Stealing & Position

[wackjob]

Obviously in all types of poker position is one of the most key components to how you play and what cards you play etc. Obviously with position we can play weaker hands and make different types of plays than we could when playing UTG.

Like many, I started playing Hold'em SH games and now I'm playing a lot of HI/LO 6-max, limit(mid stakes). In HE, especially SH, stealing is a key part of the winning players game. I would say I steal on average 80% of the time when I have position.

I have started applying a similar startegy in O8 -- stealing after it is folded to me in the CO or button with what most would consider marginal O8 hands(A34x, A5Kx, and worse) My main question is about the value in doing this. I find that so many more players limp in O8, call 2 or 3 cold, and play so very poorly that this *should be optimal, but *might not be.

When playing O8 live I rarely steal unless I only have 1 or 2 super tight opponents to get to fold PF.

[wiseheart]

Like you say it is opponent dependent.
That said, I have improved my game tremendously
by adding stealing to my repertoire. I used to
be too tight to steal, now its how I win SnGs.
It mainly works just for SnGs and Tournies for
me though, where situations often come up where
you know your steal will work every time (or be
called and then folded to a potsize flop bet)

It doesn't work very well at Low Limit Ring Games,
at least in my experience.

[chaos]

If you are playing low limit O/8 and it is often getting folded to the cut off or button, I would be looking for another game. You might be able to make some money by stealing the blinds but you will probably make more playing at a looser table.

If we are talking the 6-max tables, attempting to steal with "marginal" hands is a poor strategy in my opinion. The 6-max tables are loaded with players whose VPIP is 45% or higher. They will play anything, and they will call with just about anything. Your goal is to find a table where 3 or 4 of the 6 are this type of player. And your strategy then is to pump and pump and pump your best hands. Raise/cap pre-flop when you have a good starting hand. If you miss the flop, get out quickly because the other folks could have anything and you will simply cost yourself money. If you hit, raise and keep raising. They will call and you will win. But because this is how these players act, trying to steal blinds, in my opinion, may cost you money.

[wackjob]

The point of stealing the blinds with average to good, but not the top, opening hands is that you are likely still a favorite against your typical LP, and like HE, stealing requires to the ability to let go of your hand when you miss or are obviously way behind.

My feeling about the 6-max tables is that, if you think you are a favorite pre-flop, you should be raising pre-flop period. If you want to call that blind stealing, so be it. I consider it raising for value. If the blinds fold, so be it, but my experience is that, at the tables we want to join, having both blinds fold is uncommon.