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Lesson: 76
From No-Limit to Limit
Richard Brodie
Sept 4, 2006
Until a few years ago, players interested in learning poker would
start out by playing in fixed-limit games. Most casinos and card
rooms only offered Limit Hold 'em or Limit Stud, so players had
to get used to the dynamics of structured betting. But now, many
players are jumping directly into No-Limit. There's nothing wrong
with this approach, but lately, I've seen a lot of players at
the Limit tables who are applying big-bet principles to fixed-limit
games. They're making big mistakes that reflect their inexperience
with limit betting.
In No-Limit, the biggest mistake you can make is putting money
in a pot when drawing dead or very slim. Usually, by the turn or
river, you'll face large bets that threaten your entire stack,
so calling on a second-best hand is a huge error. In Limit Hold
'em, however, the biggest mistake you can make is folding the best
hand on the river. By the river in Limit Hold 'em, you're often
getting odds of 9, 10, or 11 to 1 to make a call. Given these odds,
it's often proper to call on the river with some very modest holdings,
even if there's only a small chance that you can pick off a bluff
and win the pot at showdown.
For example, say you're playing in a short-handed Limit Hold 'em
game and you raise on the button with As-7s. A very aggressive
opponent in the big blind calls. The flop comes Jd-8d-7c, giving
you bottom pair. The big blind checks, you bet, and are check-raised.
On this board, there are a variety of straight draws and flush
draws. An aggressive opponent could be raising on any number of
hands, so you'd need to call this raise or even consider three-betting.
If the turn brings a scary card, say the Td, you can fold, as
there are very few hands you can now beat. However, if the turn
is a blank, like the 2c, you're probably going to be in a position
where you'd need to call your opponent down. Third pair isn't much,
but it will win at showdown enough of the time to make the call
worthwhile.
In No-Limit, you'd probably want to fold if you were check-raised
while holding bottom pair. It would cost too much to figure out
whether or not you were ahead. But in Limit, your total liability
in the hand is only two more big bets, making the call worthwhile.
The other major error I see from No-Limit players who move to
Limit is that they fail to play enough hands from the big blind.
In a recent tip, Jennifer Harman discussed big blind play in Limit
Hold 'em in some detail. She suggested playing a lot of hands from
the big blind, including any two cards that can make a straight.
Jennifer's an expert player, and you might be better off being
a little more selective than she is. But still, you should be playing
a lot more hands from the blinds in Limit than you would in No-Limit.
Think of it in terms of odds. In a Limit game, you'll be getting
3.5 to 1 to call a single raise from the big blind (two small bets
from the raiser, your big blind, and the small blind). Plus, in
many games, you can count on the pre-flop raiser to follow up with
a bet on the flop, whether he hit or not. That gives you odds of
4.5 to 1. If the raiser is an aggressive player in late position,
you can't give him credit for much of hand to start with, so, even
a hand like 5-6 off-suit is often good enough to play from the
big blind.
In No-Limit, you probably want to fold the same hand and wait
for a better spot. But this is the type of adaptation you'll need
to make if you want to master all forms of poker, including Limit
and No-Limit. If you're moving from No-Limit poker to Limit, keep
in mind that you're going to be calling opponents down more often
and that you're going to want to play many more hands from the
big blind.
Richard Brodie
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