easily readable .
 
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stokedog4

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As always : It depends. If you are playing 6h or Full ring. If you can outplay the sb and bb if they call - if their fold to Continuation bet % is high then I think it's okay to raise utg (6handed) with any pocket pair.
If it's full ring, I'm opening 66+ for a raise unless my table has been 3betting a lot. You have to keep in mind that most utg raises get a lot respect (if you have thinking players) and usually you take down the pot.

stoke
 
CriesuaID

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I usually:

1.Check/Pay to see, if it isn't too expensive.
2. Allin (If it is in a Tournament and I have 0-2 (maybe 3) Big Blinds.
 
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Tsyphon

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I usually:

1.Check/Pay to see, if it isn't too expensive.
2. Allin (If it is in a Tournament and I have 0-2 (maybe 3) Big Blinds.

I agree. I feel it out / low cost set mine with pairs lower than 99, but I play low BB cash games with friends / strangers mainly. If the price is right I don't mind, and hitting the set with no danger allows some trap plays.
 
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adboy42

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don't like raise with 7 pair or less, even if i'm UTG
 
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SerZhadanov

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Pocket pairs, regardless of rank are coveted by many poker players. After all, statistically you only can expect to get them once in every seventeen deals. That being said, when misplayed, they can become real chip burners.

The most critical element of playing small pocket pairs is position. Let’s define small pocket pairs as pocket sevens or lower and poor position from under the gun to middle position. So, even though any pair can look good… these small pocket pairs, which normally need improvement to prevail in a showdown, need to be approached with caution.
 
Bogdan Pyts

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With very short stack - push.
In position hj-co-bu-sb raise.
In utg small pocket pairs better fold
 
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