June 18, 2010
Playing Low Pocket Pairs
How do you play low pocket pairs in No Limit Texas Hold ‘em poker online? It’s one of the most difficult strategic decisions you have to make in the game. Some people play low pairs as if they were medium or even high pocket pairs; aggressively and strongly. Others will like to just call and see a cheap flop, and get out of the hand quickly unless they flop a set. The problem with lo pairs is that even if you are up against a online poker player who you are ahead of on the flop, you’re still in a precarious position. For example, I was playing a game recently and was dealt 4-4. I made a medium raise in middle position, and got one caller, the big blind. The flop came out 2-J-8. I led off with a medium sized bet. The other fellow called. The turn showed a 5. I checked and so did he. The river came out a ten. I made a bet on the river and the other poker player called. He turned over A-10 and I lost. So even though I had the best hand for most of the hand, and was betting out hoping to get him to fold, he kept calling me. Likely because he had overcards for everything on the board, except the jack. So even if you play well with a low pocket pair, you still may come up empty.
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