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Playing
Small Pairs and Over Cards Early in a Tournament.
If you play enough Texas Holdem then
you’ve been involved in many hands that look like AK vs.
QQ’s or AQ vs. JJ’s. These race hands, where it’s
more or less a coin flip, are very common in hold’em. If
you’re playing single table tournaments or
multiplayer
events you’re going to have to win these hands
if you expect to go very far, but try not to get involved in
them until you have to.
One of the most amazing things I read about
Johnny Chan when he won the WSOP for the second time in 1988
were his race hand statistics. When it was down to 3 tables left
he was involved in 14 race hand situations where he held an underpair
vs. over cards or vice versa and he won every single hand. That’s
incredible! But remember he already made it deep into the tournament,
I doubt he was involved in these type of hands early on.
So let’s talk about how to play these
hands, especially in early position, at the beginning of a multiplayer
tournament (see our Starting Hands page for
more) …
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I prefer to play very tight early on in a
tourney. In early positions I really only want to play AK or
better. When I say AK or better, I don’t mean a small pair
like 55’s. I’ll raise under the gun with AK but will
throw away a pair of 55’s. If I hold AQ (suited) in early
position) I may call and hope for no raises from behind back.
If I’m raised, I’m out of the
hand because if an Ace or Queen hits on the flop, I’m forced
to use a lot of feel to win the hand, which can only get me in
trouble early in a tournament. Save the feel plays for later
on when you have more chips or a much better understanding for
the way your opponents play. You can not stand a good raise,
with AQ or lower, from early position in the opening rounds.
In fact, I’ll limp (just call) in early
position on anything from 77’s up to JJ’s if I’m
at a tight table. If someone puts in a nice raise from around
back, I’m out of the hand. But if I get to see a flop it’s
a lot easier to play these small pairs after the flop. Simply,
if I flop a set of trips, then I can try and do some real damage,
if I don’t and there are over cards on the flop, my hand
is easy to throw away.
In that respect playing an underpair, JJ’s
or lower, from early position is a lot easier to play then a
hand like AQ or AJ because it’s a lot easier to get away
from. You don’t want to have to make tricky decisions at
the beginning of a big tournament.
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Your play should be somewhat predictable early
on, it’s better to let the cards do the talking. As the
tournament goes on and you have shown your opponents you’re
a solid player then you can begin to switch gears. Maybe try
and catch someone leaning the wrong way by making plays that
would be somewhat out of character based on your early play.
But starting out you have to be very picky about the hands you
play. Good solid play is the recipe for early success in a holdem
event.
Too many times, in multiplayer tournaments, you will see someone
call all their chips away with AK or go All In with a small pair
like 88’s. In either case you may win the hand but this
type of play will not help you to go deep in tournaments.
If anything, it shows you have a tendency
to gamble too much in the beginning of a tournament and you’ll
probably get caught gambling later on. It also doesn’t
do a lot for your table image. If I see a guy that’s willing
to put all his chips in with what I consider a weak hand, then
I’ll make the necessary adjustments, as will all the other
real players, therefore decreasing his chances against the table.
If I see a player that raises in early position
with small pairs I make note of it. If I see a player in early
position that calls the big blind or stays in a raised pot with
A10 or A blank, I make note of it. It’s important to fashion
the right type of image at the tables because your gonna need
every edge you can get. If other players don’t give you
respect because you make loose plays then it’s going to
be that much harder for you to win.
So let’s summarize a few of the concepts
discussed...
It’s best to limp with smaller pairs
from early or middle position and then fold if you’re raised
from around back. If you’ve tried this a few times and
the pot keeps getting raised then don’t even limp with
small pairs.
Just drop any hand weaker then AQ and even
AQ in most circumstances. Remember you don’t want to get
involved in hands that involve feel early in a multiplayer tournament.
Sometimes you may even have to drop AK, QQ’s or even KK’s
depending on who you’re playing with.
Dropping KK’s pre flop for the first
time is almost a cathartic experience. Although I rarely recommend
doing this, sometimes early on in a multiplayer tournament against
a player, you know only plays premium hands, in a pot that has
been raised and re raised, this may be the right move. Don’t
worry you’ll feel better about it later, especially if
your opponent shows those pocket bullets (AA’s).
When you’re able to drop KK’s
before the flop and AA’s after the flop then you can go
on to accomplish pretty much anything playing Texas Holdem. Many
players can never get away from a hand like AA’s or KK’s,
even when they’re instincts tell them they’re beat.
That’s why their game stands still and they never reach
the highest levels of play.
Much of what I have outlined here can be debated.
Poker is a situational game and nothing is written in stone.
I will break some of the very rules I’ve written about
if I think the situation is right to do so. Though, for the most
part this is how I’d play it. Just remember, treat the
above guidelines as a template, not gospel.
I hope this section helps your early position
decision-making when your pocket cards look anything like the
ones I described here. Good Luck!
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To complete your knowledge
of the math behind Texas Holdem Poker, read these sections: Pre Flop
Odds, Outs and Odds, Starting Hands and Drawing Hand Odds.
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