[DoctorK]

It sounds like you're talking abot 2 separate things.

First, when I'm up against one player who raises at every opportunity, I've found that he usually will drive other players out, so when I have a hand, rather than trying to raise or re-raise, I'll just call along. By re-raising, I have found that a lot of other players will tag along on the large pot. Trying to get heads up with him is a good move, because you know that the hands you're playing are better than the ones he's playing.

Now, the second issue is what to do when the majority of the table is loose. I have a hard time with this situation, myself. In 1-5 stud with no ante, there's really no penalty to continuing to play good cards (there's no ante eating your stack). At Foxwoods, however, there's a $0.50 ante, which, compared with the $1 bring in, results in an over-ante situation, and the correct play IS to loosen up a bit. So, perhaps these other players are actually playing more correctly than you. You want to play more hands that will play well against multiple players -- flush and straight draws. Big pairs are still very good hands, but they lose some value vs. 4 or 5 callers who are working on draws. Consider treating 2 pair as a draw to a Full House.

Don't forget that table selection should be part of a winning player's arsenal. If you're feeling uncomfortable playing at a table with that kind of make up, request a table change. Don't get too caught up in the "I must learn how to conquer this type of game" mentality. The object is to make money, and if there's an easier table across the room, you'd be a fool not to move there.

Doc.