Play in the small blind

[esbesb]

Hi, I am new to this site and this is my first post. I have a question that I’ve had for some time and I can’t seem to find a good answer in the books. Here it is: Assuming an unraised pot, how good does your hand have to be to complete the bet if you’re in the small blind. I know the answer depends in part on the number of players. But in general, it seems like a player’s starting hands can be quite a bit more loose when playing in the small blind (again, assuming an unraised pot). For example, can a hand like 8J offsuit that one might never play in early or mid position be played in the small blind if there are three or four callers before you? For one thing, it costs only half a bet. For another, in the small blind you have already seen the action of all but the big blind and you pretty much know that you will not be raised. I know that a hand like 8J offsuit is probably going to be a preflop underdog to the callers before you, but is that offset by the fact that you are seeing the flop cheap? What about a hand like 7T or K5suited, etc.? I guess my question boils down to this: How much is a marginal starting hand offset by the fact that it only costs you half a bet?

Thanks for your input!

[BugsBunny]

Without getting into specifics - the fact that you're playing for 1/2 a small bet makes a huge difference in the hands that can be played. You should be playing looser (in terms of preflop hand selection) from the small blind then from any other position. J8o is definitely playable (as is J7). *Any* 2 suited are playable (there's some people that may argue this one - but I stand by this). Any A is usually playable (unless it's a family pot).

If you're playing in a situation where you only have to pay 1/3 or 1/4 of a SB to play (mini-blinds or some uneven structures) then literally any 2 cards become playable out of the SB (yes, including 72o).

Now it's true that what hands you should play is also dependent on how good your postflop play is. If you're going to get yourself in trouble playing marginal hands then you're probably better of not playing them until your postflop play improves - but even then the range of hands that you can play out of the SB is greater than any other position.

[esbesb]

Thank you for the feedback. This is sort of what i suspected. Do others agree?

[bwana devil]

“You can call w/ any reasonable hand: any two suited cards, any connectors down to about 54o, any Ace, any King. Still, throw away the trash such as J2 and T4.” WLLH p50. by Jones