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Small Limit Hold’em Strategy
There are many differences between playing in a low limit and a high limit hold ‘em game. We are going to give you a couple pointers on solid plays you can make in a low limit game, whether it be no limit or structured betting.
The first thing you should remember is you are playing with amateurs. The majority of these players are not going to be strong players, and many of them are going to play extremely loose. This doesn’t mean you have to play the same way.
A good way to make money playing low limit is to play your strong hands aggressive and only bluff when you are positive you won’t get a call, maybe if you are heads up. You are going to have people with a large amount of money playing more for amusement, and if they any hand whatsoever, they will call you down. It is also extremely important to identify how everyone plays early in the game so you know who you can make certain plays against.
Another big key when playing low limit games is to play your position.
Many low limit players do not understand the importance of where they are on the table and their qualifications for starting hands don’t change. A lot of players who do know to play only stronger hands early really don’t see that you make most of your profits near or on the button. You are going to make a lot more money when holding a monster with an entire table to act in front of you versus holding a strong hand and acting first. Therefore, you should only play hands in early position when you are trying to pick up a smaller pot. The lack of relative bluffing in low limit makes slow playing a less useful tool.
Also, make sure you buy in and keep enough chips in front of you. Not only will you get less respect as a short stack, but you may also miss out on a good chance to make money if you get a monster and don’t have that much on the table. You may also miss out on a call pre-flop because you tightened up due to your lack of money. It’s always best to keep at least half of a full buy in available.
The last point to emphasize when playing low limit hold ‘em is to avoid overplaying your hands. The majority of the time a hand is going to end in a showdown, so while you still need to read people to an extent, you should focus more on playing your two cards and calculating your odds.
