In ring games whether they are full-ring or six max, there will always be a fair number of players who will raise with a fairly wide range from the button. Most of the time a wider opening range will be correct anyway but some players stray away from this in many poker games and start open raising with around 75% of their total range!
This may even be correct of course at the lower stakes games where more players are playing tightly and especially if they are getting rakeback. If you have been active in a game and have been folding several big blinds then whoever is on the button may just think that it is open season on your blind.
One such hand that I played last year should highlight the point. It was folded to the button who open raised to $3.50 in a NL100 Holdem poker game and we both had $100+ stacks. I had the Kc-3c and called. Many players would either three bet or fold here and these are not bad lines to take.
My own preference is not to escalate a pot out of position with a weak hand and to try and see more streets against a player who I rate to be better than. I want to outplay him and not try to outmuscle him. Trying to outmuscle someone who is prepared for a fight may not be a very wise online poker strategy and I have the capability to play well beyond the flop.
The flop came Ah-Ks-2d giving me middle pair and weak kicker. My opponent had been very aggressive and my Poker Office told me that this guy raised a lot of buttons when it had been folded to him. So my middle pair is now ahead of his range so I wait for the obvious continuation bet and check-call.
If I am behind then so be it and your variance increases in and around the blinds but you shouldn’t be afraid of that as good solid short handed skills can make you a mint in small-stakes poker. My opponent was raising 73% of his hands when folded to on the button so my K-3s favours well against his range.
Against players who play badly post flop and who think that aggression is the be all and end all of poker then you can really find good EV in these situations. The turn card is the 3h giving me two pair and the probable best hand. With $17.50 in the pot then I need to decide what to do. If I check then they may check a lot of hands back as I have called a pre-flop raise and also a flop bet on a board with no draws.
I decide to check and let him possibly fire another barrel as a bluff and I do so but this plan is foiled by them checking behind me. The river card is the 9d and now it is time to value bet or to encourage a bluff. His betting sequence looks weak so I make what looks like a weak stab and bet $10 and he raises to $35 and I call and take the pot.
Carl “The Dean” Sampson
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