Those Darn Limpers

I have played 300 $11 SNGs in the past 2 weeks. I play alot and have a good feel on the "average $11er".

One of the plays I fear most from another player is the limp. The good ol fashion limp. Now, most of the time some-one limps they have a marginal hand they don't want to raise and want to see a cheap flop right?

In most cases that is correct. But late in the game, especially around the bubble (4-5 players), a limp either means:

1) I have nothing, bet me off my hand. I might call a raise in spite and give you my chips.

OR

2) I have a darn monster and I want you to raise all in. I am a genious and I just trapped you, you foolish 2+2er!

Case 2 happened to me 3 times today, and is happening far more often than in the past. 4 handed, I am second short stack, 2nd chip leader limps, I see KQo, I go all in, he calls and shows me QQ and wins.

How do you prevent this?
Are villians getting smarter?
Are they actually watching me play and know that if I have a hand I am all in?
What do you do in the face of a limper if you have a marginal hand, and you only have enugh chips to push (him limping makes the pot look juiceyer to steal and he knows this) or fold?

I am too scared to play a hand on the bubble lately!

[The Don]

It all depends on what you have seen that player do. By the time you are on the bubble you should have a specific read on the player. If you have seen them raise with something like K10 then they are probably limping with a monster. If they almost never raise and consistently limp they probably have a marginal holding. $11 players don't use logic... just because they are limping doesn't mean they aren't willing to call with their marginal hand. That is why I tighten my push range a bit with a limper behind. In general it is right to make the same play you would have if the limper had folded unless you have a read that tells you otherwise.

[lastchance]

Most Villains actually tend to do both. Instead of raising, they'll limp their monsters, and their junk.

So, I don't PVS a lot, but if I get A9 in the BB with one LP limper, a complete, and 7x BB, that's an auto-push.

Sorry but what does PVS mean?

Hey Don,

Insightful post, I am really starting to respect your posts and am your new fan /images/graemlins/smile.gif

Anyhoo, I 4 table the $11s and I usually have about zero reads on anyone. I simply play my cards. Is this bad? How do you pay attention to whats going on at four tables at once?

Thanks