Min raise on the button...(NL)

[Bicycles_Biatch]

I have a friend who takes the same line on EVERY heads up match he ever plays.

Doesn't matter if we are playing for who buys Pizza and Beer, if he is playing a $200 online STS, or a $1,000 heads up match at the Bike.

I think this approach is weak-passive.

He thinks it's deceptive and creates a winning style... your thoughts.

[ChicagoRy]

Do you mean minraise every hand on the button or just a high % of hands, like a smaller % more than a good aggro would raise 2.5-3x.? I'm going to assume you mean minraise instead of raising bigger.

Generally speaking you're giving ATC odds to call you, but you're in position and making the pot somewhat bigger, so I don't think it's like a deadly sin or anything.

I don't like to do it because you don't really give villain an opportunity to make bad calls in the small blind and it always seems a lot harder to narrow down calling ranges when you are minraising. You get a lot of different play against it.

I don't know what he means by "creates a winning style." I don't think your raise size in the sb is going to make or break you unless you are a nut. 2.5-3x is standard but you see winning players do 4x at times and sometimes even minraise.

[handparty]

Typically players win a larger %age of pots in position, so maybe there's an argument that to arbitrarily increase the value of these is EV+? But I wouldn't say it's optimal strategy.

As far as deceptive play goes, it's not deceiving the opponent, only not giving them any information. Varying raises with similar holdings would be a better example of deceptive play, in my opinion.

[JackAll]

It's stupid cuz it gives people odds to call and hit a hand. Raise a full psb instead.

[Austiger]

I will sometimes limp, sometimes min raise, sometimes 3xBB, sometimes 4xBB, sometimes 5xBB, and sometimes fold (not at the low levels against most opponents though.)

Min raising can be annoying to play against b/c you're pretty much compelled to call with ATC and then you've got a 4BB pot and your opponent is in position and c-betting. It is definitely exploitable if you do it every hand though.

[Bramsterdam]

[ QUOTE ]
It is definitely exploitable if you do it every hand though.

[/ QUOTE ]How? [img]/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img]

[reup]

i want to get a lot of money in pf when i have a good hand so i'm gonna play a pf strategy that makes it believable i could have any two cards when i raise 3.5bb's.

i don't think minraising accomplishes that. i think it's a passive aggressive line. . . annoy the other person enough where they make mistakes from tilt. jeesh any body have any morals around here? [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]

[Austiger]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
It is definitely exploitable if you do it every hand though.

[/ QUOTE ]How? [img]/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img]

[/ QUOTE ]

Villain starts punching back. (and I don't mean with a mini-raise. [img]/images/graemlins/wink.gif[/img])

[ChicagoRy]

Min raising the button might be fairly effective against lower level thinking players. The type of thinking non-2+2 players you find in 33s like a lot of the Sharkscope leaderboard players I've played. I really doubt they know how to exploit a good minraiser and the tilt factor would probably go up a lot.

Against random players minraising is going to just hinder your pot control at the earlier levels. It's tough to play optimally when your flop bet sizing is changing so much because you put in so little preflop with bigger hands. It is also going to be harder overall to develop good reads on how your opponents are reacting to your style.

I've only minraised in the 50-100 blind level against certain players. I generally do a 225-250 but I find certain players that there is no reason not to minraise because they are either shoving or folding preflop regardless of 7bb stacks or 15bb effective stacks.