Low Limit No Limit Part 2:
Low Limit No Limit: Playing Against Passive/Timid Opponents

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

There is a lot of very good poker literature out there about how to play tight/aggressive poker in those low limit ring games that are very popular these days. Lee Jones has an excellent book. Lou Kreiger has one. Gary Carson has an excellent book as well. Kreiger and Jones focus on good tight/aggressive play when your opponents are too loose and too wild - as most low limit hold em players tend to be. Carson focuses more on how to exploit the looseness of your opponents in these games by playing drawing hands well. You win money, in these games, by exploiting the tendency of your typical opponent to bet too loosely, making adjustments if they are particularly wild. Your winning edge comes from playing, in general, higher quality hands than your opponents play and knowing which hands have excellent potential in multi-way pots.

I've found that while some of this material is initially helpful to the low limit, no limit hold em player - by giving him an understanding of why certain hands tend to be worth more in the long run than other hands, the path to profit is so different in no limit that this information alone is not nearly enough. In fact, if one follows the suggested guidelines for playable hands that is generally accepted in the standard limit hold em poker literature today - and applies it to these low limit no limit games - well that is a recipe for, if not disaster, then at least sessions that are not nearly as profitable as they could be.

I suggest that one of the first steps you take is to learn to quickly "typecast" your opponents. By this I mean that you define them, very generally, based on their playing habits. This is much more important in no limit than in limit because you have the opportunity to take all of their money in one hand. If you are a quick study and can exploit their weakness readily, you will be able to manipulate them into making enormous, stack-sized mistakes - instead of just limited bet-sized mistakes.

Now I'm not talking about tells - those gestures, expressions or movements that tend to indicate whether a person has a strong or a weak hand. There's a place for that in no limit to be sure, but that's not what I'm talking about here. Rather, I'm talking about your opponent's general style of play.

In these lower level no limit games there are a few distinct player types that are worth looking for. The first and by far the most frequent type of player is the weak/tight player. These are players who are deeply uncomfortable about sitting down in a no limit game. They wouldn't admit this, of course. They think that no limit is exactly what they want to play. But nervous they are - afraid of the possibility of losing everything. They are often (though not always) young, home game players who have watched no limit on TV and have decided to try their luck. They have a limited bankroll, don't want to blow in on one hand, and play very, very weakly.

These players can be spotted almost immediately by their pre-flop play. If they have a hand they gauge to be of medium strength or better before the flop they will call the bring-in - rarely raising. If they do raise, it will be by the amount of the big blind. So if they hold, for example, a pair of sevens in early position and the blinds are $5 and $5 they might call for $5 or maybe even raise by $5. Both are terrible plays in no limit, but they don't understand this at all. They see the game as just an extension of their $1.00 limit home game or a $2/4 limit casino game. So for them it's either customary for everyone with a half way decent hand to just call the bring in or, if they have a pair or stronger, maybe to raise.

Similarly, they play very cautiously on the flop and after. If, for example, the flop is Jh-Js-3c, they will rarely bet unless they have a Jack or two 3s. On the Turn, if they don't have top pair they will check. And if they have top pair they will bet whatever the last bet was. They would only bet a higher amount; usually going all in, if they had Trips. They are transparent in this regard.

These players are easy to exploit. Here are some moves to consider.

First of all, they are prone to being bluffed. For example, if you are in late position and they have called the big blind, if you have a strong hand with some outs, but not a very strong hand, you can often make a bet three or four times the big blind and pick up the pot. While these players may understand the advantage of late position - and the fact that people in late position do sometimes play weaker hands, they wills till be too afraid of your large bet to call. You can't make this move routinely. These players aren't necessarily unobservant - just of limited experience and temerity. But if you are relatively careful in making this play you can use it to your advantage.

Similarly, if they raise by a single big blind and the action comes to you, a reraise often succeeds in getting them to lay down their hand, provided your reraise of large enough. So, for example, if you hold Ah 10h and one of these players from mid-position raises the Big Blind of $5 to $10 let's say, if you make a $30 raise you will often succeed in picking up the pot right there.

One final word about playing these weak tight players. Though these players tend to be timid and tight, don't make the mistake of thinking that they're easy to knock out of the pot on the River. Remember, deep down, these players are bad players. So they don't have the skills that you might have. This is especially true on the River and on the Turn. Where solid opponents would be thinking hard about the hand that you are likely to have based on what you are betting, and respond accordingly, these players really have no clue about your hand. They are responding early in the betting to fear about your raise perhaps - but they aren't thinking critically about what you are likely to hold.

Here's an example of an error in judgment that you might make against these bad players - and how it could cost you serious money. Let's say you hold AsQs. Your opponent calls the big blind for $5. and you raise $20. Your opponent calls. The Flop is Ks, 8s, 2c. Your opponent pauses for a while, seems to be seriously thinking about what to do, and then checks. You have an over card to the flop and the nut flush draw. You figure that a large bet from you might pick up the pot. So you bet. Your opponent pauses again, for a long time, and finally, seemingly reluctantly, calls. You each have about $150 left after these calls.

The turn is a blank - a 4d. Your opponent checks, more quickly than before. You're convinced that he has a pair. But you know him to be weak tight. So you bet $60. He calls.

You each have about $90 left. The River is the 4c, pairing the board. Your opponent checks. What do you do?

It's tempting to think that this rube will fold for an all in bet, since he's generally played so weakly and it's so unlikely that the River helped him. So you might be inclined to go all in on the River, hoping to drive him out. But I've found that this seldom works. While these players are often very reluctant to tangle with a strong player when the pot is initially raised, once they are in they often stay in - as if they've made up their mind with their first call that they're in all the way. Or they may conclude that they've put so much money in the pot that they don't want to lose it. So they call. In any event, I find that it's usually a waste of good money. Your opponent is likely to have a halfway decent hand - a pair of 8s or a pair of Kings with a weak kicker. They played it softly, not to draw you in deceptively, but because they didn't have the stones or the experience to play it as strongly as you might. But once they're in, they're not going to be driven out. So hold off on that final all in bet. In fact, the bet on the flop and the turn were a mistake as well.

I've found that against these weak/tight players, my best move is to make my play pre-flop. If that doesn't work, and if my hand doesn't improve, I tend to check it down, with one exception. If the Board itself starts to look very scary and my opponent doesn't bet it, I do! So if instead of the flop above, the flop was Ks, Kd, 2d and my opponent checked, I would bet $60. His check indicated to me that he didn't have a King. He's going to be afraid that I have one and will likely fold when I bet.

Bear in mind that position is very important. These moves are much simpler when you have position on your weak tight opponent. But it isn't essential. Reverse our position. Let's say I was the big blind and he was the button. He raised $5.00 pre-flop and I made it $20.00. He called. Now the flop comes Ks, Kd, 2d. I'm still inclined to make that bet, presuming without the advantage of seeing his check, that he didn't hold a King. I might make a slight variance from my $60 bet when I had position on him, however. I might bet only $30 or so, figuring that if he doesn't have the King he will fold with anything, but that if he does have a King he'll raise me and I'll fold. No need to risk the full $60 when $30 will do the trick equally as well.

There are other types of bad players in these low limit no limit games. Next time: the wildman!

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