Toward A Basic Strategy For
Low Limit No Limit Hold Em:
Pre-Flop Late Position

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

LATE-POSITION - NO ONE HAS CALLED THE BIG BLIND

Late position is the nine and ten seat - known also as the "cutoff" and the "button", respectively. These are the most advantageous seats because, on all rounds of betting, you get to see everyone's action before you have to act. You also have the advantage of having only the small and big blind who can raise you after you call. Accordingly, I will increase the hands that I'll play. And, though I don't broadly increase the hands I raise with, I do add a few hands to that list as well.

As in Middle Position, when all of the players have folded to the Big Blind, I will raise with any pair. I will raise with Ace King suited or unsuited. I will also re-raise with Ace Queen and Ace Jack and Ace Ten, whether or not they're suited. I want to make sure to knock out the Button if I am the Cut off. And I want to freeze earlier hands after the flop into checking, fearing my raise if they bet. This often will give me the advantage after the flop of either getting a free card, if I elect to check behind them, or possibly winning the pot on a bluff if I bet and they fold.

If my raise is itself reraised then I will fold all of my hands except for Aces, Kings, Queens, and Ace-King. I will fold Jacks and lower pairs. I will fold my Ace-Queen, Ace-Jack and Ace Ten. My experience is that these low limit players tend to have Ace-King or Premium Pairs when they make this move. I'd rather concede my smaller pairs and my weaker Aces before the flop for a large bet. Again, there will be exceptions that I'll be able to exploit eventually. But for now, my advice is to take the safer route.

I call with hands as low as 7-8 suited or 10-9 unsuited and with Ace-x suited. I'm playing to hit a great flop. But I still want to be more selective than playing random hands or hands that will trap me with a second best hand. From my experience, low suited connectors or middle one or two-gappers will often cost me a stack even if I hit ' making me a lower flush, lower straight, or pair, lower kicker than my opponents. I'd just as soon not play them at all.

If I'm the cutoff and my call is raised by the button by three times the Big Blind or more then I tend to assume that he's trying to buy the button himself with a medium pair or Ace Big. I'll call with any hand that is at least a pair or Ace King, but I'll fold everything else. If my call in the cutoff or the button is raised by the small or big blind I'll assume a similarly large hand ' and I'll fold and call accordingly.

If the raise is just a small one however, say just the amount of the Big Blind, then I'll call with my hand ' since it will be so cheap and my implied odds for hitting my hand will be so great. Essentially, I ignore small raises and just call again as if they were the Big Blind.

LATE-POSITION - CALLER IN FRONT

With a caller in front of me I am still going to raise with any pair and with Ace-King and Ace-Queen. But I'm going to raise by a slightly larger amount than if there had been no caller in front. If, for example, one player calls the $2 Big Blind then I'll raise by $8 (instead of $6)' four times the big blind, making it $10 to go. I want to increase the disincentive for calling to counteract the increased pot odds. I am still going to call with the same hands I'd call with if everyone had folded to me.

LATE-POSITION - RAISER IN FRONT

With a serious raiser of three times the Big Blind or more ' I'm going to fold with all of my hands except Premium Pairs and Ace King. A lot of these players will raise whenever they have a hand that looks "good". They'll raise with Ace-ten from any position. They'll raise even with K-J suited and other hands like that. So if I call with my Premium hands I will be in very good position after the Flop. I don't want to guess how strong they really are. I just want to play my strongest hands and see the flop, where I'll plan to outplay them.

If the hand is raised and re-raised then I'm out of the hand unless I have Aces or Kings. With Aces I'll re-raise all in. With Kings I'll call. If the initial raiser re-raises HIS re-raiser, then I'll assume he has Aces and I'll fold. True, sometimes these wild players will do this with anything, but I'd rather play it safe until I have a better read on the game. Similarly, if the pot is raised, re-raised and re-reraised then I'll assume Aces and fold any hand BUT Aces, in which case I'll go all in.

Next: Playing the Blinds Pre-Flop

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