HSP straddle?

[Akolades]

how does the straddle work? i heard it mentioned during season 2

[gobboboy]

It's an extra blind that utg posts that's 2x of the big blind. It's essentially a blind utg minraise that gets action even if it limps around. It basically makes the stakes of the hand twice as big as normal.

[Akolades]

oh ok, thanks

[JackWhite]

One other important detail. The player putting on the straddle acts last before the flop, as if he were the big blind. He has the option to raise.

[Akolades]

is this standard at any game? or is it somethin that the players add on their own usually like they do on the show?

[Akolades]

so if the big blind calls instead of raising... that doesnt end the round, it goes to back to the straddle who has the option at this point? then its back to normal after the flop?

[Whitewash]

[ QUOTE ]
is this standard at any game? or is it somethin that the players add on their own usually like they do on the show?

[/ QUOTE ]

It is not "standard" as far as someone has to request it usually (and lots of places Ive seen usually oblige), but it is extremely common at most live NL games I've ever seen or played in.

[Djeorge]

Bit of a hijack and I've not played much live but isn't a straddle clearly -EV? You're playing oop for double the normal stakes for the rest of the action with a completely random hand. Ed Miller's "total all of the dollars you've bet playing poker..." comes to mind.

[gobboboy]

[ QUOTE ]
Bit of a hijack and I've not played much live but isn't a straddle clearly -EV? You're playing oop for double the normal stakes for the rest of the action with a completely random hand. Ed Miller's "total all of the dollars you've bet playing poker..." comes to mind.

[/ QUOTE ]

It's -EV but if you're playing with people who aren't comfortable playing for more money they can make suboptimal decisions. There were a few people who already were playing gigantic stakes and probably wouldn't be able to play well if there was a permanent straddle going. Esfandiari at first seemed like he was a little intimidated at the stakes.

[pig4bill]

I've seen it more often in limit than NL. It's not as meaningful in NL because hardly anybody min-raises to open a pot anyway.