UTG starting hands for loose passive

Early Position - 7, 6 or 5 to the right of the button


Raise: AA, KK, QQ; AKs, AQs; AK, AQ


Call: all other pocket pairs; AJs, ATs, KQs, KJs, KTs, QJs, QTs, JTs, J9s, T9s, T8s, 98s; AJ, KQ


Middle Position - 4 or 3 to the right of the button


Raise: AA, KK, QQ, JJ; AKs, AQs, AJs, KQs; AK, AQ, KQ


Call: all other pocket pairs; ATs, KJs, KTs, QJs, QTs, JTs, J9s, T9s, T8s, 98s; KJ, QJ, AT


Late Position - 2 to the right of the button


Raise: AA, KK, QQ, JJ, TT; AKs, AQs, AJs, ATs, KQs, KJs, KTs, QJs, QTs, JTs; AK, AQ, AJ, AT, KQ, KJ, KT, QJ, QT, JT (= all hands of T and higher)


Late Position - 1 to the right of the button


Raise: All hands consisting of cards that are 9 or higher


Late Position - on the button


Raise: All hands consisting of cards that are 8 or higher; any Ax or Kx


Small Blind


Raise: All hands consisting of cards that are 8 or higher; any Ax or Kx; any pocket pair.


Comments?

There are no hands I would call with 2 to the right of the button because this makes it a lot harder for my opponents to read my hand, and when I get raised, I´d only call with all hands for the same reason. (I´m also aware of the Abdul UTG strategy, but these are my own thoughts.)

Loose passive, so lots of callers, and you raise

with KJ? or K9 hmmm


The whole scheme looks quite a bit off to me.

With KJ I´d start to raise utg to the right of the cutoff (so there can only be a maximum of 4 opponents), with K9 I´d only raise utg from the cutoff (so there can only be a maximum of 3 opponents).


Do you really think that 4 or 3 opponents is "lots of callers"? Just curious.

So you mean open raise ( no one yet called ),

that is ok, but your chart is not very clear.


D.

I think your use of UTG is causing some confusion.


UTG (under the gun) specifically means the position to the left of the big blind. UTG shouldn't be used to describe any other position. It sounds like you're using UTG to describe somebody who is the first to enter the pot regardless of his actual position.


Please clarify what you mean. Are you asking us if your chart is a good guide for making open-raises/calls?

I always thought utg has no fixed position, for example, before the flop, the player to the left of the big blind is under the gun, on the flop, it´s the first player to act for that round, whoever that happens to be, no?


"Are you asking us if your chart is a good guide for making open-raises/calls?"


Yes, this is what I had in mind. I´m especially curious what you 2+2ers think of the always-raise strategy if you open two to the right of the button. You see, when the maximum number of opponents you can have is 4, then it´s short-handed for me, and because high card strength becomes most important in short-handed, but also to make it hard for my opponts to read my hand, I´ve chosen the simple strategy to always open-raise with the hands I play (T/9/8 or better for the respective positions).


8 or more players (= 7 opponents) to me is full-handed, that´s also why I treat "7, 6, or 5 to the right of the button" the same; 7 and 6 players is in between because here you start to have problems playing small pocket pairs, Axs and the smaller suited connectors (these hands you play if there are 8 or more players, and shouldn´t play if there are 5 or less).

for loose-aggressive play and tight-aggressive play??


Sitting Bull

regarding loose-aggressive: It depends if the whole table is crazy (then only play the good stuff like AA, KK, QQ, AKs/o, AQs/o, perhaps a few others) or if there is just one or two maniacs (here you might play more hands in an attempt to isolate them by reraising immediately afterwards before the flop, therefore you should try to get on their immediate left).

Early Position - 7, 6 or 5 to the right of the button


I always raise with JJ and TT. I consider raising with 99 and 88 depending on the game.


Calling with small pairs in early position can be a money loser if the game is tight aggressive. You could end up facing a raise on your left which folds out the other players and leaves you heads-up and out of position with a hand that plays poorly in that spot.


I'd consider dropping J9s and T8s until you gain more experience.


Middle Position - 4 or 3 to the right of the button


You should be open-raising with many more pairs- at least down to 88. Most of your calling hands are also worthy of open-raises.


Late Position


You should be open-raising with all your playable hands. The goal is simply to steal the blinds and move on to the next hand.

your continued posts of various playable hands in different types of games in different positions as a continuing educational tool for reference--Your personal thoughts.

Happy Pokering,

Sitting Bull

Early Position - 7, 6 or 5 to the right of the button


"I always raise with JJ and TT. I consider raising with 99 and 88 depending on the game"


I wouldn´t raise with these hands (except perhaps JJ), because I think you need a set to win (after all we are talking about loose-passive here).


"I'd consider dropping J9s and T8s until you gain more experience."


Yeah, these are marginal hands, so I was not so sure in the beginning whether to play them.


Middle Position - 4 or 3 to the right of the button


"You should be open-raising with many more pairs- at least down to 88. Most of your calling hands are also worthy of open-raises"


And decrease my implied odds? The situation is the same as above, I think: you need a set to win, so I´d just call here and not try to force out callers.

I am a little confused on your definition of loose passive, I consider loose passive with 6 or more players seeing the flop and little preflop raising.


In that situation there aren't many bad cards to start out with if you can live with the deviation.


In what you are descibing, it sounds like a game where the money is being pushed around waiting for the fish to arrive. I would be careful in the hands I played. Of course if your hand standards are working in your game, that's all you need.

If loose/passive means many floppers, no/little pre-flop raising, then Ax suited is a very nice hand, certainly playable in middle position, and possibly (depending on the game), earlier. Kx suited can also be a profitable hand.

The point of open-raising in mid/late position, especailly late position, is usually just to win the blinds. It also has the advantage of being able to win a 2 or 3 handed pot much more easily with and unimporved 77, 88, or 99.

... then Ax suited is a very nice hand, certainly playable in middle position,


Are you talking about playing it when there are already callers or are you talking about open-calling?