Before the Flop - When There Was a Raise Before You

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In the article about pre-flop basics, you examined which theoretical concepts influence the game before the flop, and which goals to aim for at this point in the hand. In the next article, it was made clear when and why you should enter the hand pre-flop as the aggressor. Now, in this third article regarding the pre-flop game, you will learn how to play when there were already raises before you.

If there has been a raise before you, the following questions become relevant:

• Who raised?
• From which position was the raise made from?
• Have other players entered the pot?
• Where are you sitting?
• What cards do you have?
• Who is acting behind you?
• Do you have the relative position post-flop on the current aggressor?
• Are you playing short-handed or full-ring?

It is not easy to view all of these points at once, so we will analyse how your playing style changes in different situations with the help of specific hand samples. For instance, we'll examine how your play changes in different positions, or with certain reads on your opponents.

As reads are a very wide topic, we will only use three values here: VPIP, PFR and AF. These values show how often a player enters the hand pre-flop, how often he raises and how aggressive he is post-flop. Further values can of course be helpful in many situations, but they would only make things more complicated.

In the previous pre-flop articles, you learned about a way to categorize every starting hand.

Four categories were distinguished:

• Very strong hands (e.g. high pocket pairs)
• Marginal hands (e.g. KQo)
• Speculative hands (e.g. suited connectors)
• Steal hands (e.g. A4s)

We will examine hands from these categories during the course of this article and analyse the playing style more closely, always with the one important question in mind: what do you do when there has been a raise before you?

You have a very strong hand

We'll begin with taking a look at the play with QQ.

PartyPoker $25 NL Hold'em (10-handed)

Stacks & Stats
UTG ($25)
UTG+1 ($25)
UTG+2 ($25)
MP1 ($25)
MP2 ($25)
MP3 ($25)
CO ($25)
Hero ($25)
SB ($25)
BB ($25)

Pre-flop: Hero is BU with Q , Q
1 fold, UTG+1 raises to $1.00, 5 folds, Hero...

You are sitting at a full-ring table and UTG+1 raises. All of the following players fold. You are against an unknown player and you can assume that you are ahead most of the time. A 3-bet would certainly be the best course of action here, as you have to protect your hand.

If the unknown player from UTG+1 4-bets, you would have the chance to make a tough laydown. The line raise/4-bet from a very early position on a full-ring table is quite often a strong hand and, unfortunately, you are relatively often behind with QQ in this spot. You won't however be making a fatal mistake if you invest all of your money pre-flop with your ladies. It is just that this might be a very variance-rich decision.

What if…

• …you knew that UTG+1 had stats of (12/8/2.1)? Then you should probably not go broke pre-flop. If you 3-bet, you should fold after a 4-bet. A simple call instead of a 3-bet would be an option as well, but would often get you into difficult situations post-flop, as you can hardly separate yourself from an overpair, and would have to muck your hand on an A- or K-high flop.

• …you knew that UTG+1 had the stats of (20/16/4.4)? These values don't really reflect a tight FR player. Your opponent will open-raise with a very wide range, and even against his 4-bet range you see yourself ahead relatively often or at least often enough so that you don't make a mistake with a 3-bet/call push.

• …a further player cold calls the open-raise before you? In this case as well, a squeeze (you 3-bet both players) as well as a fold after a push are possible without a problem. However, should you know that both players are very tight, a call becomes a bit more enticing. Naturally, the situation will become more difficult post-flop, as you will rarely have the best hand without a set and will therefore have problems going broke lightly. Since it would result in an even larger pot a 3-bet/call push also becomes a bit more enticing, as Villain's 4-bet/call range will rarely change in comparison to Scenario 1 (he also sees the dead money of the other player).

• …a player 3-bets before you and you know that both him and the original raiser are relatively tight (e.g. 13/10/2 and 12/8/1.5)? This is actually a spot in which you can say goodbye to your ladies. Often enough, they are no longer good. However, you have to keep the following in mind: if you 4-bet now, you will already have invested so much that you can no longer fold to a push. For 100 BB, you neither 4-bet/fold your queens, nor AK!

• …you 3-bet and a player from the blinds 4-bets? Then you have a similar situation to the one in Scenario 1. Often enough, your hand is no longer good and a fold is conceivable. Alternatively, you could also push all-in of course.

PartyPoker $25 NL Hold'em (10-handed) HandRecorder v0.9b

Stacks & Stats
UTG ($25)
UTG+1 ($25)
UTG+2 ($25)
MP1 ($25)
MP2 ($25)
MP3 ($25)
CO ($25)
BU ($25)
Hero ($25)
BB ($25)

Pre-flop: Hero is SB with Q , Q
7 folds, BU raises to $1.00, Hero...

You are now out of position and the button raises first-in, after all the other players have already folded. His range is very wide here  and you are certainly ahead here - making a 3-bet mandatory. Even if you are confronted with a 4-bet, you still will still have to see yourself most of the times. The player knows that you defend your blinds a bit looser and could 4-bet with a considerably weaker hand. Here, your queens are simply too strong for you to give them up pre-flop. In the blind battle, things are simply a lot looser on full-ring tables. Your line should be 3-bet/call push here.

What if…

• …the big blind behind you 4-bets? You wouldn't really like this, but there is also the possibility that he could be trying to defend his blind. Therefore, you should not get intimidated and push all-in. However, if you decide to muck your hand, you won't be making a big mistake either. Here, you don't have to invest your stack, as you would have to do in a pure heads-up against the button.

• …the button has the stats of (10/7/2.1)? Naturally, you are now in an area where you may doubt if Villain really plays so loosely. However, it is clear that he will raise and 4-bet from within his widest range first-in from the button. If you have a convincing sample base on these stats, then you "may" also find a fold once in a while. However, it isn't a mistake to go broke here - variance and risk are part of poker after all. In this case, you simply have to lower your head and charge.

• …the first-in raise didn't come from the button, but from the cutoff? This wouldn't change the situation much. The CO range should only be minimally smaller.

• …there has already been limper before you? In this case, you should pay attention. The range from the button should now be narrower, as he is not only attacking you or the blinds respectively, but he also has to face the risk that the loose limper will remain in the pot as well. This means that he has to be more certain of his hand. If you deal with the 10/7/2.1 guy in this scenario, the 3-bet would still be the standard move, but you would have to give considerably more credit to a 4-bet from the Villain.

PartyPoker $25 NL Hold'em (6-handed)

Stacks & Stats
CO ($25)
MP ($25)
UTG ($25)
BB ($25)
SB ($25)
Hero ($25)

Pre-flop: Hero is BU with Q , Q
UTG raises to $1.00, 2 folds, Hero...

You are now sitting at a short-handed table. This difference is very important, as a relatively strong hand has an even bigger impact on an SH table than on an FR table (the reasons have already been examined in the basics article).

Let's point out once again that it isn't a big mistake to go broke pre-flop with QQ or AK for 100 BB (AA/KK should be no-brainers). Due to this, you have to actually look for reasons to separate yourself from such a hand pre-flop, if you are actually thinking about doing so.

Because of this the UTG raise doesn't bother you at all. You are very often ahead here, as the open-raising range from UTG is relatively wide for many players. If you are faced with a 4-bet, going broke is no mistake, as has been mentioned before. Of course, you would still like to know something about the player.

What if…

• …the player had the stats of (13/10/2.1)? For SH standards, this would be very tight, so his 4-bet range will be relatively limited. If you ever tried to find situations in which you have good reasons to fold queens pre-flop, this would be one of them.

• …one of the blinds defends aggressively and 4-bets? If he had the stats of the player mentioned above, you could once again consider a tough fold. Against an unknown player, you should go ahead with your play and push.

PartyPoker $25 NL Hold'em (6 handed)

Stacks & Stats
CO ($25)
MP ($25)
UTG ($25)
BB ($25)
Hero ($25)
BU ($25)

Pre-flop: Hero is SB with Q , Q
UTG to $1.00, 1 fold, CO raises to $4.50, 1 fold, Hero...

Now you are in a tougher situation: after the UTG raises, the cutoff 3-bets. This time, you are in the blinds and thus out of position. In the full-ring example, we said that a fold with QQ is the correct choice most of the time after a raise and a 3-bet.

Unfortunately, it isn't that easy in the SH game. Here, you have the best hand often enough. UTG could certainly open-raise with any pocket pair and the cutoff could 3-bet with Broadways (KQ/KJ/etc…). Mathematically, this also means that if you 4-bet, you have to go broke pre-flop as well. As already explained in the beginning, this line is certainly acceptable, however, stats would be a welcomed help in this case.

What if…

• …UTG had the stats of (13/10/2.1) and CO the stats of (20/16/3.8)? UTG's range could also be very wide from early position, and against CO's 3-betting range you are also ahead most of the time. Here you have to 4-bet and go broke.

• …UTG had stats of (20/16/3.8) and CO the stats of (13/10/2.1)? Here, the situation looks a bit different: the 3-bet has greater importance now as the range is considerably more limited. A fold slowly becomes more possible, but it would still be difficult.

• …UTG had the stats of (13/10/2.1) and CO the stats of (14/11/3.1)? Let them have the pot! In this situation, you can avoid a variance-rich decision (in which you might even be an underdog in the long run) with a fold.

Very strong hands should also be played very strongly pre-flop. You have seen a few examples and some specific situations. There are hardly any automatic rules, but you should keep in mind some rough guidelines when playing with very strong hands:

• If you see yourself ahead of Villain's range, you should 3-bet.
• A 3-bet doesn't commit you. 3-bet/fold is easily conceivable on FR tables.
• It is of utmost importance that you pay attention to stats. You should collect as much information as possible.
• Hands like AK/QQ have a higher value in the SH game than on FR tables. Therefore, a pre-flop all-in with these hands is often acceptable in short-handed games.
• For a maximum of 100 BB, there is no 4-bet/fold with such hands, no matter if you are playing FR or SH.

You have a Pocket Pair

Now, let's take a look at the play with a small pocket pair.

PartyPoker $25 NL Hold'em (10-handed)

Stacks & Stats
UTG ($25)
UTG+1 ($25)
UTG+2 ($25)
MP1 ($25)
MP2 ($25)
MP3 ($25)
CO ($25)
Hero ($25)
SB ($25)
BB ($25)

Pre-flop: Hero is BU with 4 , 4
1 fold, UTG+1 raises to $1.00, 5 folds, Hero...

A standard example: you are sitting on the button with a pocket pair and there was a raise before you. Taking into consideration the call20 rule, you can find a call here and hope to hit your set on the flop. The call20 rule is based on the fact that you hit your set every 7.5th time, and assumes in a simplified way that you can stack Villain every second time or third time at most (if Villain always always goes broke with his hand post-flop, a call8 rule would theoretically suffice).

What would the alternatives be? A fold is not conceivable. You are sitting in position and can calmly take a look at the flop - 44 is an excellent hand for this. Basically, a 3-bet could come into consideration, but against an unknown player you have to make sure that you don't overplay your hand. It was already explained that an UTG+1 raise on an FR table certainly has to be given credit and you ultimately hope that Villain has a strong hand with which he will fully pay you off in case you hit.

What if…

• …Villain had the stats of (20/17/2.2)? Basically, the stats are not really important in this case, as you can't be too wrong with a call. However, if you really want to 3-bet once in a while, a looser opponent is better suited than a tight one since you have lower implied odds against him as he will open-raise many different hands – even from an early position – with which he is only very rarely ready to go broke post-flop.

• …there are also some cold callers after the open-raiser? Then a call would be an obligation, and a 3-bet would be completely overplayed.

• …you cold call and one of the blinds 3-bets? Then it depends. Basically, a fold is fine. However, you have to consider that you could call if some aspects are taken into consideration:

  • The open-raiser before you calls the 3-bet. Thus you are last to act.
  • You can classify both players as loose and - ideally - bad.
  • You can give yourself high implied odds.
  • When the call20 rule is fulfilled (which is given when both players remain in the pot), you can decide for a call because of your position.

PartyPoker $25 NL Hold'em (10-handed)

Stacks & Stats
UTG ($25)
UTG+1 ($25)
UTG+2 ($25)
MP1 ($25)
MP2 ($25)
MP3 ($25)
CO ($25)
BU ($25)
Hero ($25)
BB ($25)

Pre-flop: Hero is SB with 4 , 4
7 folds, BU raises to $1.00, Hero...

This example is also quite similar to the one mentioned above. In general, the open-raising range from the button is relatively big, so a 3-bet comes into consideration here.

Mainly, there are two reasons for this:

• 1. You are still ahead often enough.
• 2. You don't have enough implied odds to be able to stack Villain post-flop.

If you are faced with a 4-bet, you have a very easy fold, of course. If Villain cold calls, you can also place a continuation bet on the flop out of position on suitable boards.

What if…

• …Villain had the stats of (13/10/2.1)? Here as well, a 3-bet is a good line. However, the tighter your opponent is, the narrower his range and the stronger his hands are. This means that the implied odds increase and a call becomes possible again.

• …a 4-bet is placed behind you? Naturally, you are out of the hand with further action, no matter whether the button or one of the blinds 4-bet.

• …Villain sits one or two positions earlier? Here, let's refer to the previous scenario. The earlier Villain's position is, the narrower his range, and so a call is generally the better alternative.

PartyPoker $25 NL Hold'em (6-handed)

Stacks & Stats
CO ($25)
MP ($25)
UTG ($25)
BB ($25)
SB ($25)
Hero ($25)

Pre-flop: Hero is BU with 4 , 4
UTG raises to $1.00, 2 folds, Hero...

In short-handed games, there is a clear difference as the open-raising range is considerably looser than on FR tables, so your implied odds are always lower than on a 10-max table.

In this case, UTG raised, and you are sitting on the button and therefore in position. You have the option of either calling or 3-betting.

The fact that you can act in position and thus extract value post-flop with relative ease speaks in favour of a call. Speaking against a call is the fact that you also have to be able to bluff a corresponding flop without a hit (or to float, which means to call on the flop and to bluff-bet on the turn) in order to make this profitable over the long run. Simply calling for set value is not possible, as you would become too easily readable. It is important that you vary and balance your game, which means that you should not only cold call small pocket pairs and fold/3-bet everything else. This also applies to the above hand, meaning you can 3-bet your pocket pair here, or call. Both options are possible under specific circumstances.

• …UTG had the stats of (15/12/3.1)? The player seems to be relatively tight. You should give preference to a call.

• …UTG had the stats (24/21/4.1)? You can rarely give yourself high implied odds. A 3-bet is certainly a possibility here, even when keeping in mind that Villain is raising from the earliest possible position. The question you have to ask yourself here is which hands you even want to call against him, and which to 3-bet. Against such players, you should vary even more and thus balance between call and 3-bet even more than usual.

• …Villain is very aggressive and sits in the cutoff? Then you should 3-bet alone due to the previously mentioned reasons (No. 1: lacking implied odds).

• …one or even two players before you called? Then you should almost always leave out the 3-bet and only call for set value.

• …you 3-bet, and one of the blinds or the open-raiser bets one more time? Against further action, you also have an easy fold here. Of course, you should never call a 4-bet, and a pre-flop all-in is completely out of question.

PartyPoker $25 NL Hold'em (6-handed)

Stacks & Stats
CO ($25)
MP ($25)
UTG ($25)
BB ($25)
Hero ($25)
BU ($25)

Pre-flop: Hero is SB with 4 , 4
UTG raises to $1.00, 1 fold, CO raises to $4.50, 1 fold, Hero...

Once again there are two players before you who've entered the pot with their hands.

In this situation, you have a clear fold. In the second FR example, it was said that you could call a 3-bet under certain circumstances. However, here you have the big problem that you would have to act out of position, and that you wouldn't be the last to act. Furthermore, your implied odds are almost always lower on SH tables. So a fold becomes the only option here.

What if…

• …doesn't actually exist here. Of course you can call, get a lucky hit and win a big pot. However, you shouldn't get used to making such a play. For 100 BB, you should never call a 3-bet out of position with a speculative hand.

  There is a small limitation. If the other two players and you are very deep (over 200 BB deep), and you also know that they aren't really very good players then a call could come into consideration. Moreover you need to have the read that UTG will almost never 4-bet, but instead call nearly everytime.

With a pocket pair, you mostly have an easy decision on FR tables, as you can often employ the call20 rule. However on SH tables, you rarely have sufficient implied odds to cold call by default. A good feel for the table and your opponents is needed here.

Important questions:

• Do you have sufficient implied odds post-flop to justify a call?
• Are you ready to bluff the flop or turn once in a while in the case of not having hit?
• Do you balance your cold calls, or are you becoming readable?
• Do you generate enough fold equity pre-flop with a 3-bet?
• Is Villain able to fold on the flop after your continuation bet?

You have a Suited Connector

The post-flop playability of suited connectors is quite good, as you don't have any domination problems. In contrast to a pocket pair though, you will often only hit a draw on the flop, which is a hand that has to improve on the following streets and currently has no showdown value.

This means you have to see if you have post-flop information about your opponent. Furthermore, there is no option for a simple call as is often the case with a pocket pair.

PartyPoker $25 NL Hold'em (10-handed)

Stacks & Stats
UTG ($25)
UTG+1 ($25)
UTG+2 ($25)
MP1 ($25)
MP2 ($25)
MP3 ($25)
CO ($25)
Hero ($25)
SB ($25)
BB ($25)

Pre-flop: Hero is BU with 6 , 7
1 fold, UTG+1 raises to $1.00, 5 folds, Hero...

With your suited connectors, you won't hit the board often enough to call by default and wait for a hit. When you cold call here, you have to play your draw post-flop very aggressively very often, or even bluff completely (raise flop or float).

Alternatively, a 3-bet comes into consideration. Your hand is almost never dominated, but of course you would often have to go broke in a 3-bet pot with a good draw. Especially against a UTG open-raising range, this could often result in close situations which could hardly be classified as +EV.

So you won't be doing anything wrong if your default action in this situation is to hit the fold button.

What if…

• …you had stats on Villain and knew that he plays either very tightly or very aggressively? This doesn't help you a lot. Against a tight Villain, you certainly have good implied odds, but he will rarely separate himself from an overpair, so that you would still have very little fold equity in case of a good draw. Against a very loose player, it isn't only the fold equity that drops, but the implied odds drop as well. In both cases, you should prefer a fold to a call.

• …several players before you have entered the hand as well? With a further cold caller, the situation becomes interesting as your implied odds increase, and you have position. If two or even more players have entered the pot, a call slowly becomes an obligation. A 3-bet would be overplayed.

• …Villain sits on the cutoff? Now, your implied odds would be very small so that the alternatives of folding or making a 3-bet become interesting. Especially for balancing reasons, a 3-bet could now be advantageous.

• …you have reads on the blinds and don't want to fold? If you know that they call very loosely (calling stations), a cold call would be acceptable. If you know that they are aggressive and notorious squeezers, then you should 3-bet instead.

PartyPoker $25 NL Hold'em (10-handed)

Stacks & Stats
UTG ($25)
UTG+1 ($25)
UTG+2 ($25)
MP1 ($25)
MP2 ($25)
MP3 ($25)
CO ($25)
BU ($25)
Hero ($25)
BB ($25)

Pre-flop: Hero is SB with 6 , 7
7 folds, BU raises to $1.00, Hero...

Here you are facing a blind stealer again. In the previous example, it was explained that it will be very difficult for you post-flop to play profitably in the heads-up. Now you also have the disadvantage of having to act out of position.

With a 3-bet, you can actively defend your blind. However, as you would have big post-flop problems when calling, the alternative would be a fold.

What if…

• …Villain had the stats (20/16/3.3)? He obviously steals very often, but you have little implied odds. You should 3-bet.

• …Villain had the stats (12/9/2.3)? Here as well, a 3-bet could be worth it. Against his range, you can certainly expect quite a bit of fold equity. On the flop, you can still get out of your hand easily after your continuation bet. Against such opponents, you should 3-bet with drawing hands rather than with potentially dominated hands.

• …Villain has raised from an earlier position? The earlier the position, the more often you should find a fold.

PartyPoker $25 NL Hold'em (6-handed)

Stacks & Stats
CO ($25)
MP ($25)
UTG ($25)
BB ($25)
SB ($25)
Hero ($25)

Pre-flop: Hero is BU with 6 , 7
UTG raises to $1.00, 2 folds, Hero...

Let's get to the short-handed examples again. The basic idea is similar to the full-ring example. Lacking implied odds make a fold seem like the best alternative. A call only comes into question if you dare to make one or the other move post-flop. With a 3-bet, you could balance your image a bit. If you were very tight so far (card dead), you could place a 3-bet here every now and then. If you were rather active, you should leave this spot out and find a simple fold.

What if…

• …Villain has stats of (27/23/3.4)? In this case, the implied odds are very small. On the other hand, you cannot fold every hand against such an opponent and you have to defend your blind once in a while. The occasional 3-bet is certainly viable here.

• …Villain has stats of (24/8/1.1)? When someone like this raises, you mostly want to hit a perfect flop. With a suited connector, this is not go to happen often enough. You should fold here.

• …a further player called? A call would be possible, as against two opponents in position, this hand is certainly easily playable post-flop. However, you also have the possibility of a squeeze, so a 3-bet. Hardly anybody could call you, and after a 4-bet you would have an easy fold. Ultimately, this move is very close to a bluff, and you should take your opponents, and your own image, into consideration when attempting this kind of move.

• …you cold call, one of the blinds 3-bets, and the initial open-raiser calls? You would have a 3-handed pot, but you would have to hit with your drawing hand. Here you need further reads about your opponents, mainly if they are so weak and loose post-flop that you could also stack them with a good hit, and thus have sufficient implied odds. Under certain circumstances, a call would be conceivable, as you are sitting in position, but with a fold you wouldn't be making a mistake either. If you were out of position (e.g. in the small blind), it would be a very easy fold.

PartyPoker $25 NL Hold'em (6-handed)

Stacks & Stats
CO ($25)
MP ($25)
UTG ($25)
BB ($25)
Hero ($25)
BU ($25)

Pre-flop: Hero is SB with 6 , 7
UTG to $1.00, 1 fold, CO raises to $4.50, 1 fold, Hero...

In this situation you are way out of your league with a suited connector. A cold call is out of question as you don't know if UTG won't add another bet on top and you would also have to play out of position. This is a very easy fold.

With a drawing hand such as a suited connector, you are rarely dominated post-flop, but you also don't hit very often. It is important to have a plan for your post-flop play.

Important criteria:

• Do you have sufficient implied odds to call pre-flop?
• Are you ready for a pure bluff on a good flop?
• Are you ready to go broke on the flop with a (strong) draw?
• Do you have enough fold equity for a 3-bet pre-flop?
• Does your opponent fold often enough after a continuation bet, to better justify a 3-bet pre-flop?
• Is a multi-way pot looming, or will you play heads-up?

With suited connectors, you can easily balance your play by playing them aggressively once in a while, passively another time, and simply not at all in the rest of the cases. It is important to know that you need implied odds, as you won't hit the flop very often. Even if you hit a strong draw, you would mostly have to improve to a strong made hand.

You have a Marginal Hand

For the example of a marginal hand, we will use KQo. These hands have the partially negative characteristic of looking good and having a good equity on one hand but often being dominated on the other.  This means that simply fold is not always the correct decision, but on the other hand they are potentially dominated and rarely able to win a big pot.

Consequently, you should now analyse the following situations:

PartyPoker $25 NL Hold'em (10-handed)

Stacks & Stats
UTG ($25)
UTG+1 ($25)
UTG+2 ($25)
MP1 ($25)
MP2 ($25)
MP3 ($25)
CO ($25)
Hero ($25)
SB ($25)
BB ($25)

Pre-flop: Hero is BU with K , Q
1 fold, UTG+1 raises to $1.00, 5 folds, Hero...

In this situation, Hero has a rather nasty decision to make. He can fold, call or 3-bet. What makes the most sense?

Let's first take a look at the possible 3-bet: To do this you basically have to assume that Villain is capable of calling your 3-bet with a weaker hand. If you think he is at the most capable of calling with the hands AK or AQ, you have the known domination problem. As Villain is unknown here, you have no reason to give him a very loose open-raising range and to believe that he would call your 3-bet with KJ/QJ or similar. A 3-bet would thus be overplayed.

A call is possible, but includes the problem that you only hit in about one of three cases post-flop. It is also hard to say what this hit is worth. If you assume that Villain open-raises a bit looser, but would never call a 3-bet with a weaker hand, a call would thus be the best option.

However a fold is also possible. You cannot expect a lot post-flop, no matter whether you hit or not and would have to play for pot control (unless you hit two pairs or better, but that is rather improbable). Furthermore, it will be rather difficult  to find a suitable post-flop balance between the aforementioned pot control and the extraction of value. If you hit a top pair, you want to be paid off of course but for this you would first have to find a suitable opponent with a suitable hand.

If you are bad estimating where you stand with such a hand, and you are unsure about how to play it, by e.g.:

• checking three times, as you want to play way ahead / way behind, and therefore not extracting any value
• creating a lot of action with a top pair, and going broke too often
• raising in certain situations (check/raise) and then giving up your top pair (which is not an ideal playing style anyway, but that is not the topic here)

…then you should rather find a fold in this situation.

What if…

• …Villain had the stats (20/17/4.1)? You would know that Villain open-raises a lot, but would hardly call a 3-bet with a weaker hand. You should preferably find a call here.

• …Villain had the stats (15/6/1.1)? Pre-flop, he raises very little, with KQo you often have a domination problem here. You should rather look at folding here.

• …there are one or more cold callers? You don't really want to play in a multi-way pot with KQo. If you reasonably decide against a 3-bet, you could certainly also find a fold with KQ every now and then. A call would be conceivable, but then you have to pay attention post-flop!!

PartyPoker $25 NL Hold'em (10-handed)

Stacks & Stats
UTG ($25)
UTG+1 ($25)
UTG+2 ($25)
MP1 ($25)
MP2 ($25)
MP3 ($25)
CO ($25)
BU ($25)
Hero ($25)
BB ($25)

Pre-flop: Hero is SB with K , Q
7 folds, BU raises to $1.00, Hero...

Now, you have a steal situation again. The button raises, you are out of position. Here as well, all three options would be legitimate under specific circumstances.

However, you have to keep in mind that Villain's range is now considerably wider. You can find a relatively easy fold against an UTG raise, but KQo in this situation is actually too strong. You should alternate between the variants call and 3-bet here.

What if…

• …Villain had the stats (20/17/4.1)? In this case, a 3-bet would certainly be fine as you would actively defend against his steals with this move.

• …Villain had the stats (10/7/2.5)? If you are ready to also fold your top pair post-flop every now and then, then a 3-bet is still conceivable. A call would be most applicable here. If you face a very tight button, you can also sometimes consider a fold.

PartyPoker $25 NL Hold'em (6-handed)

Stacks & Stats
CO ($25)
MP ($25)
UTG ($25)
BB ($25)
SB ($25)
Hero ($25)

Pre-flop: Hero is BU with K , Q
UTG raises to $1.00, 2 folds, Hero...

Once again, we switch to the short-handed table. Here, you have to internalize the fact that hands like KQo are to be seen considerably stronger than in the FR game.

If an unknown player raises from UTG, you can still think about a fold. Many players consider this is too weak, but you certainly won't be making a big mistake. A 3-bet is usually overplayed as you are faced with the same domination problems as listed in FR example 4.1. Just as in FR, your 3-bets will only rarely be called by hands that you are ahead of (such as KJo- etc..).

So most of the time a call is the best line here. You have position post-flop, and can therefore also win the hand with a bluff from time to time.

What if…

• …Villain open-raises from CO or from MP? The later the position and the looser the opponent, the more often you should 3-bet.

• …you call and one of the blinds 3-bets? Then the hand has runs its course for you and you should fold.

PartyPoker $25 NL Hold'em (6-handed)

Stacks & Stats
CO ($25)
MP ($25)
UTG ($25)
BB ($25)
Hero ($25)
BU ($25)

Pre-flop: Hero is SB with K , Q
3 folds, BU raises to $1.00, Hero...

In the steal situation you shouldn't consider a fold, as KQo is simply too strong in this situation. Calls and 3-bets should vary here, depending on the opponent, the table image, and balancing.

What if…

• …Villain is very loose? As Villain will try to steal your blinds very often, you will have to defend yourself actively. As you would often 3-bet with speculative and strong hands, you should also do this with marginal hands. Your fold equity should be sufficient most of the time.

• …Villain is very tight? Naturally, you also have a good fold equity against tight players. Therefore, you shouldn't shy away from 3-bets in general, but pay attention to what he calls your 3-bets with.

• …the BB behind you is rather aggressive? This means he will often decide for a squeeze if you cold call. Therefore, a 3-bet would be preferable, as you would have to give up your hand after a further raise behind you.

PartyPoker $25 NL Hold'em (6-handed)

Stacks & Stats
CO ($25)
MP ($25)
UTG ($25)
BB ($25)
Hero ($25)
BU ($25)

Pre-flop: Hero is SB with K , Q

UTG to $1.00, 1 fold, CO raises to $4.50, 1 fold, Hero...

After a 3-bet before you, KQo is definitely too weak to enter the pot here. You should find a fold here, without question.

With marginal hands you have to pay attention to what you are getting involved in. You are often dominated and will be playing in difficult situations post-flop.

The crucial points to consider are:

• Do you have position? A marginal top pair can be played considerably better in position than out of position, as you can either practice some pot control on one hand, but also bet for value on the other hand (you don't necessarily have to include a check/raise with such a hand).
• Are you ahead of the open-raising range of the initial raiser?
• When you 3-bet, does Villain also call with a worse hand?
• Do you have sufficient fold equity, pre-flop as well as on the flop?

It isn't wrong to play a bit more carefully with such hands at first, at least until you have acquired a basic sense of security, or collected sufficient reads on your opponents. You can rarely make quick decisions with these hands, but have to deliberate on each street in order to balance pot control and value extraction. Furthermore, you have to be able to separate yourself from top pair when facing a lot of action.

You have a Weak Drawing Hand

Weak drawing hands are hands such as suited aces or kings, suited one-gappers and off-suited connectors. These hands certainly have post-flop potential and can be played for big pots on suitable boards. However, you hit even less often with these hands on average than for instance with pocket pairs or suited connectors.

So it is crucial to calculate your implied odds and to be ready for a post-flop move (bluff)  every now and then, and of course to not get involved in a big pot with a semi-strong hand.

This danger is mostly present with suited aces, as you first and foremost play them to hit a flush(draw) which will then be (or turn into) the strongest hand. However, it becomes problematic on an A-high board, as you can't simply play c/f there. While you do hold top pair, will often have a relatively bad kicker.

PartyPoker $25 NL Hold'em (10-handed)

Stacks & Stats
UTG ($25)
UTG+1 ($25)
UTG+2 ($25)
MP1 ($25)
MP2 ($25)
MP3 ($25)
CO ($25)
Hero ($25)
SB ($25)
BB ($25)

Pre-flop: Hero is BU with A , 4
1 fold, UTG+1 raises to $1.00, 5 folds, Hero...

With your suited ace, you hit the flop relatively rarely, and especially on an A-high board, you would be in a world of trouble. Therefore, you should have a clear fold here.

What if…

• …one or more cold callers entered the hand as well? With a cold caller, the chance to extract value post-flop increases, should you hit. The more opponents you have, the higher your implied odds after all. If two cold callers entered the hand, a call would certainly be the best choice.

PartyPoker $25 NL Hold'em (10-handed)

Stacks & Stats
UTG ($25)
UTG+1 ($25)
UTG+2 ($25)
MP1 ($25)
MP2 ($25)
MP3 ($25)
CO ($25)
BU ($25)
Hero ($25)
BB ($25)

Pre-flop: Hero is SB with A , 4
7 folds, BU raises to $1.00, Hero...

Against the stealer, you actually only have two options: fold or 3-bet. In this situation, a 3-bet is more or less a bluff, which however the additional possibility of hitting something on the flop. If you only call, you would have to bluff post-flop in order to make calling here profitable in the long run. A fold should be the standard here.

What if…

• …the raise came from an early position and there were cold callers? In this case, you have to evaluate your implied odds again. However, here you have the problem that you would have to play out of position post-flop. Draws are very hard to play out of position. Therefore, you should still find a fold here.

PartyPoker $25 NL Hold'em (6-handed)

Stacks & Stats
CO ($25)
MP ($25)
UTG ($25)
BB ($25)
SB ($25)
Hero ($25)

Pre-flop: Hero is BU with A , 4
UTG raises to $1.00, 2 folds, Hero...

In the SH example as well, almost the same applies as in the previous example. A fold should therefore be the standard move. If you decide to call you would need a Plan B for your game post-flop game, just as you would need ample reasonable justification in order to 3-bet here.

What if…

• …UTG had the stats (30/25/3.2)? You would have to pay attention to his post-flop play, and consider where you can crack him. If you think you can also get him off a better hand post-flop every now and then, then you can call here from time to time. Likewise, you could shoot back with 3-bets more frequently. Naturally, the question remains whether there aren't any better spots for this than with your suited ace (or with a similar marginal drawing hand) against his UTG raise.

• …there are cold callers? Against loose players, you can give yourself the implied odds every now and then to play profitably in position in a 3-handed pot post-flop, or to be able to draw. However, you should be able to roughly estimate your opponent for this. If there really are two cold callers, you should stay in the pot.

PartyPoker $25 NL Hold'em (6-handed)

Stacks & Stats
CO ($25)
MP ($25)
UTG ($25)
BB ($25)
Hero ($25)
BU ($25)

Pre-flop: Hero is SB with A , 4
3 folds, BU raises to $1.00, Hero...

Although you have to assume in this situation that the open-raising range of the stealer is considerably wider, this doesn't actually give your hand any more strength. You do however have a certain amount of fold equity, so that a 3-bet as an active blind defense certainly makes sense. You can hit a strong board post-flop, but of course you shouldn't go broke just with top pair (this is why hands like T9s, 89o etc. are also suitable here).

PartyPoker $25 NL Hold'em (6-handed)

Stacks & Stats
CO ($25)
MP ($25)
UTG ($25)
BB ($25)
Hero ($25)
BU ($25)

Pre-flop: Hero is SB with A , 4
UTG to $1.00, 1 fold, CO raises to $4.50, 1 fold, Hero...

A clear decision: A cold call, in the hope that the loose UTG calls as well, is out of question. Even if this was to happen, you would be out of position post-flop with your drawing hand, which is what you want to avoid. Here, a fold is the only correct decision.

With somewhat weaker drawing hands, you should be very careful. Often you don't have sufficient implied odds to play these hands passively and hope for good hits. Furthermore, hands such as suited aces or suited kings aren't easy to play if you hit a weak top pair.

You have to ask yourself the following questions:

• Do you have enough fold equitywith a 3-bet?
• Will a multi-way pot take place, so that you can play your hand passively?
• Can expect the hand to develop into a multi-way pot?
• Does your opponent play so aggressively that you would rather 3-bet with such hands than with dominated hands?

For these hands, you need a lot of security and experience, but if you don't play them, you won't learn anything new either. Mistakes happen, so you should be brave, and enter the actions with such hands as well!

Conclusion

You have seen different hand categories, different opponents and different positions. Furthermore, you've examined both playing variants; short-handed as well as full-ring.

Nevertheless, there will be many people who'll still say: “Well, I would have done something else here...”

This is exactly the reason why it isn't possible to give fixed guidelines. Nobody can replace your own reasoning at the poker table. You have to decide for yourself if your hand is good or not when somebody has already raised before you. Do you have implied odds? Do you have fold equity? Or do you simply want to fight back once in a while?

These examples should only offer a few basic ideas, which you should go over every time you are faced with such a decision.

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