Calling raises with marginal hands pre-flop

[chipwiz]

Is this ever a good idea? I've seen solid players call early position raises pre-flop with hands like AJo and KTs in position. I think the decision should be to either 3-bet or fold. If you assume you are ahead you raise and if you get played back at you adjust by tightening your pre-flop range. I guess you could take this one step further and never call with any hand pre-flop - only 3-bet or fold. Could that strategy work (mixing it up by raising and 3bet with suited connectors and pocket pairs)?.

[jay_shark]

It's not always correct to 3 bet or fold . This depends on the table dynamics to know for certain the correct strategy to employ .

If you're certain that a player will fold to your 3 bets but that he's a poor post-flop player , then it's often times better to smooth call in position . You sacrifice some preflop equity for some post-flop equity .This is good since most of your value comes from post-flop play and not so much on pre-flop decisions .

Also , when a player calls with suited connectors it has more to do with adding deception to his game .Often times , they will call with any two cards (usually suited) and bluff on a later street .

If you call for value with your good hands , then it's important that you make some bluff calls with garbage a certain percentage of the time . Always remember to vary your game and to adjust according to each player.

[chipwiz]

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It's not always correct to 3 bet or fold . This depends on the table dynamics to know for certain the correct strategy to employ .

[/ QUOTE ]

I can see just calling work well against players that play poortly post-flop. But in general is it not better to err on the side of aggression and 3-bet? You'll have the lead in the betting and you'll pump up your aggression factor - something that has many advantages.

I can see one good argument for calling with marginal hands is that if you're only calling with suited connectors and pocket pairs your pre-flop calling range becomes too predictable.

[PantsOnFire]

I am not much of a limit player but I generally feel that the 3-bet or fold applies much more in that game. Cold calling raises in limit is a leak.

As for NL, I have a few comments:

1. If the raiser is loose or you feel he is light, then 3-bet. This is a classic isolation play. You will freeze out people behind you, have control of the hand and be in position and all of those are good.

2. If the raiser is likely to have a very good hand like a high pair and is prone to play it hard, then you have good implied odds but not with hands like AJ more with PP or suited connectors.

3. If you are very good a postflop play, can use your position well, and pf raiser is weak, then play.

4. I would do this less against a calling station and more against a weak tight player.

5. I would do this more often if the players behind me were passive and are also going to call. Again this would be for speculative marginal hands not AJ or AT.

6. And in general, taking the above my cards and the players behind me would be a factor. I like to play heads up with trouble hands like AJ or KQ. And I like to play multiway pots with pp and connectors.

As far as mixing it up, it is usually only important if you figure the other players are observant. If they are not observant, then my plays are more for value than deception.