Preflop calling range (NL2/NL5)

[ThomassoCZ]

Hi all,

this is my first post on this forum. Hopefully lots more to come.

I'm not new to poker per se, but I had a long break, and never really studied deep. Now I'm really focused on the fundamentals, using the tracking software, reading books, watching videos and so on.

I've been able to maintain a 13 BB/100 at NL2 over 20 000 hands so far.


The discussion below is based on Full Ring NL2/NL5 Pokerstars Cash Game.


I would like to ask you about one of my biggest weak spots (AFAIK). Every resource says that I should be aggressive, and with initiative, it's far better to raise preflop than call.

But I often find myself in a situation where I don't know what to do:
I am not the first preflop raiser and I hold good, but not premium hand like --- --- .

A lot of players tend to call in this situation (from my observations), but what is the goal here? Just see the flop and hope for the best? Nah, this would be against all the stuff I learned so far.

I wouldn't be OOP because if I was, I would have opened myself (except being UTG). So I am IP and there is a raiser before me, let's say an average regular who wouldn't open with complete trash.

My cards are not good enough to 3bet here, so what do I do? When do I call and when do I fold?

Thanks for any tips, I find myself in this situation often and I have a feeling that it's one of my biggest leaks. I even lost stacks because of an out-of-frustration 3bet and hitting flop decently.

Tomas

 

[rabman50]

You didn't say if this is a 6-max or full ring table. I will assume 6-max. It also depends on the openers position and your position. I will assume opener is UTG and you are BTN.
AJo and KQo would be 3-bets
88 would be a call

If you are 4-bet with AJo or KQo without a specific read I would fold. With the 88 hand your are looking for a set or a non-broadway board to continue post flop.

There are numerous range charts out there to give you a baseline. Based on your reads of the opponents you expand or contract the suggested ranges.

 

[Redman1902]

Although, as the previous poster said, it depends on your opponent's position, I would call with about 10% of my hands against UTG. If you subtract your best hands, you're left with a lot of pairs, suited connectors, and maybe some broadway hands.

You can find numerous hand ranges on the internet against any position, all of which have reasonably similar hands in them. If you pick the hands that differ in the individual charts, this gives you a good starting point for the hands that you should vary when you make your range tighter or wider.

Good luck.

 

[Vallet]

Before making a 3-bet on a preflop, you should think about a few things. For example, here are a few things I'm thinking about.
What type of player and from what position does he bet? There is no point in raising a tight player with a wide range of hands.
Will 3-bet help for isolation? Because you can have one-on-one with an opponent and without raising the preflop. Or there will still be a lot of players on the flop, regardless of whether you made a 3-bet or not.
What will be your next steps if your opponents raise your bet again after you on the preflop? If you are not ready to fold KQ or 88 on the preflop, then there is no point in raising your opponent so as not to get a raise.

 

[hilary antonik filho]

I would not like to comment, whenever I think I have a good hand, I end up making a mistake, going to Allin, or just betting and post-flop, ending up losing