low two pair

[docholiday420]

What do you think, and how much do you value a low two pair like 7's and 3's, and how do you play these hands?

[xxeximusxx]

if you play these hands you should immediately fill up, any other strategy would be losing poker

[Andy B]

"Learning to play two small pair is as valuable as a college education--and just as expensive."

I want to say that's Clemens, but I might be making that up.

Anyway, playing two small pair is tough. If you can get it heads-up by playing aggressively, that's probably your best option. If it's a multi-way pot and it's cheap, perhaps free, treat it as a full house draw. If it's four or five ways, two pair is unlikely to hold up unimproved, and you're not going to get sufficient implied odds to treat it as a full house draw, so you might be best off folding. Not that I ever do.

I occasionally think I should write a book on low-limit stud. One of the many things that keeps me from doing this is that I think that such a book should have a solid chapter on playing two small pair, and that would be a tough chapter to write.

[Andy B]

Nonsense. Filling up on the river is just as effective and infinitely more satisfying.

[docholiday420]

I think heads up is the preferred play. If it's multi-way the only times the odds can somehow be defended to pay is if all cards are live, and everyone is paying every round. 5-1 on fifth and hopefully 10-1 on the money by sixth, otherwise I fold as soon as a bet. If I get it early on fourth I will try to check raise or something to eliminate if I'm not heads up, I probably won't pay anything more as soon as there is an openpair.

However, as long as there is no open pair the hand might be in the lead, and if it appears im against people on draws it might be better to get somevalue in the pot, so that if it does hold up, since it was multiway it was a valuable pot, but it has to be draws. 7733 vs 88 on fifth is not a great condition to really put money in-about 60/40 and against two over pairs 7733 vs 88 vs 1010 is 40/25/35 but if people got dead draws they can't see, maybe the size the pot can get is worth it.

Basically if this hand wins no one is betting anyway, but have to watch out for bluffs on scare cards. It is far better to have that high kicker that can still pair up.

With two pair in general even Aces up vs a flush if you think you need to get a full house to win the hand there is never enough money in the pot to validate odds unless at least four players, paying every round.

When heads up against a raise on sixth from a very posible flush with two pair A's up down you should fold. There is not enough money for a 1 in 10 draw and more times then not you are givng away 2BB because when the flush bets out on seventh you'll tell yourself the pot is now right for you to make a call.

[templar999]

Indeed it was Clemens. He's a pretty smart guy.

[Andy B]

Hope I didn't butcher the quote. It wasn't on page one of my Google search, and that's all the effort I was willing to put into it.

[templar999]

-Learning to play two pairs is worth about as much as a college education, and about as costly.

I believe that's the exact quote.