A Common Situation Where I Fold

I recently produced an in-depth video discussing 10 situations where I fold where most amateurs do not. While numerous concepts were discussed, the one that ruffled the most feathers was this:

Fold junky hands from the small blind when facing numerous limpers.

In most small stakes games, it is not uncommon to see a few players limp, the small blind limp, and the big blind check. The player in the small blind usually feels obligated to see a flop with almost any two cards due to the amazing pot odds. In reality, this is a small preflop mistake that can quickly compound into huge postflop errors.

If a few people limp in and you are in the small blind with a junky hand, you should fold instead of putting in the extra half of a big blind. While it may be tempting to call with hands like 9-4 and 7-3 due to your amazing pot odds, you will not flop well enough to justify calling. It is important to realize that getting 9:1 pot odds is not a good enough reason to call, because the pots you win will be tiny and the pots you lose will be either medium or large.

You will find that what often happens is either you completely miss the flop or you flop a marginal one pair hand and end up losing some additional amount of money to a better made hand. Even if you happen to make a strong hand, such as bottom two pair, if someone wants to put their stack in, you are usually beat.

I take this concept a step further and fold any hand I expect to be dominated. For example, if four players limp, I will fold K-5 from the small blind almost every time. However, if only one player limps, I am much more inclined to call or raise. In general, as more players limp, hands with one big card and one little card drastically decrease in value because they are much more likely to be dominated. The last thing you want to do is play a pot out of position with a dominated hand.

If you decide to see a flop from the small blind in a limped pot, you must play well after the flop. This is why you often see world-class players defending with a wide range from the blinds in tournaments when facing a min-raise. They know they will be able to navigate tricky postflop situations well.

For example, if you call with 10-6 from the small blind and the flop comes 10-7-4, there will be times when you should lead into your opponents, check-raise, check-call, or even check-fold. To make your decision even tougher, there will be times when you should drastically alter your play based on your opponents. If a loose, aggressive player bets and a loose, passive player calls, you should usually check-call or check-raise for value and protection. If a tight player bets and a tight player calls, you should check-fold because you are almost always crushed. If you decide to play with junk, you must play it extremely well if you want to profit.

As your opponents play better, you should play an even tighter range. Hands such as A-6 and K-8 should usually be folded against strong players who limp with a concealed range. It is important to note that all players who limp are not automatically weak.
You must constantly assess and quantify your specific opponents. If your opponents are limping with a bunch of trashy hands, K-8 is fairly strong. If they are only limping reasonably playable hands, K-10 becomes speculative.

The next time you are in the small blind and numerous players limp, try to narrow their ranges, then act accordingly. You will likely find that you should fold most of your weak hands from the small blind while occasionally making a large raise as a bluff when you think your opponents will fold to immense preflop and flop pressure. Do not be afraid to get out of line and experiment. If you copy most players and limp with all of your trash, then play in a blatantly passive, straightforward manner, you will slowly bleed away your stack.

If you would like access to a free video where I show you three of the common situations where I fold that help keep me out of trouble, check out: JonathanLittlePoker.com/cardplayer/10situations ♠

Jonathan Little, 2-time World Poker Tour champion has won more than $6 million in tournaments since 2006. He is sponsored by 3bet.com, Instapoker and BlueSharkOptics and teaches poker at FloatTheTurn.com and www.JonathanLittleSecrets.com. Follow him on Twitter @ JonathanLittle.