Calling or Folding

[Lavitz]

There aren't many worse hands actually....Head to head, 2/4 suited is one of the worse hands (with only 33 percent chance to win, with worst hand having 30 percent chance).In fact, there are only 11 worse hands in head to head, this is considerably poor pulling into account there are around 200 different hands to start with. With 10 people calling into the pot, it bumps up noticeably over many other poor hands but still holds only approximately a 10 percent chance to win (with the worst hand having a 5 percent chance in this situation). It is more probable that there will be about 4 callers, and 2/4 suited is still a poor hand, and ranks in the lower half of hands(holding a 14 percent chance to win, with the worst hand holding about a 10 percent chance)
Unless you pull a straight flush, your flush can be outdone, if you pair a four or two, your kicker is probably beat, and even if you have a set, if another person has that same set, their kicker probably has yours beat once again. You want to avoid this hand usually or else you could be fishing for a card to get a straight or flush. Usually, you can lose a lot of money this way with a talented opponent who will make you pay dearly to see the next card once he thinks you are fishing.

 

[eitemiller]

2-4 suited...just crazy in my book. If you are seated at a full table (say 8 or more people) and you get the flush, the first thing that is going to bother the crap out of you is wondering if someone else has a higher flush. Especially if 4 suited cards come up in the middle - then you know you are toast. And trying to catch that straight is crazy. If you are holding the 2/4 to gain a pair on the flop - that's just nuts as well. Great, you have a pair of 2's, but there are 2 other cards on that flop - with 2 more coming - and if I have one of them, mine are higher than yours.

If you try to force your hand, you may catch what you are looking for sometimes. But you may also get beat with your pair of 2's because I have higher.

Everyone plays differently, but the odds say, if I play as tight as I do, and you play so lose that you are willing to play 2/4 suited - I would probably beat you most of the time. Someone said earlier that you should fold about 70% of your hole cards - I do live by that. Play tight - play like you are going to be playing for hours. Do not take the risks of playing 2/4 - wait until you get that good hand and stick it to 'em. Just my opinion

 

[ChuckTs]

However, not that many people have the patience to just check out their opponents for time, because by the time you sit in, they may have left

Ya also tourneys are harder because you cant study the ppl your about to play
you're constantly being transferred from table to table and you have no idea who your opponents are
im talkin about online tourneys of course

 

[kenkbf]

i always fold low cards unless i am in the blinds and i have nothing to loose

 

[bluestater]

if you dont know what to do u probly shouldnt commit all your money

 

[ph_il]

hey everyone, new poster here. just my 2 cents:



im a very tight player, but i hardly limp in. im either folding my hand or im raising with it. the only time i like to limp is when i have small pockets [2s-6s] i find if im in good position and i know the players to the left of me arent over aggressive i might get lucky and flop a set. if theres a raise its easy for me to fold my hand. mid pockets [7s-10s] are also hand i can limp in with and also call a small raise with because i can hit a set and also if its low cards on the board with no draws i can play my hand accordingly. high pockets [Js-As] are they hands i like raise/reraise with to narrow the field and get all the draws out. on the flop you can bet to how you see fit. i personally like to bet strong on the flop even if i hit a set or theres an over card (and i have a good read on my opponent). i bet strong [on sets] because i dont believe in slow playing and letting someone catch. and also if i get called or dont get called, i like to show im betting into a big hand because it opens the doors for well timed bluffs later on.

playing suited connectors (usually mid - high) is a bit tricky. depending on what position im in and how the players to left to me are. if im in late position and its limp ins, then ill limp and see if i get lucky. if its early ill usually fold (even if everyone limps in after) i dont want to commit myself and be forced to call a small raise. high suits like 10/J, J/Q, etc is worth a small raise call, though.

playing A-2 - A-9 suited and off suit. lol, people call me crazy for this, but i fold a lot of these hands if they're not suited. why? because if an Ace flops and kicker plays theres a chance you are out kicked..even with a 9 kicker. if they're suited i find them to be worth a call or a small raise, just because i might flop the nut flush or nut flush draw.

A-10 - A-K. i like playing these hands suited or unsuited. ill raise with A/K in late position, but just call with A-10 - A-Q. A-10 is the "tricky" hand in this group because of the kicker, but i find if i flop two face cards, im willing to call small bets to see if i can hit my gut shot straight. especially if i believe my opponent is also chasing/or hit a card smaller then an ace (so if an ace hits i might be able to scare him off.) its also really easy to know when to fold the A-10. A-J - A-K is a bit harder to lay down, but good to know when you're beat.

something i keep in mind with playing dangerous hands [Q/9, K/10, J/K, etc] i find these hands are tempting to call with and if you hit you could be tempted to play. you could win, but then you could also lose a lot if you find yourself chasing. these are cards where i rely more on position and the other players then on the hand itself. if you're in late postion and theres no raise, then its an easy call. if its early on i usually fold if im looking at aggressive players after me. to me if the hand isnt worth calling a raise, then its probably not worth a limp in. [just dont kick yourself if you end up floping the nuts.]

...sorry, long post.

 

[BgShoesAA]

I fold a LOT of marginal hands. Seems the more I fold the more I make, however, there are some times when the opportunity presents itself say in late pos lots folders that I dont mind calling with marginal hands. Plus it throws people off when your 89 or 78 flops set or boat or two pair they usually have u on face cards or have kk or qq or jj will raise u all the way to river.

Be selective, stay out of 9 ways action pots unless can see cheap.

 

[youngbuck]

yep latley i been very careful playing my hands i usally fold more then i play probaly by 60 percent i fold i only play connecters or high face cards some times ill take a chance with low pockts but mostly i fold. plus depends on postion

 

[RussGriffith]

yep latley i been very careful playing my hands i usally fold more then i play probaly by 60 percent i fold i only play connecters or high face cards some times ill take a chance with low pockts but mostly i fold. plus depends on postion

I fold about 70% of my hands. If it's not worth raising, you should fold it, unless in position. I'll only play high cards, pocket pairs, any suited connectors above 3 4, and any cards that are suited with a king or an ace. Again though, I will muck most of these hands if I am facing a raise or out of position. However, as people start to drop you out. you have to remember that the value of starting hands go up. If I was first to act pre-flop in a nine player game, I'd fold Ace 7 every time, but when the table drops to three or four, I would likely raise about 3 times the big blind. A good guide of hands to play is in Doyle Brunson's Super System.

 

[ballas]

always call yeah:icon_sile

 

[daka]

I agree with everyone except when playing online, if the flop stays cheap I play all cards online. I have won a lot of hands with rags, I noticed this happening with other players and gave it a try, doesn't always work but if flop is cheap and you don't hit just fold off.

 

[PokerTourInfo]

Sometimes when i start to get a little tilty, i like to pretent that i am playing blackjack.

I only fold or raise, but only raise with cards that have a face value of 19 or more.... i find it is a good way to chill out, slow down and wait for cards... the right cards.

 

[VegasGrinder]

I can't beleve tha Hands you people play. Hard time throwing away K,6? I throw away K,J off suit all the time. K,J off is the 26th best Starting Hand. That means there are 25 possible starting hands available that will beat you majority of the time.

Being suited helps but playing small suited cards, especialy not connected is a great way to give away your Bank Roll. Keep in mind K,J suited is ranked 21st.

Tight Aggressive is the way to play.......Almost Always raise Preflop 3x - 4x the Big Blind. If you don't you let the Blinds see a flop for Free. When Trash hit, you could be in Trouble all because you let the Blinds see it for Free.

If a average player sees you playing something like K,8 Suited....They will start raising preflop by 6X or even 8x the Big Blind.....They will play with their raises to see how big of a preflop bet you are willing to call.....They want you in the pot for the most amount of chips possible because they know the odds are they will have you Dominated.

One more thing.

You should be folding preflop more than anything else.

If not folding you should be betting and raising.

Calling should be done the least of the 3.

Than again, to play like that you need to play Quality Hands.

Small Pocket Pairs should be raised with to eliminate the Field. Pocket Pairs are Strong Hands heads up but ith Multiple players in the Pot they will get beat most the time.

 

[RammerJammer]

Raise or Rest

There's a pretty widely accepted hold 'em philosophy that seems to make a lot of sense to me. If you can't raise pre-flop with your hole cards, or if your pockets can't stand a raise, muck them. For me, that includes baby Ace, baby King, small pocket pairs (5's & under) and small suited connectors. If I'm under the gun or in early position with 33, why would I try to limp them in by calling the blind, just to watch players in middle and late position raise and/or re-raise? I'm just throwing chips away, 'cause I ain't calling a raise with treys. (The exception is if I'm on the button, knowing I'll be the last to act after the flop and can toss 'em, if necessary.)

But I'll see people all the time limping in with small pairs, getting raised, calling the raise, losing their heads, and the next thing you know, they're sucked into an all-in with a pair of fours. But then they'll get lucky, draw a set, win the pot, and think they made a great move. Which they will then repeat several times with much less desireable results. What they don't know is that if they pull it out like that one time out of ten, they're ahead of the curve. The other nine-plus times, they're busted.

 

[y2ba]

play less pots but push harder when u play-----BE THE AGGRESSOR---i drool over players that call all the way till the river then fold..they will get lucky and catch sometimes---but if they didnt they would stop chasing and i wouldnt make any money.

 

[jubert69]

Try this, be confident in your hand. Always believe the other person will bet high so if you get a semi-good hand, ask yourself, am i going to call if he raises this much?

 

[federalu]

i think that the best bluuf is all in and when we see a man all in the many times is bloof

 

[sorcerer_]

with a semi good hand? ... no

Only if you have reasons to suspect a bluff .. and this is a matter of what's layed on the table .. potential flush, straigth ... full you name it ..

 

[sonni]

another good thing to remember is its not how great you think u played the hand, its the mistakes of the other player that really won u the pot in some cases