Bottom Pair in Early Position...

[Kasrielle]

I've been playing a lot of 90 player S&Gs at Full Tilt, and am generally pretty tight. And the last few days I've been flopping a lot of bottom pairs from the blinds. With 2 overcards on the board and more than one other player (usually 2 or 3) in the hand, I get confused about whether to bet out of not. But if I end up checking, somebody comes behind me with a pot sized bet and I end up folding. Should I put out a smaller feeler bet, like 2BBs to 1/2 the pot (depending on the pot size)?

Any and all advice welcome!

[Looshius]

Check/fold bottom pairs from the big blind. I used to lead out a lot when I was getting a feel for the tournaments. You are behind so often that you should just give it up. Only get involved in BB pots when you nail the flop.

[Pov]

There are so many factors at work here it is difficult to say. I can give you some things to think about that you'll just have to learn to weigh in each situation to come up with your answer. Also, it's okay to play these differently from time to time.

Be more inclined to bet out against 1-2 players than 3-4 players. There is a much better chance no one hit or hit too weakly to call.

Be more inclined to bet a ragged board that does not contain much draw potential. For instance, if you bet your J5 with a K95 rainbow board, anyone calling you probably has a better hand rather than a draw. If the flop is more coordinated then it will be more difficult to play correctly if you are called or you may get semi-bluffed off the best hand.

Occasionally check-raise, particularly against a bettor who is last to be checked to and may just be stabbing at the pot. Be sure to be deep enough not to be crippled if you get called or re-raised and have to fold your hand.

A 1/2 pot bet seems to be in the right range though this will really depend upon how this game plays. You want to bet enough to make the actions of your opponents "pure" but not any more than that (on average). A bet that is too small will encourage people to take shots at you or to make "what the hell" calls you might not know how to respond to. But there is probably a significant range in which the purity of actions changes very little, but costs you significantly more. Try to get a feel for this range and bet towards the bottom of it.

There is nothing wrong with checking and folding a to significant bet in this spot most of the time. If you are getting short-stacked then you should be more inclined to just shove unless the flop is really likely to have hit one of your opponents.

[Kasrielle]

What you're saying makes sense, Pov, and I'm glad to see that I'm already following some of your advice - I'll play this more often heads up and will almost always check/fold on a drawing board.

I'm also glad to see that there is no dishonor in check/folding from this position. It just felt like it was happening a bunch, and every time it happened I doubted my play a bit more.