quite an odd game

[piratesocrates]

Certainly, the game I've stumbled upon is not the mainstream version of hold'em. It is a scramble between a 2/4 small stakes game and no limit, with 25c small blinds and 50c big. Bets and raises can be made in any 25 cent increment up to $4 at a time. If and when a player desires to, going all in is permissable. So it's either up to $4, or everything you have on the table. And my opponents are agressive and very loose. Very.

But then it gets wierd, and I've had a bit of trouble adapting to this particular variation: the last agressor of each round begins the betting on the next round. So by raising without being reraised before the flop, you open the flop no matter what position you held before it.

Does anyone have advice concerning strategic adjustments for this strange structure? I am also unaware how to adjust to such small blinds in comparrison to $4 bets and raises. Does it require looser play or tighter? Should I hesitate to raise preflop except for with my premium hands (despite the overwhelming looseness of my opponents) just to avoid opening the flop? Any suggestions will be helpful.

[soah]

How deep are the stacks?

[piratesocrates]

Buy ins are $40.00, with multiple rebuys. Tall stacks up to $300, but we all start with $40.

[soah]

I would not raise very often preflop (meaning I wouldn't raise limpers often without a big pair) and I would be more willing to call raises after limping in with borderline hands (don't get carried away). You're more likely to get priced in on draws, especially on the turn, so take that into consideration when selecting your starting hands. If stacks are deep enough that people are rarely going all-in then you could almost treat it like a limit game, except that raising sucks. Actually, the frequency with which people do go all-in is a pretty major consideration when determining your strategy. If people usually stick to the $4 bets then top pair type hands are fine (they can get to showdown relatively cheaply). If people are frequently going all-in then you have the implied odds to draw at more sets and stuff, and you're going to hate facing big decisions with top pair.

[piratesocrates]

Someone will go all in perhaps 1 out of 8 hands. Is there any way I can use the early position gained by raising to my advantage? Perhaps checking from my early position as if I was unsure whether to continue a bluff. I try to determine if there will be raises after me when I have a drawing hand or wish to raise without a monster. Drawing hands usually pay off, so long someone doesn't go all in with two pair. Check raising has so far been profitable, but it mostly just encourages them to avoid me. I've tried to sit directly to the right of the most aggressive player to have late position the relative majority of the time, but I want something more solid. I can't choose my seat or theirs every time. Thanks, I hope there's more to come.