Folding small pairs

Its always hard to do(folding them). But I see it over and over. Carrying small pocket pairs all the way to the river. I will rarely if ever raise on a nine player table with 7/7 or lower. Odds are really bad on these hands. If you don't catch on the flop, you essentially have two outs. If there is a lot of preflop action I will usually fold them preflop. So why am I seeing so many at showdown?

[FONT=Franklin Gothic Medium]Sounds like oversimplification. I won't always fold small pairs -- and most likely won't play them to death on a board full of over cards -- but what the board looks like and how the betting is going will have a lot to do with how far I will go with them in a hand. . .[/FONT]
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[FONT=Franklin Gothic Medium]Pre-flop. . .whether I play them or not depends on my position in the hand -- early, middle or late -- and how the betting is going and what kind of players I'm sitting with. . .[/FONT]

I agree with you Steve. If you do play them though, I think you have to have a plan preflop. Either raise enough to try and get to heads up, which usually means a coin flip. So if opponent is tight and non aggressive, you can hope he doesn't hit and check to the end (unless you hit set of course), or regardless of opponent, continuation bet and hope he didn't hit. Otherwise, if I'm just calling, I'm hoping for the 1 in 7 flop (hit the set) and win a big pot or I'm folding with any bet (with over cards on flop). In general though, I agree small pairs seem to be overvalued, they are usually no better than 55% heads up and worse with more people in pot.

Yah, i normally only play small pocket pairs if i can get into the flop cheap.

[FONT=Franklin Gothic Medium]Sounds like oversimplification. I won't always fold small pairs -- and most likely won't play them to death on a board full of over cards -- but what the board looks like and how the betting is going will have a lot to do with how far I will go with them in a hand. . .[/FONT]
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[FONT=Franklin Gothic Medium]Pre-flop. . .whether I play them or not depends on my position in the hand -- early, middle or late -- and how the betting is going and what kind of players I'm sitting with. . .[/FONT]

And the size stacks, the blinds, antes...

Today I called 3X BB bet with 5 other callers preflop with 3-3. Flop hits with 3-7-10 & 2 clubs. I max raise after one of the guys bet half the pot. I get called by AA & flush draw. Turn makes my boat. Thats why you call smallish bets with crappy little pairs. Pocketed 250 BB on that hand & made most of my profit for the day there. Long live the small preflop bets so we can all set mine!

I'll generally play them cheaply to the flop and fold to high betting after if i don't hit

Small pairs need to hit a flop to win but they "WIN BIG"! and calling preflop raise's increases the risk/reward; "IF" you make your set great, if not it's easy to fold. My problem comes from playing small pairs past the flop, hoping the "set" will hit on the turn or river "for just one more bet"....Rarely happens! :crying

Another problem is when u hit a flush draw.

3 cards of same suit and u with a medium card to flush...

If the price is right and position is good then why not take a Flop.

If you don't hit on the flop then it's time to Fold or Bluff depending on the Texture of the Board > Position > Stack Sizes > Player Type > Player Read > etc ...


Love em Hate em > That's pockets


:dance:

Ya there are many factors involved when making any decission. i say get in cheap improve and take a stack!

I find em hard to play myself, being a fairly tight player. Now I wish I could just learn to fold my jacks. I have lost more hands with jj. All good comments above and yes given the conditions of a table i might start playing them a little more. ?. How many small pairs turn to a set, then become quads?. At that point your glad u kept them. But beware nothing worse then being beat by higher quads. And yes it has happened. Freerollbird