Middle Limit Holdem Poker for Low Limit?

My book Middle Limit Holdem Poker (co-authored with Jim Brier) has produced a frequently asked question: "How much help is reading this book if I am a low-limit player?" This is, of course, a very logical question, considering the title of the book. Here is my answer:

In our book, we arbitrarily define "middle limit" as $10-$20 through $40-$80. Low-limit games do not all fit the same mold – far from it. I have seen $3-$6 games that strongly resemble middle-limit games, I have seen $3-$6 games that look like a party of drunks, and I have seen $3-$6 games that are filled with loose, passive players (yum!). But no matter what type of game it is, you can use the ideas in our book, decide how they apply to the game you are in, and apply them accordingly. So, the short answer is, "With care and intelligence, you can use the ideas in the book to your advantage in low-stakes poker." Now, let's go into more detail on this subject.

Let us keep in mind the way most low-limit players differ from their higher-stakes counterparts. First and foremost, they play far more starting hands. Some do this because they do not know any better, but most realize they are erring. However, since the amount of money involved in their poker games is relatively small, they prefer to have fun rather than do their best to make money. So, in low-stakes poker you find yourself facing more opponents, and they do not like to fold. The other main way they differ is that they are less aggressive. Perhaps they are playing only their own hand instead of determining how it matches up against yours. Your check against a calling-station player shows weakness, but much of the time you will not suffer because you blinked. And part of their passive play is a result of knowing from past experience that their bets are going to get called most of the time.

Before we talk about how to play in a low-limit game, let's talk about finding the right one to plunder. Your first task at any limit is to find a good poker game. It is easy for a low-limit player to fall into the trap of thinking that a hold'em game in which many pots are reraised and capped before the flop is a juicy place to light. Although such games are beatable, the truth is, they are far from a piece of cake. Here is why: By putting a huge amount of money (relative to the betting limit) into a pot preflop, you minimize the abilities needed to handle post-flop situations. All of that loose play you see at the low limits, like chasing non-nut gutshots and backdoor non-nut flushes, is either right in these jammed pots or only marginally wrong. And the best hand always wins; forget about bluffing or reading your opponent. Furthermore, most of your hands are no longer playable. You should not be putting three and four bets into the pot preflop with 7-7, A-7 suited, and so forth. To beat a low-limit game, you want to be able to hit flops cheaply and get your good hits paid off. Lastly, with everyone held hostage to continue by the large amount of money preflop, your good hands are going to get cracked more often. So, even though the ones that hold up make a mint, there is a lot of fluctuation in your results.

Now that you have found a good game, you will find our advice more applicable to pots in which there are only one to three other players. In this setting, poker skills can be brought into play, and the best hand doesn't always win. You can bluff, raise to get a free card, make a play for the pot with a light hand, and so forth. Low-limit games have a lot more callers preflop, but there still are pots in which most of the players fold.

We base a lot of our strategy on the number of people in the pot with you. In low-limit play, you will have plenty of company contesting most pots. Our strategy for this type of situation is simple: Skip the tricky stuff. This is even more applicable to low-limit games than middle-limit games. Your chances of buying a pot by betting a draw into a large field is close to zero. If you have what looks like the best hand, bet it; you will have plenty of callers.

If you follow all of the middle-limit strategy concepts in our book to the letter, you will be making some errors in low-limit games. Here are some strategy tips for the cheaper games that are different from our book strategy. First, don't be too aggressive. We do not like to check a hand in middle-limit games that we intend to play, because our opponent is encouraged to bet by our show of weakness. We don't want to surrender the initiative. In low-limit games, your opponent is much more likely to check it back after you check, being grateful for a chance to see another card without having to spend anything. Yet, if you bet, he is going to stick like glue. So, the wise low-limit player does not need to be so pushy with a moderate hand.

Second, because there are more players in for the flop on each deal, if it is a passive game with little preflop raising, more hands are playable. So, you can loosen up and play hands like 4-4 and A-X suited in early position. But beware of hands that play poorly with a large field. I am talking about unsuited hands like K-J and A-10. You will be running into hands like A-K, A-Q, and A-J in unraised pots, plus top pair does not stand up as well in a large field. So, stick to the standards we suggest for unsuited moderately large cards.

You will find that many ideas in Middle Limit Holdem Poker can be applied to low-limit games. But, as you see, a few cannot, so you must apply good judgment when using a guide in a medium for which it was not designed.