middle to low pairs

[Bernas]

I am wondering how people play low to middle pocket pairs before the flop in a tournament. I usually limp or call a small raise with anything from 2's to 10's hoping for more people to get involved in the pot. The reason I do this is because I hope to flop a set for a big pot. If I don't flop the set than I muck to the first raise. Is this the right play? I sometimes even do this with J's.

Thanks,
Bernas (itsallb)

[Kurn, son of Mogh]

Depends on when it is in the tournament. Early on, with position (or if the table is playing passively), I'll limp with pairs up to TT. However, when the blinds start getting big, I'll only limp in LP after at least 2 limpers and only then if limping is less than 5% or so of my stack. If those criteria aren't fulfilled, it's all a raise/fold decision.

[Bernas]

So you wouldn't limp with these from early or middle position even early in the tournament? Would you simply just fold them?
Seperate question. How do you play J's? I think I overplay them a lot because I seem to get burned with them a lot. I have started to just treat them like a low pair and hope to flop a set.


Later in the tournament I will usually raise with my middle pair in late position with no raises before me. Otherwise I fold them. I tend to call less and less as the tournament progresses.

[DogFace]

I usually limp in with my small-mid pocket pairs and hope to flop a set. If there has been a pre-flop raise that's more than 5% of the average stack size I will usually muck the hand. The odds of flopping a set are not that good and unless there's only one other man in the pot with you it's just not a good idea to be calling a big raise when you'll probably end up with mid pair.

As for Jacks, there's a few ways I'll play them. Sometimes I'll just limp on or call any reasonable (10% of my stack) pre-flop raises hoping to flop a set. If someone raises more than 10% of my stack I'll make a judgement call. Other times I will raise about 9% of my stack in order to drive out the suited connectors and hands like that. If no over cards flop I will bet out and then see what happens. If over cards flop I will still usually bet out and see what happens.

[Bernas]

Thanks a lot for the replies. I notice both of you taking both your stack size and the average stack size into account. I haven't been doing this and have been folding to any raise preflop. From what I understand reading both of your posts, I should consider calling if the raise is less than 5% of my stack or the average stack (whichever is less).

Thanks again.

[gojacketz]

Deep stacks early, good strategy, if you think you will get paid off if you hit your set. If you won't get paid off on your set, then you are just bleeding chips away.

In no limit, you don't need 5 or 6 opponents to get value from small pairs, you just have to have an aggressive opponent who won't slow down. Small pairs offer you some of your best chances to double up against big pairs, if you get lucky and flop your set.

Later, when the stacks are not deep (and again, a raise is over 10% of your stack), you either reraise your medium pairs or fold them. Pairs lower than 7s lose most of their value when the stacks are smaller compared to the blinds.

It is always best to just muck JJ before the flop, it is inevitable that you will go broke with them (oh wait, that is just me, I went broke with JJ three different tourneys at the WPO in January, haha).

Gojacketz