Stud Hi: Two Small Pairs on 4th Street Poll.

[Wahoo73]

Typically, good stud players don't play hands that start off with a small pair and a small kicker, but occasionally they get "stuck" with them. I find these sorts of hands to be among the most difficult to play.

For example, you are dealt (66)2 and are the BI in a full ring Stud Hi game. 3-5 players limp-in with what appear to be live medium to high cards...the rest fold. (For the sake of discussion, live/dead suits are irrelevant.)

On 4th street, you catch another 2, your 6s and 2s are totally live, and nobody else pairs their board, so the action is on you. (Again, for the sake of discussion, the rest of the on-board hands look like a typical collection of random mix of high cards, low cards, possible straight and possible flush draws.)

[lambchop]

I think it depends on the makeup of the table and if it's 3 to fourth or 5 to fourth. I voted check-raise hoping that someone to my right limped in late position that they would be willing to bet fourth with. But if there only three people in the pot and I am able to double-bet then I might go ahead and do that.

Oh yeah, hope karma catches up to ya on the tables for giving to the kiddies Wahoo.

[iamastud]

I would double bet it and fold if reraised. There is a good chance you would win the pot right there since it was not reraised on 3rd, but if your open doorcard pair gets reraised after your double bet, then you have to fold here as you are likely behind either to a higher 2 pair or trips. To play on would not seem right. Your hand is not strong enough for a check raise. ANd just checking it around doesn't seem right either. You bet right out with a double bet hoping to take down the pot right away. If you do get called, you are probably up against a 1 pair hand and you have the advantage to the end.

[Red_Diamond]

By betting, you give yourself 2 chances to win that pot. I'll take it. If we are called, I am still live, and possibly still in the lead, so is that really disaster?

[cgrohman]

I normally double-bet. What I do if I get raised is totally player and board dependent.

[Sevenfold]

I would prefer check/folding then check/calling or betting and calling a raise.

If we make the double bet and are willing to call, we are playing the hand. If the hand is being played, I'm not going to call and check 5th (given drastic changes in the board this would change of course).

I'm not giving up the lead here, letting one high pair pick and choose when to put in the money. If one high pair is 'testing' us to see if we have a set, I'm not going to give up that information, I'm going to play as if I have a set. I'm going to 3 bet this hand.

Let the other player(s) try and figure out if we have the set.