Pub Game!!! How would you play???

[stacks]

Hi All,

Need a bit of advice.

I have recently been playing in a Nuts Poker League near where I live. The field usually consists on about 9 players so it"s pretty much a STT. The players are mostly friends of mine and a few other who have only a general idea of how to play poker (and usually drunk). The starting stack is around 8-9k with 15min blinds starting at 25 - 50!!! (very random i know). The problem I have is they call pretty much anything if you raise even when they only have one over card. Example I had pocket nine raised 3x bb got 3 callers. Board 2 6 8 rainbow i lead out for 2k and get reraised 3k i push and he calls with A 2!!! and his an A on the river... asked y he call my push and he said "i felt lucky"???

We usually play for £10 - £15 buy in and split 70% 1st 30% 2nd.

I know its only a pub game and i do enjoy playing with my mates on a friday night whilst having a few (too many) beers.

So my question is how would you play against my muppet of friends??

Cheers

JP

[Mikeyboy9361]

It is very difficult to play against people who have little or no idea, they call everything, have no regard for standard ABC poker. Basically you can only play premium hands and position, but at the end of the day you can still get bokked by the muppet call. I started a home game with a bunch of beginners who had very little idea, but 6 months down the line the game is now pretty good, and a darn sight more enjoyable

[Swinebag]

early levels....limp every hand apart from premiums (where you raise). when you hit hard, bet the hell out of it (pot +) ....you will get paid off.

[Chipaccrual]

early levels....limp every hand apart from premiums (where you raise). when you hit hard, bet the hell out of it (pot +) ....you will get paid off.

+1

That man is spot on, and just bear in mind you will get outdrawn on occasions, but no, that doesn"t make them better players than you.  

[TopPair2Pair]

I won a season long live setup like this just under a year ago, 24 players ish, but the starting stacks were 5k not 8k and it was based on a points system for final table finishes. Umm... How many you played? How many won/cashed? Whats your image like? And is anyone crushing it?

My general advice would be limp limp limp and limp again, you"ll probably find you can see cheap flops without ne1 going over the top of you early on, specially the family pots you hit hard!! If you understand outs then great work with them, dont rely on pot odds too much imo, not for this game neway maybe more relavent on bubble.

If your starting with 8k play lots of hands early on. Avoid the better players for the time being as there"s too many multiway pots early on. Always found that i could do well singling out the consistent cashers but would get caught out by someone else in that same hand. I used to tighten up around middle play, just before the break, objective was to always stay for the sandwidges with a chip and a chair making the odd preflop "ALLIN" against weak players that i know would fold and donate the blinds to me, managed to get through the whole season doing this 85% of time that i had 24o/24s without getting called, i"d turn some prem hands over every now and then but i had the table image to get away with it.

In my game after the break was when the most scalps were taken, i"d really turn it on just before tables would merged, any sort of check raise oop = slow down, control pot or just get away by hiding under table unless its a lag who doesn"t understand position.

Sure you have the game for last 3 if you understand when to 3xBB raise pre flop full ring but strugglin with the lack of comprehension for this standard! lol

Good Luck, as you can tell i reeeelly miss these games would play one every night if i could find them - in the end i had to knock them on the head as I picked up too many bad habbits which i am just learning to work out now.

p.s. Do as much research as you can on eye and hand tells, especially if you opps are trollied!

p.p.s There"s some really good online sng players on here, if you broke your game down by level, you would get some fantastic advice! Good luck

[Roscopiko]

Some very good points in there from TP2P imo.

Think the main thing to remember when playing more casual poker is that most dont really understand preflop and flop stength of their cards and that stack size is irrelevant to them.

The number of times you get someone calling and leaving like 1 or 2 BB behind then getting to flop and saying ohhh only got these left ok then I"ll put them in.

My main tactics would be:

play lots of cheap hands at the start as oppos will rarely raise
only get involved in big pots early with v strong made hands then milk the calling stations
as the blinds get big ensure you dont get whittled away and play push or fold from 10BB or less - pub players tend to leave it much too late imo.

[stacks]

thanks for the replys so far guy i will take them on board and give it ago tonight.

JP

[kinboshi]

What everyone"s said is the right approach.  Small-ball it pre-flop and if you half hit.  If the flop smacks you squarely between the eyes, stick as much as you possibly can in over the streets and watch them call.

They"re relying on luck to win.  You are reducing the luck element and replying on your greater knowledge of what"s strong and what"s not.

Oh, and forget the continuation bet.  

[monkeyman]

I"d go in completely the opposite direction to everyone else and play as tight as possible. Players of this type will call regardless, so why get involved unless you"ve got a premium holding? Why not save your chips until you have something to go to war with then get them all in? Surely splashing chips into each pot means you"re reducing your potential returns when you do hit?
 Having said that, I do agree that continuation betting is a waste of time    

[Swinebag]

I"d go in completely the opposite direction to everyone else and play as tight as possible. Players of this type will call regardless, so why get involved unless you"ve got a premium holding? Why not save your chips until you have something to go to war with then get them all in? Surely splashing chips into each pot means you"re reducing your potential returns when you do hit?
 Having said that, I do agree that continuation betting is a waste of time    

There"s a lot to be said for this, approach. The only trouble is that the games are so short that you dont have time to wait for premiums. So its a coin flip between playing every hand (and bleeding chips) in the hope of hitting a flop hard (remember.....you will get paid off) or waiting (and conserving chips) for the premium hand. I dont think there is much in it.

Its just more fun felting someone in a pub game with 36 on a 245 flop after they call your allin bet with K5o ("but how can I fold top pair with that kicker?")

[TopPair2Pair]

monkeyduuuude! (hehe... Its been a long day sorry!!) would like to agree with you on this one monkeyduuuude but dont think its logical to do so. If we were starting with 25 or 50BB"s its def appropriate but given the structure it just seems too rude not to give it some limp.

Starting stack of 160BB has a lot of give, especially where the pfr may not be as strong or as frequent as they should be. 50 into 8000 goes extremely nicely for the first 15 mins given the nature of the beasts we"re trapping.

[monkeyman]

monkeyduuuude! (hehe... Its been a long day sorry!!) would like to agree with you on this one monkeyduuuude but dont think its logical to do so. If we were starting with 25 or 50BB"s its def appropriate but given the structure it just seems too rude not to give it some limp.

Starting stack of 160BB has a lot of give, especially where the pfr may not be as strong or as frequent as they should be. 50 into 8000 goes extremely nicely for the first 15 mins given the nature of the beasts we"re trapping.

I wouldn"t be in the least worried about appearing a bit rude; whether you"re playing the WSOP main event, or a £5 freezeout in your local pub, winning is the only thing that matters. If somebody wants my chips, they will have to earn them. As well as playing ultra tight, it wouldn"t be many levels before I"ll shove with any two cards if the action folds to me on the button.

[TopPair2Pair]

I wouldn"t be in the least worried about appearing a bit rude;

Rude as in Rude not to take advantage.