Calling Preflop Raises with Pocket Pairs

[jslag]

When is it correct to call a raise with small-to-medium pocket pair (22-88, include 99-JJ if you'd like)? Is it usually more profitable to do this with big stacks? How about if you cover someone?

What sort of preflop odds should be considered? And how about position?

Obviously, this is a great way to take someone's stack when they miss the flop with AA/KK/QQ/JJ/AK/AQ/etc, but you hit a set. Just curious what conditions need to be met for this play to almost always be +EV.

Cheers,

j.

[pfkaok]

I usually use the 5, 10 rule as they say in Ciaffone/Reuben's book... If you have the raiser covered then you should almost always call if its less than 5% of his stack, and you should almost never if its more than 10%. Its just the % of the lesser stack between you and the raiser though, so of course if he's got you covered then it should be in relation to your stack. Between 5 and 10 % you could make a case for either calling or folding, depending on quality of opponent, others in the pot, position, ect...

Btw, they use the same rule in regards to calling with medium suited connectors, but for those its much more important that you have position on the raiser.

[ChipLeader]

Since youre only playing those hands for set value (except MAYBE 99), you have to take your odds of hitting the set and the odds of you getting paid if you do. Youll flop a set with a PP 1 in 8 times. Knowing that, you have to decide how much youre being asked to call and how much he'll play you if you hit. Therefore, size of stack is important (i always make sure they have a full stack i can take).
<font color="black">PP: .50 BB, raised to 2.00 preflop: </font>
Here i call every time because if i hit 1 in 8 times, i will put in 16.00. Assuming that i double up a 25.00 (max buy in stack) that one time, i am up 8.00. Also, the PP alone will hold up often enough to profit and there will usually be 1-2 additional callers, so that 1 time that i do hit, there will be a fluffed pot even if i cant catch a fish. Using this style of logic, you can figure out whether or not its going to be a good call with your PP. Also, 88 and 99 will be overpairs now and then too, which will also win you a pot often. There are always the factors such as position, table aggression, etc, to be considered, but for the most part i play the hand as stated.
Also, 22-99 holds up very often against hands such as AK, AQ, Ajs, etc, so if you can learn to read your oppoenents well enough you wont even need to improve. I have made a lot of money because people play AK very predictably and even though my PP is lower than some of the cards showing, i can pick off a bluffer by recognizing an AK pattern often enough to make a profit. Typical PP AKo play is 2.00 preflop, 4.00 on flop. When i see them almost auto-bet a ragged flop, i will come over the top often and take in a decent pot.

[eyekast]

i think the 5/10 rule is ok ,but i base my decision on how big the raisers stack is..if its nice and juicy i'll give it a shot ,but if he only has a tiny stack why bother ..to me its not worth the risk..even if you hit your set there's no real money to be made ..which is why you play pp to begin with...

[ctide]

[ QUOTE ]
I usually use the 5, 10 rule as they say in Ciaffone/Reuben's book... If you have the raiser covered then you should almost always call if its less than 5% of his stack, and you should almost never if its more than 10%.

[/ QUOTE ]

This does not apply to Party Poker 95% of the time. When was the last time you saw someone bet less than 5% of their stack preflop? In the NL100 game, this requires a preflop raise of $3, this is unheard of. The only time this comes into play is when the stacks get deep (people double up), and generally speaking, these players get more cautious once they build a stack up.

On the Party Poker NL games, you're basically looking for multiway action that totals up to implied odds in the range of 12 to 1 or so (Yes, I understand you're 8 to 1 to hit a set, but you're not paid off fully every time you hit.) 3 way pots generally provide enough odds, and 4 way almost certainly does. I've used that to be my base guideline, and it has worked out fairly successfully. Let it be noted, however, that I loosen up a little with 99-JJ, due to the chance of it being an overpair, and the overpair being good.

[pfkaok]

Well, yeah, the 5% part of it doesn't usually apply, except for a min-raise, but I still don't like to call if its much over 10%, unless its 3-4 way, and by calling I'm either closing the betting or close to it. Don't like to call a $10 raise with 7's at Party $100, only to have another guy come over top for $40.