Here's a question I'm a bit curious about... in limit cash games, how much do you guys loosen up your starting hand requirements for limping in from the SB?

I used to limp with pretty much anything, even with 72o I would pray for two pair or trips... now I've tightened just a bit, but I'm still fairly loose. Anything suited, any two cards 8 or higher, tons of little connectors...

Plenty of people have told me I'm stupid, but I like to play creatively and make some moves on people. I loosen up a lot when I can do so for half-price.

How about you guys?

I'm pretty similar to that, depending on the blind. I tighten it up a little more if SB is less than half the BB (like a .10/.25 game). I think you still need to be able to throw away total garbage, and I'd tighten up even more if I was playing next to a guy who likes to raise out of the BB, but that seems VERY rare from what I've seen.

Reminds me of a hand I played recently - it was just a .01/.02 table on Absoloute (using that free $10). I limped from the SB with 72h. Three hearts hit the board on the flop, so I start betting and another guy starts raising. We cap the flop and turn and 3-bet the river. Turns out the other guy had pocket A's and hit trips on the flop - boy was HE ever pissed. He was riding me about betting that much with 7-2. I told him the only thing that beat me was two other hearts, and I was willing to take that risk. Should have told him that's what he get's for slowplaying AA.

It depends on how many people are in the pot, but I don't loosen up too, much because your position will be horrible the rest of the hand.

I agree with beavis. I generally don't make changes in my starting hand requirements when I'm in the small blind. I may loosen up a little and complete a single bet to play a small pocket pair or a hand like KQ or JT, but I wouldn't go much beyond that or start calling raises with a marginal hand from early position. I would definitely not start playing any two cards, even for a single bet.

I'll admit may be tighter than most when it comes to this. But my general philosophy is to save my bets for the hands that are worth investing in.

Position doesn't worry me as much here because I have to get lucky and flop a monster or I'm probably folding.

yeah, but with a hand like K9o how often do you flop a monster?

Playing pockets and suited connectors is fine, because you know what you want to hit.

Good question...I got into a huge discussion with someone on this topic about six months ago when I mentioned that I'm willing to loosen up and mix things up from the small blind since I'm already in for half a bet. I won't go 72o insane, but Q9, K8...just about anything suited or connected...yeah, done that.

My argument was that I'm already in for half a bet, so if 2 other people have limped in..then I'm getting 7-to-1 for my half bet, and that's good enough for me to want to see a flop. Plus my "regular" game is usually more tight than the people I play with, so if I play K8 and come out betting or raising when a K flops I usually get more credibility than I deserve considering the position I'm sitting in.

The converse argument is that, if you wouldn't pay to play it from a different seat, why pay to play it at all from the SB? If you don't buy a $4 bag of manure because you don't like manure, then why are you buying a bag of manure when it goes on sale for $2?

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Oh man... Shade, you are a genius.

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Woohoo!! Infamy!!

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To be successful in business, surround yourself with professionals. To be successful in poker, surround yourself with idiots.