Servicing Your Image During a Run of Bad Cards

[allingator]

Say you're playing a 6-max game and you have been consistently dealt total trash like Q4o, 72o, 93o etc. for the last 2 orbits. At what point do you just open a random holding out of necessity to protect your image so as not to look overly tight? Do you have any kind of regulations or guidelines for determining the minimum holding you would raise depending on how long you have been folding for?

I'm interested to know how everyone plays their way out of this situation (assuming you continue to be dealt horrible cards).

[75s]

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Say you're playing a 6-max game and you have been consistently dealt total trash like Q4o, 72o, 93o etc. for the last 2 orbits. At what point do you just open a random holding out of necessity to protect your image so as not to look overly tight? Do you have any kind of regulations or guidelines for determining the minimum holding you would raise depending on how long you have been folding for?

I'm interested to know how everyone plays their way out of this situation (assuming you continue to be dealt horrible cards).

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ROFL, 2 orbits! Anyway, open your range on the sb/button/cutoff more.

[allingator]

Not very helpful. Is just a guideline I think you understand the question. So you're saying at some point you would put 93o into your range?

[lucky_mf]

I just wait for a playable hand.

Lucky

[allingator]

In a theoretical sense though if you were never going to be it just continued with J5o etc. at what point do you through in a raise with nothing?

[Phone Booth]

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In a theoretical sense though if you were never going to be it just continued with J5o etc. at what point do you through in a raise with nothing?

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When your fold equity is high enough for the raise to be profitable.

[btmagnetw]

you far, far, overestimate how much your image changes during a bad run of hands. the players will either be bad enough that they don't notice how often you play pots or they will be good enough that they will realize you aren't getting dealt anything. seriously, if someone at your table has been quiet for a while, do you chalk it up to his cards or do you assume he's been open folding AJo and 55 because he's so tight? esp after 2 orbits.

[Matt G]

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you far, far, overestimate how much your image changes during a bad run of hands. the players will either be bad enough that they don't notice how often you play pots or they will be good enough that they will realize you aren't getting dealt anything. seriously, if someone at your table has been quiet for a while, do you chalk it up to his cards or do you assume he's been open folding AJo and 55 because he's so tight? esp after 2 orbits.

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[lucky_mf]

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In a theoretical sense though if you were never going to be it just continued with J5o etc. at what point do you through in a raise with nothing?

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I'm never going to play J5o. Why should I? So I can steal the blinds? Stealing the blinds in an NL games is not that valuable and if I get called I'm playing a crap hand and my best chance of winning the pot is going to be to bluff. I don't really mind bluffing, but I would prefer to play hands with two ways of winning (make the best hand or fold out the best hand).

Lucky

[wizexel22]

I agree with Btmagnet. Not playing a hand for 2 orbits isn't that big a deal, even if your opponents are paying attention, that doesn't warrant a lot of attention. If I'm really on a cold run of cards, theres a couple things I do. I look for ANY playable hand in the cutoff or button. It doesn't have to be great cards as you have position and a tight image. Something else you can try is a large raise from the big blind if there is no raise and several limpers. It's likely they don't have a great hand and picking up a small pot for free is nice when you're running cold. And I don't mind if I get 1 caller as I have shown strength and he is not likely to hit the flop hard.

I think you want to know what cards you can play in these situations but really, this all depends on the situation and your image (including your image before the cold run) and also if your opponents are decent players or not. So in these situations where you aren't getting cards, you need to put more emphasis on reading and playing the player.