$100NL 1/2 cardroom SUPER LAG

Last night, I played 1/2 NL in a cardroom. 10% rake up to $5, min. buyin $40, max. buyin $100.

Anyway, I am mostly curious about my style of play in this particular game and what you guys think would be the best style to maximize profit.

Early on, action was insane. One guy called a $65 all-in with 53s. Another guy called a $25 preflop OOP raise with JT. You get the idea. As the game went on, the action settled a little bit with $12-$20 preflop raises being standard and usually 3-4 limpers per pot.

Some of the guys in this game were calling [censored] down with middle or bottom pair with horrible kickers. One guy called half his stack with A2 hoping to catch an ace on the turn or river. There was a raise, reraise, and an all-in and the next guy to act was SERIOUSLY conflicted about whether or not to play QJo.

I've never actually seen a game this soft or loose before. So I played really tight. My cards were pretty [censored] for about four hours so I didn't any chances to really play but I was wondering what you guys think is the best strategy in a game like this.

I hoped to wait for good cards like AA, KK, QQ, AKs, AK, AQs, and AQ and a few others if circumstances were good. Since my cards were super cold all night, I only got three of those hands in six hours. Is it correct to open up my play a little more? Calling $12 preflop raises with ATs, KTs, KJs, QJs and [censored] like that?

I was more afraid of playing hands that could easily be dominated but after reflecting on the game, these people would call to the end with such trash that I wonder if it would still be profitable.

Ideas? Thanks in advance and sorry for the long post.

[Pocket77s]

This sounds exactly like the NL game I play at in my local card room. Everything you say here happens EXACTLY the way it happens in my game. Anyway, here is my tought. I've been in this situation before and above everything patients is a virtue. If you start loosening up your starting hand requirements, then you would be playing just like everybody else.

What you want to do is to keep playing tight and catch good cards. If the flop hits you you want these guys to pay you off with 2d best hands. It works everytime. Ex: you have AK with a TPTK hand and someone calling you down with A7o. Granted they don't hit their 3 outter, they will pay you off nicley. Some nights you are going to only grind out about 20 bucks or so but you will beat the game in the long run.

Also, try to play more suited connectors in MP and LP and even try to see a flop with ANY pocket pair. You are going to miss most of the time but when you do hit, you WILL get paid. Good luck! (I'm guessing there are a lot of family pots)

[666shooter]

I tend to play the same (really tight) with a bunch of these guys. I know they will pay me off when I do get a hand so I will wait until then. I get pretty bored playing this way but the big payoffs compensate for the lack of action.

[Pocket77s]

[ QUOTE ]
I get pretty bored playing this way but the big payoffs compensate for the lack of action.

[/ QUOTE ]

Hours of boredom followed by minutes of intensity.

[666shooter]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
I get pretty bored playing this way but the big payoffs compensate for the lack of action.

[/ QUOTE ]

Hours of boredom followed by minutes of intensity.

[/ QUOTE ]

The funny thing is you could fall out your chair after looking at the first hand you are about to play in two hours while muttering "stupid pocket aces" with beads of sweat popping out of your forehead and still get callers.

I just don't get these guys, sure they are there to have fun but since when does losing all your money constitute a good time...

[Pocket77s]

Dude! You should have been at the table I was at this past weekend, Phil Hellmuth would have had a heart attack, got up and have another one right there. This guy called a preflop raise, I went all in (hoping to isolate the raiser) and he still called a $30 dollar bet, he had 78o and prayed to hit his gutshot draw on the board against AKo and QQ.

[orange]

I think a solid TAG-like play works very well in these circumstances. With only 50BBs, don't fold TPTK ever, and try to get a big stack early so you can stack the other big-stacked maniacs.

Definitely value bet anything (pair/2pair/set/etc) and keep betting- these morons will call with anything. Move of honor works well too.

With only 50BBs, I don't think QJs, etc should be played. Nor should SCs and such either- with shallow stacks, speculative hands like these only dwindle your stack further. (There are, of course, circumstances in which playing these hands are fine, but for the most part, you should be folding many of these hands IMO).

[Pocket77s]

Well if you only bring one buy in that night I can see folding speculative hands but if this is the type of game I think it is where you have 7+ people seen the flop and calling with anything, wouldn't you want to play more SC in positon? I guess it also deponds on how aggressive it is. If the minumum raise is 5BB over 50% of the time, then yes, just wait for premium hands, you would pay too much to try to catch a flop with SC or other speculative hands.

[Pocket77s]

these guys just make so much money, they have to find something to do with it.

Yeah, these thoughts are describing my play pretty much dead on. I played for six hours and didn't get very good cards but I played very patiently. In order to mix it up a little, I saw some cheaper flops in LP with speculative hands. Nothing really panned out but I still think it was correct. If nothing else, it was cheap and it showed the guys at the table that I wasn't folding EVERY hand.

It's funny that I got AA six hours in after I had been beaten down to $25. At least I got maximum value and doubled.

Do you guys know if there are NL games like this in many casino poker rooms? I live in a big city near a few poker rooms but I drove about 2 hours to this game to hang out with a friend who goes to school there. But this game was so juicy that I'd make the drive again. If I didn't have to, I'd stick around the city and play the same style.

[xorbie]

i dont understand.. people paying off bets with a high? i would for sure be playing any two broadway here.

So you think loosening up a little bit is a good strategy here? My biggest concern was costing myself a lot while being outkicked but I guess that would be offset by all the payoffs with garbage.

By the way, I'm a U of I fan. My sister is a senior there.