Strategical Differences between LHE & NLHE?

[Win.by.TKo]

Greetings. It seems that LHE hands always seem to go to SD, compared to a seemingly small % of NLHE hands. What are the basic strategical differences between the two?

[pzhon]

That's a huge topic, and I find it hard to imagine a single post would do it justice. Both games require great skill to play well. Here are a few major differences which come to mind.

Preflop raises are much greater in relation to the blinds in NL. This means you should much more often fold after investing the big blind when someone raises, both from the big blind, and after you limp.

Implied odds matter more in NL. Information advantages matter more in NL. Position matters more in NL.

Reopening the action can be more costly in NL. Simply calling a preflop raise is much more often correct in NL than cold-calling 2 bets is in limit. Calling a bet shows much more strength in NL than in limit, as does raising. If you flop top pair top kicker, and bet 3 streets in limit, your river bet is usually still a value bet. If you bet the whole pot on 3 streets with TPTK in NL, your last bet may be a bluff, as you have overrepresented the strength of you hand.

In NL, it is much more important to make occasional big hands where you know your hand is good, and you can charge the second best hand a huge amount. In limit, a more substantial fraction of the money is exchanged when neither side has a big hand. Much more money is decided based on a kicker in limit.

Although this may vary, more pots are multi-way in limit than NL. It's much easier to pump draws for value in limit in multiway pots.

Betting for value is harder in NL than limit. Bluffing is more commonly effective in NL than limit.

[skelm]

Let's not forget that psychology is a MUCH bigger factor in No Limit - Your opponents are quite often under more stress.

You will also find that hands like two pair on the flop can have much less value if the board has come down with two suited cards (if someone has a flush draw then you can't bet enough to not give them odds to call).

[runout_mick]

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What are the basic strategical differences between the two?

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They are as different as chess and checkers. It would be a mistake to blindly apply concepts learned in limit to nl, and vice versa.

[Matt Williams]

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Let's not forget that psychology is a MUCH bigger factor in No Limit - Your opponents are quite often under more stress.

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I play low level limit and I would agree w/ you at this level. But I have a feeling those that player higher limit will disagree. And I agree with them.

[runout_mick]

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[ QUOTE ]
Let's not forget that psychology is a MUCH bigger factor in No Limit - Your opponents are quite often under more stress.

[/ QUOTE ]

I play low level limit and I would agree w/ you at this level. But I have a feeling those that player higher limit will disagree. And I agree with them.

[/ QUOTE ]

Don't do what Donny Don't does.

[reno expat]

Limit is a game of much more finite possibilities. At any given juncture there are no more than 3 choices. Therefore you have an easier time looking several actions ahead and deciding based on pure math.

[karlwig]

In limit it's more common that both players make a "right decision", EV-vice. In no-limit its more common that one of the players do that, since you can make the odds worse for someone with a OESD or a FD. But the implied odds make up for that of course.

[Harv72b]

If you want the very basic difference, which I'm assuming is what you're after, then it lies in implied odds. Your implied odds are almost never going to be as good in a limit game as they would be at a NL table. This should affect everything from your starting hand selection to the frequency of your bluffs to how often (or aggressively) you chase draws to just about everything in between. Because of this, many hands which you would instantly call a raise with in NL become easy folds in LHE. On the other hand, many hands that you'd instantly fold in NL become raising hands in LHE.

[skelm]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
Let's not forget that psychology is a MUCH bigger factor in No Limit - Your opponents are quite often under more stress.

[/ QUOTE ]

I play low level limit and I would agree w/ you at this level. But I have a feeling those that player higher limit will disagree. And I agree with them.

[/ QUOTE ]

Very much so. I play $5/$10 (http://rolledontheriver.com [img]/images/graemlins/laugh.gif[/img] - shameless plug!) and have found that it's there but i'll make the correct decision before using psychology to fold a hand to one more bet.