Low Limit No Limit Part 6:
Playing Medium and Low Pairs

BY: Ashley Adams
Contact at: (Asha34@aol.com)
Author of Winning 7-Card Stud

If you've read the standard books for good low limit play - Lou Krieger's Hold Em Excellence or Lee Jones' Winning Low Limit Hold Em you'll learn to toss those low and medium pairs when you're in early position. Pair of 7s under the gun? Fold. Pair of 5s? Fold. Pair of 8s - pause and then probably fold. Pair of 2s, fold without pausing. Middle position you'd probably call an unraised pot with the lower end and raise with the upper end of those pairs. And late position, in an unraised pot you'd surely play, mostly raising with the upper tier of those middle pairs like 8s and 9s and calling with the rest.. But if the pot is raised in early position, so these solid authors suggest, you should fold that low or medium pair even in late position.

But they're writing principally about low limit hold em. Let's talk about the typical low limit no limit hold em game and see how it's different. In these games players tend to exhibit two traits. They tend to play weak-tight and they tend to overplay their hands. Not all of them fall into these traps of bad play of course. Some are strong, appropriately aggressive, deceptive players. But most of them aren't. And, if you're observant you can probably figure out who is whom.

Against the weakies, the rules for limit hold em clearly don't apply - especially when it comes to these low and medium pairs. Played correctly they will win you money - sometimes a lot of money.

Let's look at the weak players. They're not stupid, for the most part. They just suffer from the disease that many younger and inexperienced players suffer from. They inflate the value of the little they know about playing poker. They believe that the one or two books they've read makes them a good player. Specifically, they know the importance of playing big cards - and playing them aggressively. But that's just about all they know.

They don't know about reading other players, at least they don't do it very well or pay much attention to it. And they don't appreciate the power of the nuts - or the possibility that someone else has the nuts - or even the "near nuts". They don't understand the critical nature of relativity in big bet poker. They think in terms of good hands and bad hands, not relatively good hands and relatively bad hands. They don't have the self control, for the most part, to lay down a strong pre-flop hand that has improved on the flop. And they often don't understand the significant difference between the betting in a limit game and the betting in a no limit or pot limit game, letting their opponents draw too cheaply by not raising enough when they have strong pre-flop hands.

Here are some examples of how that plays out and how you can take advantage of it with low and medium pairs. These are the type of opponents who will raise, at least a small amount, pre-flop with a big Ace like A-Q. They will surely raise with a large pair like Jacks. If the flop hits them well, or if it doesn't appear to hit anyone else well, they will frequently bet it. But since they won't really be thinking about what you could have, they won't respond appropriately, most of the time to your action. So they'll bet large if the flop hits their A-Q with an Ace. And they absolutely will never back down to any raise if they hit A-Q. Similarly, if they have Jacks and then a flop lower than Jacks hits, they will also bet strongly. And they'll have a hard time backing down to any return fire.

So here's what I suggest you do against these types of players. Play those low pairs from any position for the big blind or even a modest raise. Players in these games often raise by just double the big blind (normally a mistake). You should take advantage of their timidity and call cheaply if you can. Obviously, you need to consider the circumstances. If there's a wildman after you who often raises by a lot, this play may not work. But against typical timid and weak players or players who are likely to overplay their hands after the flop but bet mutely before the flop, call with any pair from any position.

When the flop gives you trips, if someone bets in front of you raise - three times their bet or so. If they flopped top pair and especially if they flopped two pair they may well reraise you. Put them all in at this point and expect to win their stack. (Now if they flopped a higher set than yours, well you're S.O.O.L. But as many pros have pointed out before me - if you don't lose your stack when you flop trips then you're not playing them correctly). Be more cautious if the flop is all suited of course or if there are three consecutive high cards.

If there is no bet to you and you have a relatively tight image, sometimes make a modest stab at the pot if you're against weak players who tend to call pre-flop with many hands but who also tend to fold if they don't improve. This works better from late position of course, but you can also try it from early position - again if you're against the timid weak players and if your image is tight. If they play back at you, fold.

There's one final play that you might want to try against some of the trickier, better, tight-aggressive players - especially if you have a tight image yourself. If the flop is all medium and low cards, like 10 6-5 rainbow for example, and you hold a pair of 7s let's say, check the hand.into a modest pre-flop raiser. Let him initiate the betting. Assuming other players fold after he bets, when the action gets to you make a modest raise of about double his bet. For example, if you're playing $1/2 blinds and, pre-flop you called the $2 with your 7s in early position and then the next player, relatively tight and aggressive, raised to $6.00 and there were two or three callers - call that raise. If the flop is 10-6-5, check your 7s. If the tight-aggressive player comes out and bets $10 or so post flop and the next player folds and the action is to you, raise him to $30 or $40. Expect him to fold much of the time. He was raising pre-flop with A-Q or something like that - maybe even a pocket pair. He bet after the flop even though he didn't hit, hoping to take the hand - but not really having enough stones to make a major bet. Your check-raise will convince him that you are loaded. . Unless he really has a strong hand like Aces or Kings (in which case he probably would have bet much more strong pre-flop) he will fold out of fear of losing his whole stack.

This play also works, by the way, when flop is a medium or low pair that doesn't hit you. Your opponents who generally play high cards may bet this if you check. But when you come over the top they will be convinced that you hit trips and they will fold. It's a risky play against a tricky player who slowplays before the flop and on the flop. So you've got to pick your spots against these straightforward, weak-tight opponents who seem to populate the low limit no limit games found in homes and casinos across America these days. But picking your spots is exactly what you should be learning to do in these types of games if you want to be a winning player.

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