Question on strategy.. How do you deal

[twizzybop]

With someone who won't raise pre-flop with a top 10 hand..

Watched them twice just call with A,K JJ's and 10's but called an all-in bet with ace,2 unsuited.

Noted them down as such.. but how do you deal with someone who just doesn't pre-flop raise any top 10 pre-flop hand?

Yet also noted them as they do over value Kings and Aces.. Played alot of those with crap kickers.

This person also is a calling station.. cause if the rag kicker puts them on a pair. They hope the king, ace will come or trips.

Basically how would you play against a person like this?
You can't walk on egg shells and you can't over power them with a strong bet. I've dealt with a quite a few diffrent opponents but this one is actually very new to me.

 

[diabloblanco]

Sounds like a pretty crappy all around player...loose/passive which is terrible. If the problem with them not raising is your inability to place them on a hand you're just going to have to treat them like you do a tight passive player and assume that they have a good hand. Tighten up and play them aggresive. Bet your big hands very strong and try ensure that at showdown he/she only sees you show down big hands. You also want to take into consideration that whomever this is, is chasing draws and calling down bets to the river with bottom or second pair as well as playing Ace-rag and K-K the same. You absolutely can't bluff someone who won't fold and this person sounds like that kind of player. Never raising or folding, constantly calling bets and chasing draws to the river. This kind of play can be extremely annoying, but is fairly easy to combat by simply playing good solid TAG poker and not letting this persons' strategy knock you off of your game.
You're basically going to be playing "showdown" poker with this individual and as such have to be able to make sure you have the best hand when you do go to the river with them. When they're chasing gutshots and backdoor flushes you have to make sure you have the best hand at the river and make sure his draw didn't make it. The upside of playing this type of player is that they will call with anything, so when you do have pocket Aces or Kings and hit your set on the river, you can extract tons of chips from them. Same scenario with flopping the nut straight or flush, you can bet the hand with each street and extract a ton of chips from this player.

 

[Grumbledook]

diablo hit the nail on the head there, show down the better hands and don't bluff them

 

[twizzybop]

Yeah I found out once that I got hit by this person.. Had A,J on the button..Person was in mid position.. called of course.. I just called myself this time.. Flop comes J,4,8 rainbow.. no big deal.. I said what the heck.. went all-in.. they had Pocket JJ's..

No matter what though.. if I did a strong bet.. they would have called.. all the way down.. but thank you diablo .. now I know how to deal with someone that passive..

I've always wondered why though.. why someone won't bet a strong hand pre-flop.. I figure you have strength in your hand pre-flop.. bet it, don't be afraid. Yeah there are circumstances when you don't need to.. Like everyone folding to the Blinds and you hold KK's or AA's in the blinds especially the SB..

Just baffles me when people won't show strength.

 

[titans4ever]

Some people just don't know better and others are scared to death to be the one to put chips in the middle first. I know it sounds stupid but that is what one told me after a game. She said, "I have seen those hands get beat and I don't like to put alot of money out there. I like it when someone else bets first." I did not understand it at first but it is how she played and how she justified her play.

 

[Dorkus Malorkus]

Just value bet them to death and don't bluff - you might run into a premium pair at some point, but if he's a calling station he's more likely to be calling with weak hands - AA-TT doesn't come around that often. Feel free to check down and see a cheap showdown with weak hands (bottom pair and thereabouts).

 

[twizzybop]

Always count on your Dorkus no matter what Not that I couldn't count on everyone else.. but you know people's styles, reads and what nots.

 

[diabloblanco]

Dorkus, your advice on not being shy to check down hands that are shameful to take to the river such as middle pair or bottom set is good for picking up small pots here and there, but the ones you pick up probably only equalize when you consider the ones you lose by showing down hands like bottom pair, etc. when the calling station wakes up with a hand himself. The whole problem she was having was not being able to put the guy on a hand because he never raised anything and was subject to call any bet with crap cards. She can't necesarily make the correct determination as to whether to bet or check it down if she has no read on the opposition, which is why she should play a tight aggressive game and not allow someone playing an unorthodox style to get her out of her own strategy. She most certainly can't go wrong by playing a fairly tight game and being aggressive when she has a hand.

As long as the other player isn't betting into her at all and is strictly calling all of her bets she should simply make her bet size relative to the strength of her hand and the texture of the board. Unless she's in the blinds and already has chips in the middle, I see no reason to get involved at all without a decent hand.

 

[trentonlf]

There are times i will not raise a top ten hand preflop myself, depends on the situation. If im in late position or in blind on blind battle i will sometimes slow play a big hand to extract more chips. Sometimes this bites me in the ass when i get drawn out on, but ive gained more than lost when ive done this.

g/l

 

[diabloblanco]

Trentonlf, slowplaying is a totally different situation from being a loose-passive player who doent raise anything regardless of position. Also, I'm sure since you've been a CC member for a while you aren't a calling station...if you are, go to the articles section and start there for help.

 

[trentonlf]

LOL calling station not me, just pointing out that there are times when you might see someone not raise a top ten hand when you should usually expect them too.


g/l