ogre's first nl question thread

[littleogre]

1 why do people min bet so much in micro stakes nl. I mean what is the point of beting 2 cents into a 60 cent pot? I have noticed they do that all the time. I mean every play has a point at the right time put they do it all the time even when trying to bluff.
2 How much should i be beting preflop? Right now i bet 3xbb + 1 bb for every limper . I raise bet or fold and only flat call when set hunting or playing suitred cards and suited aces.

3 How should i play 7s,8s.9s against a bet. Should i set hunt or reraise? I know some experts prefer to just reraise all in or fold if the raise is to big to set hunt and either reraise or call if the raise is small enough to set hunt.

[overflow]

1 why do people min bet so much in micro stakes nl. I mean what is the point of beting 2 cents into a 60 cent pot? I have noticed they do that all the time. I mean every play has a point at the right time put they do it all the time even when trying to bluff.
2 How much should i be beting preflop? Right now i bet 3xbb + 1 bb for every limper . I raise bet or fold and only flat call when set hunting or playing suitred cards and suited aces.

3 How should i play 7s,8s.9s against a bet. Should i set hunt or reraise? I know some experts prefer to just reraise all in or fold if the raise is to big to set hunt and either reraise or call if the raise is small enough to set hunt.

Depending on table texture minbetting in certain spots can be major +EV, for the simple reason that there are more than a few microstakes players, and even a lot of multi'ing regulars who really like prechecking that auto-fold button. And it's safer than a full c-bet when you have complete air.

Do _NOT_ however take this to mean that I'm advocating min-betting. I'm just saying be consciously aware of which players have a tendancy to click "auto-fold" and occasionally min-bet in 3way pots with air when these players call raises preflop.

If you're not playing middle pairs for pair value (which you shouldn't be anyways) I just call minraises preflop, although I'm sure there are a lot of FTR regulars that would say you can raise to 5-7xBB to build a pot for when you hit your set. A lot of this is really just personal preference, and comes down to developing and refining a style that works for you. If you're going to go the flatcall route, just make sure you're mixing it up by playing KJo, QTs, JTs, and other suited connectors the same way so that you're not turning your hand face up.

That's really the only reason I would advocate flatcalling, as flatcalling is a better option with the marginal non-paired hands you need to be making the same play with to mix it up; and since there are more more unpaired hands that exist in that range, you should probably err on the side of playing the stronger end of that range (e.g. 7s-9s) in a way that reduces the variance you experience when you have to mix it up.

[overflow]

Addendum:

In general your preflop raises should be between 3-4.5xBB+1BB for every limper when no one's opened, and reraises should be roughly 3-4x the total of the original raise (e.g. in $10max someone raises to 0.35, you should raise to about $1.05 and $1.40)

[Chicago_Kid]

1 why do people min bet so much in micro stakes nl. I mean what is the point of beting 2 cents into a 60 cent pot? .

Except in rare circumstances, it's really, really dumb to min raise. Even if you see it working, don't copy it. Chalk it up to short term nitty luck. If you have a hand, raise their ass more often than not.

2 How much should i be beting preflop? Right now i bet 3xbb + 1 bb for every limper . I raise bet or fold and only flat call when set hunting or playing suitred cards and suited aces.

That is a good place to start with premium hands. But in micro-stakes, you can adjust this up depending on the table. I'll raise 6-12x preflop with TT-AA, AK, AQ and others, and still get 3 callers.

3 How should i play 7s,8s.9s against a bet. Should i set hunt or reraise? I know some experts prefer to just reraise all in or fold if the raise is to big to set hunt and either reraise or call if the raise is small enough to set hunt.

I like mixing limps and small raises in in MP/LP, and limping EP/calling raises of less than 10x your opponents stack.

[littleogre]

ty to all repliers

[littleogre]

I'm starting to think the 3x rule has no place in micro stakes. Even a raise of 4-5 times the bb is usually met with 3+ flat callers. Seems to be you really need to raise 6x or more to really get them to notice. Ofcourse you sometimes you run into extremely tight or loose tables where the rules change.

[kman]

In micro stakes I found that players minbet because they are using it as a blocking bet. Players will usually minbet OOP with a draw to give themselves the correct odds to draw profitably. Or the players have a weak hand, and want to get to showdown without risking a lot of money. It is usually a sign of weakness, so many times I will raise them with any 2 cards. Ocasionally you'll see a guy from one of the blinds with a trash hand like 74, minbetting the flop of 44J to build the pot.

[littleogre]

In micro stakes I found that players minbet because they are using it as a blocking bet. Players will usually minbet OOP with a draw to give themselves the correct odds to draw profitably. Or the players have a weak hand, and want to get to showdown without risking a lot of money. It is usually a sign of weakness, so many times I will raise them with any 2 cards. Ocasionally you'll see a guy from one of the blinds with a trash hand like 74, minbetting the flop of 44J to build the pot.

I understand where you are comeing from but i see minbets used in far more bizzare spots. ie they bet 4 cents in to a 60 cent pot with with tptk and multiple draws on the board. The celebs use to do it all the time on celeb poker. Gordon would get so upset. I'm sure they have there personal reasons but still

[Geanosssss]

1 why do people min bet so much in micro stakes nl. I mean what is the point of beting 2 cents into a 60 cent pot?

Because theyre donks.

[Geanosssss]

I'll raise 6-12x preflop with TT-AA, AK, AQ and others, and still get 3 callers.

Doubtful