Our Poker Guide
Most poker enthusiasts find themselves captivated when watching high-profile professionals with great poker hands going head-to-head and making large, well considered bets in an attempt to either capture a monster pot or else to close a game out. It is, perhaps, poker’s most compelling image, one which makes for great television and occasionally fevered commentary, but in truth, such showdowns are a million miles from most players’ experience.
This is particularly true for those who really enjoy the game but are unlikely to ever find themselves head-to-head with Greg Raymer at the final table of the WSOP.
Indeed, a far greater proportion of players than you may imagine become concerned (and not a little nervous) whenever they play for real cash, especially because as a rule, your bankroll on a full table of more than six players should be somewhere between 50-100 times the big blind. If that sounds a tad on the heavy side, let us consider one of poker’s often overlooked, but nonetheless fast-moving attractions, the micro-limit game.
Forget about going all-in with several million chips on live TV; if you find yourself worrying about playing at the $1-$2 limit tables, then why not drop down to the $0.25-$0.50 cent, or even the $0.025-$0.05 cent tables?
Why? Well, the answer is simple: you should avoid ring games where the amounts of raises, pots and bets frighten the life out of you.
Furthermore, there’s no stigma attached with dropping down to, or kicking off in, a micro limit game. Many millions of people have started at the $0.025/$0.05 tables and, as their bankrolls start growing and they start to understand the subtle differences between poker hands, they move back up a few levels.
Granted, most new players have a tendency to test their boundaries to the limit, but unless they’re naturals, such an approach is generally unsustainable and can have a dire impact upon their bankroll. Given that poker is mostly about discipline (what, you didn’t know that?), playing at micro-limit tables can be a fantastic way to learn (or to rediscover) effective money management.
Can opponents still suck out on you at micro limit tables? Of course they can, although a number of pros who kicked off at ML level advise that provided you believe you have the best hand pre-flop, this shouldn’t prevent you from raising substantially. That, you might say, contradicts how you might play at a higher limit table and you would be correct, but a standard three- or five-times the big blind raise simply isn’t going to cut the mustard in a ML game most of the time.
It follows that assuming you have say, QQ in late position, combined with a few limpers and the action comes your way, you should not be too concerned about betting $1-$2 into this pot. It certainly is a different play from that which you might make at higher level tables, but your poker strategy here is determined by your opponents and the table limit; in other words, you’re amending your play to suit the conditions, ie being disciplined and aware, so you should not be over-concerned about raising 15x the blind, provided you feel you’re in pole position.
Newcomers appreciate the value of ML games as they understand that the best way they can learn to play poker profitably is to start playing for real cash as soon as possible. It’s a fact that everyone takes the game more seriously whenever money is at stake and the sooner greenhorns get into real cash games, the better. It goes without saying that bringing the full buy-in to a ML table is significantly easier than at one where stakes are higher; it also means that should you endure a bad beat or go on tilt and lose, you’re in little danger of it having a long term, adverse effect upon your lifestyle. It may impact upon your temper, but that’s another, discipline-related matter…
This is not to say that just because you’re playing for lower stakes there are not specific ML table tactics to master.
The majority of ML players have either opted to drop down and refresh their poker approach, or else they’re absolute newcomers who are learning poker strategy and this unusual mix means it is imperative to play solidly. But what does this mean? After all, no-one deliberately sets out to relinquish their bankroll in double-quick time.
There are several things you can do to improve the chances of building, rather than depleting, your starting stack of chips.
First, you should try playing the button and late position by adopting an aggressive style of play, primarily because having position over your opponents is crucial. This is not to say you should become predictible: you do not need to raise the button every single time. Mix your play up and, to cause confusion among your opponents, occasionally raise in early position.
Second, playing at ML tables should also result in you keeping a close eye on, and even making notes about, your opponents. You’re trying to identify the weaker players, by targeting them and their stack; remember, you do not have to be in a hand with an opponent to establish exactly how they play.
Third, if you’re intent on having a profitable time at the ML tables, you should identify the ‘call stations’ as soon as possible. Such players are everywhere at this level and the sooner you find them, the better, as you can effectively bank on them feeding you money for as long as they’re sat at your table.
Apart from these three points and without getting too technical, perhaps the most frequently asked question regarding ML tables is “How much do I raise?” As you may expect, the answer varies according to the conditions in which you find yourself.
Let’s take our earlier example: imagine you’re in late position with QQ and two limpers ahead of you. Instead of raising fifteen times, you raise five times the blind. What happens? That’s right: half the table left in the hand goes with you.
Why does this happen? It’s almost beyond the bounds of mathematical possibility for everyone to hold a hand worth calling, so there must be another explanation. This is where a player’s flexibility is put to its test, which is why playing ML tables acts as both a great refresher and / or an initial induction.
Consider this: if you’re playing a $0.05/$0.10 ML table, then a raise which is five times the big blind amounts to just 50 cents. At this level, that is not going to bankrupt any of your opponents, so the majority of them think they can afford the 50 cents it takes to bet, when what they should be thinking is, “this guy has just raised five times the big blind! He must have a cracking hand.”
In other words, at a ML table, you’re much more likely to get called, particularly by loose players, because they’re willing to risk losing 50 cents most of the time.
Many ML regulars stick to raising suited connectors and small pairs by between three- and four-times the big blind, a potentially profitable stratgey, particularly if you have position over your opponents, although even if you don’t, it’s a great way of mixing up your game. The reasons for this are severalfold:
For a start, such a modest raise represents a strong hand preflop (although only to students of the game), but assuming the flop is check to you, it provides you with an opportunity to steal the pot.
Second, should you flop an absolute belter, then you have an excellent chance of collecting the dough, particularly if you find yourself in a hand with a few ‘call stations’.
And finally, even if you don’t hit or no-one bets into you, you can still afford to lay it down without risking a significant proportion of your stack.
On other occasions, when playing potentially winning pairs or big hands, your strategy changes because you certainly don’t want a significant number of callers in the pot with you. In this instance (remember, you’ve been taking notes on your ML opponents), you’re convinced other players around the table will miss the relevance of a four- or five-times the big blind raise, pre-flop. Depending on how many players remain, the most profitable move is to overbet.
Such a poker strategy works because if you’re on the button with only the blinds left to act, a relatively modest raise (for a ML table) might be an effective way of getting some action with your big pairs such as AA or KK. However, let’s assume the whole table has limped, in which case this raise might not get much respect, so you should consider overbetting, perhaps to 15 or even 20 times the big blind, depending upon how loose the table is.
Why would this work? Well first, even if each of your opponents fold, you pick up the pot. However, it’s more likely that you will get called by a couple of opponents, although that’s not a problem as it’s considerably easier to play against two instead of half a dozen opponents. Finally, if your opponent is our friend the ‘call station’ and they hit the flop, you’re in great shape to take the majority, if not all, of their chips.
Micro-limit poker tables have one further advantage; they’re always busy, making them the perfect stop off point for greenhorns and others wishing to improve their game. Okay, so you’re never going to get rich playing them full-time, but it would be foolish to underestimate their importance as you move further up poker’s food chain. In short, you should utilise them as part of your poker apprenticeship; remember, however, you ignore them at your peril.
