A No-Limit Hold'em Tactic Revisited

by Matt Lessinger | Published: Dec 17, 2004

No-limit (NL) hold'em has exploded. It's popping up everywhere, novice players are jumping into NL games, and the action is better than ever. We know all of that. However, people who have played NL for years aren't adjusting properly to this new status quo. Strategies that were accepted as truths as recently as two or three years ago now have to be reconsidered, especially in live NL games with buy-ins of $300 or less. Let's look at one of them:

As the first player entering the pot, you should raise about three times the big blind (BB).

In both tournaments and live games, this has been the accepted norm for a long time, and the logic makes perfect sense. You want to raise enough to get the garbage out, including the players in the blinds. But, you don't want to raise so much that you'll get action only from someone who has you beat. Tripling the BB usually accomplished that goal.

But nowadays, you'll see a player raise to three times the BB and still get six or seven callers! Clearly, they all can't have a playable hand. So much for getting the garbage out! Now, you've got a decent-size pot before the flop comes, and unless you flop a big hand, it's tough to bet with confidence, having so many opponents. Even with a hand like pocket aces, you want action, but not that much action! In those types of games, which are more and more prevalent these days, you have to do something different.

Should you raise more or not raise at all?

It depends on the hand and the situation. For instance, my friend Jake was in the BB a $1-$2 blinds NL game with the A K. Every single player limped in preflop! He was pretty sure that he had the best hand, so he threw in a $25 raise. He still got four callers! Then, the flop came J-9-2, missing him completely. He ended up checking and folding, and lamented the fact that he wasted $25.

In Jake's situation, a small raise would have accomplished nothing, and his larger raise ended up being expensive when the flop brought rags. I would have chosen not to raise at all. In a tournament, he might get everyone to fold by making a large raise from the BB. But in a live game with loose opposition, a strange phenomenon occurs. One player decides to gamble for the $25. Then, another player sees that a large pot might be developing, so he'll make the call. Every subsequent player then begins to salivate, knowing that if he hits the right flop, he could win the pot that will make him a winner for the night. All of a sudden, Jake's created a monster. He has a decent amount of money invested while being out of position with a hand that needs to improve to stand any realistic chance of winning. No, thanks. I'll wait for a better spot to make a preflop raise.

What would be a better spot?

For one thing, you'd much rather have position on your opponents. A raise from the button is much more effective than one from the blinds. Your opponents have to act before you, so you'll have a better idea of whether or not any of them flopped something good. Plus, they will usually check to you on the flop anyway, giving you the option of seeing the turn card for free.

You'd also like to have a hand that you can bet on the flop even if it doesn't improve. In other words, you can bet an unimproved A-K, but if you get any action, you have to assume that you are beat. You might be able to bluff your way out of it, but whether it succeeds or not, you've put yourself in a tough spot. On the other hand, with something like Q-Q, you could easily get action from second-best hands even if you don't flop a set. Those are the situations you'd prefer.

Why should you raise more than three times the big blind?

Remember, there were originally two reasons to come in for three times the big blind. The first was that you want to raise enough to get the garbage out, but we've discussed how that won't happen in many of today's loose, smaller NL games. The other part of the equation was that you don't want to raise too much, either. You'd still like to get called by potential second-best hands. Well, it seems like lots of players with half-decent cards aren't shy about calling! You might as well make substantial bets with your premium hands if you are up against opponents who will give you action.

If you're in a $1-$2 NL game and pick up pocket aces, why make it only $6? I know that you don't want to chase everyone out, and that's understandable. But, if they are generally giving action when someone raises to $20, you might as well throw in $20! It goes against all standard poker logic to raise 10 times the BB with pocket aces, but it also goes against all logic to have several opponents call the $20! You must play to your opposition. They have essentially created a new poker logic. If they are making bad calls, give them every opportunity to do so, especially when you have a premium hand. You'll feel sick if you make it $20 to go with A-A in a loose $1-$2 NL game and get no callers. But, you'll feel even sicker if you raise to only $6, get several callers, and end up losing your entire stack to someone who flops two goofy pair.

The bottom line is this: Tripling the BB isn't accomplishing what it used to. There definitely are times when it is still the preferred play. But, you also must consider an oversized raise. If the situation is right, it might be just what you need.