Switching from Fixed Limit to No Limit Hold'em
Introduction
In this article you will learn about
- Different betting structures and strategies for playing preflop and postflop
- The relevance of top pairs, variable bet and stack sizes and position
- What influence tracking software statistics have
- How big the profit expectation is
When playing Fixed Limit Hold'em you are used to placing small bets up to and including the flop, and big bets at the turn or river (2 small bets = 1 big bet). This particular type of betting behaviour causes certain moves to become habitual, as the given odds are usually the same and only vary depending on the number of opponents. Preflop play can thus be illustrated in charts, according to which you can play an optimal game, as you cannot make any mistakes with regards to odds.
This regulated betting structure also has a clear effect on postflop play of course. On the flop for example it is practically impossible to drive out a flush draw, as this will almost always have the correct odds. The same goes for this situation on the turn. On the other hand you are aware of the fact that a supposed hand with showdown value would cost you a maximum of 2.5 big bets in heads-up play, should you be way ahead/way behind.
From a mathematical point of view many mistakes can be avoided here and so one can come close to playing an almost optimal game (definitely preflop, but also postflop). This is where No Limit Hold'em greatly differs.
When playing No Limit Hold'em all these points cease to apply, as bet sizes are not pre-determined. This way all your fellow players are free to bet as much as they like (and also to go all-in at any time). This means that your opponents can change the odds - before and after the flop - to their advantage. The consequences of this, or rather what further points you need to take into account because of this, will be discussed below.
Fundamental Differences
It is hard to judge when it is easier to eliminate a fish, and depends on your skills in the different variations of the game. Consider the advantages however, if a fish were to join your table:
- It is easier to isolate him by using variable bet sizes
- You can rid him of his entire stack with one hand
- You can force him to make many mistakes
Use the opportunities you get to always give your opponents the incorrect odds or to do some big value betting with strong hands. This is a more than effective strategy, especially against calling stations. You don't need to use a lot of tricks, but can force your opponent to pay a much too high a price for his potentially weak hand by placing high value bets. You don't have this option in Fixed Limit games! In those games you can place a maximum of 2.5 big bets as a value bet, as long as your opponent only calls down.
Profit expectation is quite hard to estimate. It is usually said that when one has mastered one variation the expected profit is about the same. The expectation for No Limit games is probably a little higher by now, however, because of aspects such as fishiness and the available number of tables, aspects which will be discussed in further detail below.
What about variance? This question is not particularly easy to answer, as it comes down to perspective. If you look at how often you actually win with the strongest hand preflop or on the flop, then Fixed Limit games definitely have more variance.
This is related to the fact that you cannot protect your hands sufficiently and your opponents therefore draw you out relatively often. In No Limit games, on the other hand, you can often invest a lot of money with last-minute decisions.
That's why it's easy to imagine losing more than five stacks (500 big blinds) in a session, without you having made a big mistake. So if you base the variance on the big blinds, you can manage to have it fluctuate more in No Limit games.
This is definitely quite a big advantage of No Limit Hold'em. The choice of tables - especially at the higher limits - is a lot more "pleasant" than in the Fixed Limit area. You can find plenty of tables at any time of day - also at the highest limits -.
The concentration of fish does considerably decrease at the high limits, however. A game doesn't really become profitable until at least one fish starts playing at the table, as he often makes exactly those mistakes that will earn you money in the end.
There are also plenty of opportunities at the highest limits, whereas you really have to look for them in Fixed Limit games. This has to do with the fact that No Limit Hold'em is publicly the most well-known variation of the game. In other words: many new players, who pay in money and want to get going at the higher limits straight away, who prefer the variation that they've seen in adverts or on TV programmes.
Having opponent statistics is a huge advantage. It means you don't have to examine every played hand and incorporate them into your thinking. It enables you to look at the respective values from time to time when you need them for a particular reason. There is, however, an important difference in the analysis of statistics. In Fixed Limit games you can precisely analyse whether an opponent is continuously playing a good game on the basis of certain values. Some examples:
- If the VPIP is too high, this means your opponent is making a lot of mistakes in the long run, as he plays marginal hands too often and does not have the necessary equity for the showdown.
- If the PFR is too low, then your opponent is making a lot of mistakes in the long run, as he is not getting enough value out of his potentially strong hands while he is ahead.
- If the "Went to Showdown“ value is too high, this means that your opponent is proceeding to the showdown with weak hands too often.
- ...
This list can be continued as desired. In the No Limit games, however, it is not possible to draw the same conclusions from these values in an over-simplified way. A player who has the values 13/10 (VPIP/PFR) can be just as successful in the game as a player who has 40/35 or even 40/10, as long as his postflop play has been adapted accordingly.
Because of the greater betting possibilities on the later streets preflop, mistakes are not necessarily an indication of whether someone is playing continuously well. There are also a lot of players who tend to play passive and try to play as many hands to the showdown. Again this does not automatically mean that a higher WTSD is to be assessed negatively as a principle.
When looking at the StrategyPoints Fixed Limit Hold'em usually gets a better value (of course this varies depending on the platform), in so far that this is projected onto the number of played hands. This means, however, that because of the mentioned situation of being "showdown bound" more and more careful decisions have to be made on the turn and river in Fixed Limit games. In No Limit games you have the possibility of playing a few tables more, which means you could catch up on the StrategyPoints with that.
Different strategies for playing preflop
There are a huge number of charts available for Fixed Limit preflop play. These charts tell you whether the prospects of your starting hand technically demand a fold, call or raise. Unfortunately this cannot be put into a chart when playing No Limit Hold'em. There are many reasons for this.
In a No Limit game dynamics are a decisive factor. This means that many situational aspects play a role in a preflop decision, and these need to be taken into account. These are for example:
- Your position
- Type and number of opponents
- Opponents' postflop play
- Opponents' stack size
- Estimation of implied odds or danger of domination
- Your image in relation to what's gone at your table so far
- ...
There are many more points one could mention here. But just concentrate on those listed above for now, as these are considered the most important.
The equity of a hand is most important in the first instance. If you are holding a better hand than your opponent, you need to try to get money in the pot and make the players with worse hands pay.
In Fixed Limit games this is not quite so hard. The charts show you with which hands and from which position you should raise. Especially hands like broadways (AK/AQ//AJ/KQ/KJ) have good equity and, if hit, can be played aggressive from the flop onwards. This goes for hands like (AX/KX) from a later position too. This leads to the following:
- You have low implied odds
- You have low reverse implied odds
In other words: It will be hard to make big profit on future streets with a hand that has more of a drawing character. You won't lose a great deal with a hand like a top pair either though.
This is different when playing No Limit games. You don't pay that much preflop, but have the opportunity to win or lose an entire stack postflop. A hand with drawing character therefore has a much higher value here. A hand like ATo on the other hand is dangerous, as you more than often have to play for too big a pot postflop. This is where you're dealing with reverse implied odds, as you can assume that you'll have to pay for a better hand on an ace-high board much more often than that you'll get value from a worse hand.
A scene which is impossible in a Fixed Limit game: All-in before the flop. In No Limit games, however, you can decide to put your complete stack in the middle before the flop when you have 100 big blinds or even more. Of course this decision can be expected to be most profitable when one is holding a premium hand. Aces or kings, but also hands like AK and QQ would be shortlisted here (of course it is "possible" with all hands). What should be clear is that the variance could increase considerably by doing this.
Which poses the question: Why go all-in at all?
First of all you want to force your opponent to put money in the pot and thus make mistakes with your potentially strongest hand before the flop. Though it is certainly not the ideal scenario to already have to put all of one's money in the middle with hands like AK and QQ before the flop, you will often not have any other choice. If you get a 3bet, then you won't know much about the strength of you opponent's hand. In most cases you will have the best hand, which means you are the favourite and can accordingly 4bet. If an opponent then pushes you will have a mathematically correct call with AK as well as QQ against the opponent's range of AK, QQ+.
Different strategies for playing postflop
When the argument comes forward that there are more opportunities for bluffs in No Limit Hold'em than there are in Fixed Limit games it tends to cause a heated discussion. Of course there are plenty of opportunities to bluff in Fixed Limit games, but you should take note of the fact that because relatively small bets are placed in comparison to the pot the fold equity is not particularly high.
A bluff is primarily used to make a better hand fold. A better hand has usually hit something, however, and under normal circumstances will have no problems with going to the showdown and simply calling down. This is why the leeway for bluffs is relatively limited.
In No Limit Hold'em there is still enough leeway postflop to really cause better hands to fold by bluffing. Of course the previously mentioned factor "variable bet sizes" also plays an important role here, as you can give the opponent odds that don't justify his call with a marginal made hand.
The rule that says one should not lose one's entire stack with a top pair top kicker in No Limit Hold'em has been in force for a long time. It is not correct, however. There are very few "standards", but with a good top pair or even an overpair one will, relatively speaking, often be ahead.
It becomes more problematic with hands like AJ/AT or KQ/KJ. The problem here is that there will too rarely be worse hands that will end up paying you. These hands will very often be dominated, i.e. you'll be playing against a hand that might have a better kicker. It will also be very hard for you to to let go of your hand. And for this reason you should play these hands with care in No Limit games. In Fixed Limit Hold'em you will usually go to the showdown with a top pair, but this is not the standard procedure in No Limit Hold'em.
Unlike the pre-determined bet sizes in Fixed Limit Hold'em that come in the form of small or big bets you can bet as much as you want at any time in No Limit games. This enables you to go all-in preflop as described earlier, and also gives you the possibility of creating the pot odds for your opponent.
If you bet the pot size, for example, you are giving your opponent pot odds of 2 to 1. If you only bet 2/3 of the pot size your opponent will have pot odds of 2.5 to 1. If you decide to bet half of the pot, then you are giving your opponent the chance to call with odds of 3 to 1. It is not possible to place variable bets in this form in Fixed Limit games.
As a result of the previously mentioned situation a further important factor arises: The protection of one's own hand. The variable bet sizes described above allow you to encourage your opponent to make mistakes and lead him to call with a draw that has incorrect odds.
Fixed Limit Hold'em hardly gives you this possibility. If you bet your top pair on the flop and turn for example, then your opponent is almost always able to call with a possible straight and/or flush draw profitably. Although it is clear that you are trying to protect your hand by making these bets and to get money in the pot with the better hand, your opponent is not making any mistakes by calling. In No Limit games, on the other hand, you can really protect your hand by placing high bets, leading your opponent to make costly mistakes if he calls you down.
Position is essentially an important factor in Hold'em. But in No Limit Hold'em it plays an even more important role. One needs to pay attention to factors like pot control and protection. Protection has already been discussed, but pot control is also very important. You can consequently control the pot size according to the strength of your hand, something which you will find a lot easier to do in position of course.
In a Fixed Limit game it is possible to play a bet sequence like bet call the flop, call down (way ahead/way behind), but not in No Limit Hold'em. Under normal circumstances you'd be all-in on the river with a bet sequence like this, something you want to avoid with a moderately strong hand. As you can see from this example, however, you have no other alternative without position. That's why position is one of the most important factors by far in No Limit Hold'em.
Because of the pre-determined bet sizes, the size of your or your opponent's stack makes little difference in Fixed Limit Hold'em. In No Limit games the relative stack size is a very important factor, however. By "relative" we mean that you can play for the smaller of the two stacks at most. This needs to be taken into account from the beginning, as you should play differently according to the different stack sizes. The stacks can roughly be divided into four categories:
- Shortstacks (15-30 big blinds)
- Midstacks (~ 50 big blinds)
- Large stacks (~ 100 big blinds)
- Deep stacks (125+ big blinds)
You should also be aware of the fact here that you will not really have great implied odds against players with small stacks, but that you will rather need hands that have high equity. The bigger the effective stack is, however, the more leeway you will have after the flop. You will also be able to count on higher profits on future streets.
In Fixed Limit Hold'em you have the possibility of playing an average hand like a weak top pair or even a middle pair to the showdown without any problems, but it is not by any means that simple when playing a No Limit game.
An "easy call down" is usually not advisable, as it will clearly cost you more than two big bets. The way ahead/ way behind principle is also present in No Limit Hold'em, but must be implemented carefully.
In Fixed Limit games way ahead / way behind means that you are basically prepared to use the check-call mode until the river. In a No Limit game, however, it is not possible to call down without having seen any cards, as one very rarely knows what the odds are.
If in a Fixed Limit game the pot is the size of 8 big bets on the river for example, then you know that check/calling will cost you a big bet and you will therefore (only) be ahead in one out of 8 cases. In a No Limit game on the other hand the pot could be $8 on the river. If the opponent now bets $1 the same situation applies as in the Fixed Limit example. If he bets the pot size ($8), however, then you should be ahead in one out of three cases. So you need to calculate whether this could be a given depending on the opponent.
As a result of the factors discussed so far the fact is that you will see the showdown a lot more often in a Fixed Limit game than in a No Limit game. This is, of course, of great importance to your game, as you need to assume that you will be ahead often enough when you get to the showdown.
In No Limit games you will not go to the showdown so often, which results in you driving opponents out of the hand on earlier streets by giving them worse odds and winning the hand without a showdown.
So what's better? On the one hand you have to precisely estimate how often you are ahead in a Fixed Limit game, as you will usually have no other choice but to go to the showdown, as the odds for a made hand are also tempting on the last streets. You have several opportunities to win the hand unimproved here.
Summary
You have now seen the basic differences between two types of betting structures. It is of course important that you know which one you get the most fun out of. If there is one type you prefer to play or you even notice that one suits you better for whatever reason, then this is the type you should play.
It is also recommended that you gain experience in both variations of the game. It will not do a Fixed Limit player any harm to play a session of No Limit Hold'em once in a while. The same applies in the opposite direction. Be open, try to discover new styles of playing and perspectives and just see whether you can incorporate these into your preferred variation of the game.
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