The Straddle Bet

Sometimes an "action player" will sit down in your game and put up a blind raise under the gun. For example, in a $10-$20 game with $5 and $10 blinds, he will be under the gun and put in a blind raise to $20 before the cards are dealt. This is referred to as a "straddle" or a "straddle bet". The purpose of this column is not to discuss the merits of this play, but to discuss how you should react to it.

You should strain to find a reraise on many hands with which you would normally just call. The additional money in the pot makes this correct. For example, in a $10-$20 game without a straddle bet, when you raise, you are putting in $20 with $15 already in the pot due to the blind money. But when someone straddles and you reraise, you are putting up $30 with $35 already in the pot. This is a much more favorable risk vs. reward ratio. Furthermore, you want to put pressure on the remaining players to fold, because isolating the straddler, who will virtually always call, is your prime goal. You almost certainly have the best hand, and you have position. So, if you are going to play and you are the only player to act after the straddler, just calling the straddle bet is normally not good poker. If you want to play, you should reraise. Calling the straddle bet would make sense if other players just call, but otherwise, you should raise. In addition, if you notice that other players are playing this way, you should four-bet many hands with which you would normally just raise. This is right because a good player who reraises a straddler will frequently not have a premium hand, but just a limping hand. Again, when you have a good hand, you want to force everyone else to pay through the nose to take a flop with you. Typically, you will drive out everyone but the straddler and the reraiser, with you having both the best hand and the best position. The following hands, taken from live play, will discuss some of these situations.

Hand No. 1 ($20-$40 game): The player under the gun puts up a straddle bet of $40. You are next to act with the 8u 8. What should you do?

Answer: Reraise to $60. Normally, pocket eights is a limping hand in early position, but with $70 in blind money now in the pot, it is worth paying $60 to drive out the other players and get heads up with the straddler. Your opponents don't know that you have less than a premium hand, and frequently a player with a hand like A-J or pocket nines will fold rather than call three bets cold. Your medium pocket pair is a good hand against a straddler, who holds random cards, and you have position. Limping in with this hand is not good because you are just encouraging other players to limp in behind you, thereby reducing your likelihood of ending up with the best hand.

Hand No. 2 ($10-$20 game): You are in middle position with the A Q. The under-the-gun player has put up a straddle bet of $20. A good player sitting right next to him makes it $30. It is folded to you. What should you do?

Answer: Reraise to $40. A-Q offsuit is a raising hand in any position. The good player does not need a premium hand to reraise a straddler. He is simply trying to isolate the straddler, which he would do with many hands worse than yours. Your hand is probably the best playing hand under the circumstances, and you want to put maximum pressure on everyone else to fold, thereby giving you position over the straddler and the reraiser. It may seem like you are overplaying your hand by four-betting with a holding you would normally not even three-bet. But you must realize that most of the money put into the pot was put in by players holding random cards, and that a good player will capitalize on this by reraising with medium pairs and even two big cards like A-J, K-Q, or other hands containing high cards that you dominate.

Hand No. 3 ($15-$30 game): You are in early position with the 8 7. The under-the-gun player puts up a $30 straddle bet. You are next to act. What should you do?

Answer: Fold. This is not a good hand to try to isolate two blinds and a straddler. Furthermore, with six players yet to act, anyone who calls you probably has a better hand than you with position over you. You still do not want to be playing in raised pots with small and medium suited connectors, especially out of position. You want some kind of hand to fall back on when you get played with. This usually means a medium pocket pair or two big cards preferably headed by an ace.

Hand No. 4 ($30-$60 game): You are in middle position with the Q J. The under-the-gun player has put a $60 straddle bet. The next player reraises to $90. The next player folds and the action is on you. What should you do?

Answer: Fold. Q-J suited is not a good enough hand with which to call three bets cold with only a straddler and one other player in the hand. You have a hand that wants lots of opponents and a cheap entry fee to take a flop. Playing in this situation is bad because you are unlikely to get the multihanded action you need to make this hand profitable, and you are paying a high price up front, which damages your implied odds.

Hand No. 5 ($10-$20 game): You are on the button with the J 10. The under-the-gun player puts up a $20 straddle bet. Three other players call. What should you do?

Answer: Call. Normally, J-10 suited is not worth calling two bets cold to take a flop. But with four players already committed (the straddler plus the three other callers), you are getting the multihanded action needed to make this hand profitable. Furthermore, the likelihood of one or both blinds playing is usually quite high in these situations, so you could be taking the flop fivehanded and sometimes sixhanded. Since no one raised, you do not have to be worried about being up against a premium hand like a big pocket pair or two big cards headed by an ace. Being on the button helps.

Hand No. 6 ($15-$30 game): You are in the small blind with the A 10. The under-the-gun player puts up a $30 straddle. Everyone folds to you. What should you do?

Answer: Reraise. You must drive out the big blind and get it heads up with the straddler, even if you are out of position. You have an excellent playing hand under the circumstances and your two opponents have random cards. Don't just call and make it easy for the big blind to play. In these situations, unless you are four-bet, you will be betting the flop regardless of what comes off.