Limping QQ under the gun

[akishore]

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I don't like limping with QQ UTG/UTG+1 because at these stakes there is alotta limping and people playing Ax and Kx liberally.

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Sorry, I never mentioned the stakes. I am specifically talking about stakes between 25c/50c NL (with stacks $100+) and $1/$2 NL (with stacks $500+).

I am curious how the strategy changes as the stakes change. If you say this is not optimal at "small stakes" (meaning $25 NL or $50 NL or smaller??), does it become optimal at higher stakes? Why?

Also, I've addressed the Ax / Kx issue. Yes, raising increases my winning chances, but that doesn't necessarily increase my expectation the most.


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Let's not forget why we raise...

1. To thin the field
2. To get money into the pot
3. For information

Without raising you are probably going to face a large number of opponents OOP without any idea of what kinda hands they have. You'll end paying off hands that wouldn't have called a PFR, losing to hands that you'd be able to fold had you raised and had a read on the situation.

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I play the hand differently postflop if I limp preflop. Of course I'm not going to pay off a bunch of hands just because I have QQ.

To address the reasons:

1. Thin the field - I have already addressed this. I don't mind if more Ax and Kx comes along. Even though my winning chances decrease, I believe my expectation does not.

2. Build the pot - Not something I want to do when I'm out of position, that's my main point.

3. Information - I've stated that I believe the information gained from raising preflop isn't really reliable in the loose games that I play in. In fact, I've gone so far as to argue that the information gained from limping and making a bet into a small pot on the flop is more reliable than raising and making a continuation bet in a big pot.


Aseem