3 betting with 22-66 at higher limits

[NMcNasty]

a) Its a marginal play which can very easily be misused. Three-betting with 22 against a 2+2er who raised UTG I believe is slightly -EV.

b) Its a winner against mediocre and bad players. It doesn't really matter if they are loose or tight. Against tight players your flop semi-bluff is more likely to win the pot than it will against loose players. Against loose players you are less likely to be dominated and will win more when you hit your set. What matters is that you know your opponent, since you are very likely to have difficult decisions to make. The river is usually your toughest decision since you will frequently have to decide between betting for value, betting to bluff, or just checking. If you don't know if your opponent is the type of player to call down with unimproved AQ or fold TT with an A on the board, you probably shouldn't play your pair at all.

Mainstream poker theory looks at pocket pairs solely from a domination perspective. It basically says that they dominate you anywhere from a fourth of the time to half of the time, you dominate them almost never, and its a coinflip the rest of the time so there is almost no reason to play the hand. There are several factors however that bring what looks like a clear -EV play into the slightly +EV range:
1. You have position
2. If you make this play you either have a read on or are slightly better than your opponents
3. Your play has some advertising value without necessarily being a -EV play. Some people think three betting with 22 is the equivalent of 3 betting with T9s or A9.
4. Its not exactly a coinflip when your opponent has overcards, you are usually a slight favorite.
5. You're playing the hand aggressively which has advantages in itself.

C) There's no way to punish people who make this play. Your opponents adding small pairs into their 3-betting hands list isn't enough for you to dramatically change your play. You can loosen up on the flop a bit but thats about it.

[IndianOcean]

Paluka excellent job bring up this good post.

I am the guy who 3 bets with 44 (80% of the time)

[Lestat]

I think this is a play to be used every once in a while to mix it up. It costs less to make this play with a small pocket pair than with a mid-suited connector like T9s. It can also be a profitable play if your opponents are weak/tight. But to say it's positive EV if done routinely against a legitimate UTG raiser who is also good player is wrong and these people will go broke soon when the good players catch on. Especially the good players in back who will punish this foolishness and cripple any pre-flop equity a baby pocket pair has.

[ike]

[ QUOTE ]
I think a better play is often to call 2 bets cold, especially near the button or on it.

[/ QUOTE ]

This is not at all intuitive to me. Could you elaborate a little?

[ike]

[ QUOTE ]
I believe I make money if I have AK or AQ and get 3-bet by 66 because I know when I've hit my hand and my opponent doesn't.

[/ QUOTE ]

If you think you make money with overcards against a pair out of position you're insane.

[Gabe]

The best defense against a player like this is to sometimes play your pairs like AK, and sometimes play AK like a pair. For example sometimes if I have AK and an Ace flops, I throw my cards at the dealer and call her a sharmuta.

[Lestat]

Hi Ike,

Position is important, but small pairs have a much harder time receiving a favorable flop than do big cards or middle to big pocket pairs. You're position is not likely to make up for this fact against a good UTG player. Maybe a mediocre player.

[Boris]

[ QUOTE ]
c) what is the best way to punish the people who make this play?

[/ QUOTE ]

Play looser up front and raise with two suited face cards. Check raise often.

Another option (maybe)is to change seats.

[The Dude]

[ QUOTE ]
Play looser up front and raise with two suited face cards. Check raise often.

Another option (maybe)is to change seats.

[/ QUOTE ]
No, and no.

[Boris]

Why do you say that? You can tighten up once the other players start coming in behind the 3 bettor.