General question. Push, or just bet the flop?

[SNOWBALL138]

I see a lot of posts on this site that describe a 4 player situation, and it is asked if the SB or button (hero) should push or not.

No one ever posts about the times that they complete from the SB, minibet the flop, and take it down. Is there a reason that this play is completely ignored? Obviously, an all-in bet has more FE than a post flop mini-bet, but it has to work much less often to be profitable.

The common refutation to minibetting the flop from the SB is "it looks weak, and encourages villain to push".

I don't see how that refutation is anywhere near universally true at all. Doesn't mixing up you steals work to your advantage by keeping your opponents guessing? Is pushing/folding the only way to play against opponents on the bubble?

[BradleyT]

When I'm in the BB the SB never gets to see a flop for 1/2 a bet when we're on the bubble. However if he pushes, I'm folding a large portion of hands that I would have raised him with and calling with very few hands.

[Meatmaw]

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When I'm in the BB the SB never gets to see a flop for 1/2 a bet when we're on the bubble.

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Does that mean you always raise or push when SB calls? How is this not an invitation for SB to call and reraise his premium hands?

[Phil Van Sexton]

You are correct that this is a reasonable play against non-aggressive opponents if you use it occasionally.

Why does no one ever talk about this? Well, when someone asks a question about a hand in the SB, I'm going to respond "push". Maybe I should reply "push 95% of the time, call 5%" or something like that, but then I'd have to talk about reads and stuff.

It's simpler just to give the answer that is almost always correct, and not confuse things by saying "you could mix it up and call".

I'll suggest the best play IMO, and let you decide when it is correct to vary your play.

Also, a lot of posters that you respect are playing the higher limits. These games are more aggressive, so these kind of plays are less effective.

[BradleyT]

It really depends on our stack sizes as to whether I prefer a 3-5BB raise or a push. The bigger the stacks the less likely the push.