Against a solid player who open-raises from early position or who raises from middle position after another player limps in, I believe it is generally correct to fold pocket nines against a "solid" player. The reason is that a solid player in these situations will almost always have AA, KK, QQ, JJ, TT, AK, AQ, AJ suited, or maybe KQ suited. Against almost half of these hands you are a huge dog. Against the other half, you are a marginal favorite. This makes you a long term money loser in my opinion.


However, very few players are really "solid" by my definition of the term. Most players raise on some weaker hands. Occasionally, an expert like Mason Malmuth will open-raise from early position with a hand like nine-eight suited (See "Hand To Talk About" from last month's postings). Against opponents who play this way, you may be giving up too much by folding pocket nines.


John Feeney's A-Q test was an interesting essay that generated a big thread about a year ago on this forum. I agree with John that against a "solid" player, A-Q should be folded for a raise. However, against most players, I believe you are giving up too much by folding A-Q. I have seen many players raise with A-J offsuit or A-T suited as well as K-J suited and even K-T suited. Against a player like Mason Malmuth who sometimes open-raises from early position with a suited connector in a full tabled game, I would never fold A-Q.