begging for a suckout

[jaydoggie]

the following situation happens often in low limit nl games.

in the bb with a rag hand that gets a peice of the flop. say bottom pair, medium kicker? so you check and a weak player bets the minimum (20) into a pot of 120. by the time it gets back to you the pot is 200 and 20 to call.

now youre getting 10 to 1 to catch your second pair, or trip up. 47/5. do you risk chips to make a hand?

furthermore imagine you did make this call, and the same situation on the turn. now the weak player bets minimum (20) into a pot of 200 and when it comes back to you, youre getting 15 to 1 on your call.

lets imagine theres no flush draw. and making your second pair wouldnt make a straight? if there are any other factors you consider please address them in reply.

[CrisBrown]

Hiya jay,

I will generally chase draws if: (a) the pot odds are there right now; (b) I won't miss the chips if I have to lay it down later; and, most importantly, (c) I'm drawing at what is likely to be the winning hand.

I won't draw at the bottom end of a straight, or continue to draw at a straight when there are three of a suit or a pair on board, etc. Why spend money to chase a hand that's likely to lose even if you hit it?

I actually don't play implied odds all that much, because in most of the tourneys I play, people won't pay off your obvious draws. I'll play pocket pairs for implied odds, as it's all but impossible to read a set. But for straight or flush draws, I want the odds there up front.

Cris

[jaydoggie]

i understand, but this post regards chasing with a losing hand not hoping to improve into a monster (straight/flush) just to 2 pair or 3 of a kind. do you do it if the pot is giving you the odds.

you partially addressed not missing the chips which would usually cost you another 20 to win 200-400. i dont often chase them but i was just wondering other people opinions.

[CrisBrown]

Hiya Jay,

Yes, if I'm not going to miss the chips, I may call and take off another card. I may also check the turn, with the intent of raising if there's another round of baby bets, even if I've hit nothing. But I won't raise more than I'll miss if I'm reraised and have to muck, and I won't do this if there's a calling station in the pot.

Basically, if there are weak-tight players in the pot, you can play a lot of hands you'd never dare play vs. any other table, simply because you can pick up chips when they fold to your bluffs. You can't do it all the time, but some of the time you'll catch a real hand in the process, and it's a way to mix up your play.

But you do have to pick your opportunities: the right size of pot, the right kind of opponents, the right texture of board, etc. And you have to be willing to lay down if you get pressure.

Cris