Playing Any Pocket Pair

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jamesponce

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Ok so this may be a newbie strategy but it has worked majority of the time for me in cash games. (some tourny as well) No matter what pocket pair I have, if my position is right (very important), I will push strong hoping to only go heads up or have a few callers. Reason for this is unless someone else has pockets I officially have the best pre-flop hand. Think about all the times you were dealt a good hand but just couldn't pair up and now your forced to fold because someone limped in on a community pot and had the nuts.

Now I generally only do this in high stakes blinds because its not really worth it to only rake in a few bucks if everyone folds. Sometimes you can get lucky and have a lot of callers in lower strakes and still manage to win (if its high pockets) but for the general matter of the this discussion I'm going with the image of having any pocket pair high or low.

Has anyone else used this aggressive strategy? I understand this is very situational as I do fold my pockets depending on my position or the betting that takes place before me, or just generally how the table is playing as a whole. Some say this is amateur play but it hasn't failed me so far.
 
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BomTombadil

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What you're describing works well in tournaments after the blinds and ante's are big and you have a fairly short stack. I'm not a fan of the play when deep stacked though. When I'm deep I like seeing a cheep flop and trying to hit a set. Yes, you'll miss the set most of the time and usually have to fold, but I can sometimes still take down the pot with a bet if no one seems interested in it. The times I do hit a set I can sometimes win a very big pot. To make it worth set-mining you need to have 10 times (at the very minimum) the amount left in your stack that you have to put into the pot to see the flop. If you have less than this then you just don't have enough to make the big wins when you hit the sets pay for all the misses.
 
mamutmamut

mamutmamut

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If I´m at least at descent position I want so see flop with any pocket pairs (except when there is big raiser already in the pot). Like jamesponce said I want to see it cheap! :D From time to time you really hit the set and if you play it right, you go for a big pot most of the time :)
 
RichL

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So how does this play post-flop, with low pairs, when you get one or two callers and miss your set ? Do you cbet it every time ?
 
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ph0n3_j4ck

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It's never good to stick to "one strategy" when you're playing nlhe. You'll be too easy to figure out. Any good player that sees that you're doing that will eat you alive.
 
NateVest

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I agree to playing in position, but I have tossed away ducks happily early in a game. Playing pocket pair is dangerous especially in high stakes, but in moderation and in the right scenario can be beneficial to your game. There are just too many variables not covered in the post like read on opponent, strength and stack of opponent, etc. You could theoretically have deuces on the button every orbit but are you going to jam/shove in that spot every time? Experience will tell you no. The art of poker is being unpredictable and unreadable.
 
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99TERRANCE99

99TERRANCE99

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Sometimes a push and depending how you see the cards falling and whats winning on the table a different strategy,either way cant play any pocket pair the same always cause ppl will read what your upto.
 
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groggy44

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I think it just depends on your table image and the other players.
Those LAGS just aren't going to fold enough to make it profitable for me. To me this is only profitable if you are playing fit or fold players. I'd rather set mine, hit my set and stack off 2 or more players I know that if I have AK or AQ, I'm at least going to see the turn. Especially if I think my top pair will be good.
Often times I'll fold 6s and below from early position. I'll fold JJ and QQ to a 3 or 4 bet.
As long as it's working for you, keep it up
 
midgetfactory

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you should have more than this strategy dude it will work well seldom you need to have more moves in your arsenal
 
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jamesponce

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Yea I have many ways of playing some of which convince other players into thinking the complete opposite approach I take with my hands. Manipulation is my #1 strategy. To me, if I can make you believe all my "stories" then it won't be long until I have your money. I agree with all of you that position is key for this to work but it definitely is an edge on other players. The worst throwing away your pockets only to hit a set off the flop and everyone pushes with barely any good hands.
 
Paragon

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You're still doing a coinflip nonetheless. 56%-43% is not really +EV, and you will be losing a lot of money if you are having a bad run.
 
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