Hello everyone,

So I live in Africa and grind a very weird 2/4 table, all rec players. Minimum buyin is 20BB, and that is what most people start off with. Usually the game takes a couple of hours to get deep because people play so passively. They are very exploitable and I want to perfect my strategy against them when the game starts, i.e 4/5 handed at 20-30bb per person.

Typical situation :

Table is 5 handed, everyone has 20bb. Utg limps, limps around to Hero in SB.

What do you suggest as Heros:
-folding range
-limp behind range
-raising range (sizing and plan on flop please)
-shoving range

There is almost no trapping preflop at this stage. So I can confidently take AJ+/TT+ away from my opponents ranges. Most players at the table are very loose pre. I've had 20bb shoves called by Q9cc, A5 etc. They are all clueless as to correct shortstack play, and will often flat call AT or 66 because they hate flips and want to make sure they like the flop.

Thanks for your input!

Play a very broadway and PP heavy range and raise big pre/shove flop. Eliminate speculative hands completely from your range and focus on making the best hand preflop and flop (usually top pair/overpair) kinds of hands. You should pretty much never be seeig turns with any money left. That's pretty much it until things get deeper.

So, you wouldn't limp behind 76o or even T9s? What to do with Ax? KJo?

Never limping in this game. Your two raising hands are folds or opens depending in position.

spike is right. When you are this short, the only hands you want to play are hands that will flop made hands like a good one pair hand. You are too short to draw profitably and they are too short to draw profitably against you. So any hand that flops draws, you want to ignore. You want to play hands where you are shoving preflop and people are gambling with you at a disadvantage.

Think that limping a5s on the button 25bb deep with several limpers in front is completely fine

Tighten preflop raising range to top 5%. Never limp. Never call. Only raise. You should only be entering pots here with a plan to have all your chips in and seeing flop turn river. Folding on the flop in a raised pot here is death.

Not true!

Limp/calling is totally fine imo. Raising only top 5% is ridic tight, and not folding on flop in a raised pot is suicidal, not the other way around

I suggest reading Harrington on Hold 'Em, the chapters on the end game.

This is almost like the later stages of a tourney. You just need to be raise pre and shipping flop. I think limping is pretty silly when it's 5% of your stack. I think it come down to shoving ranges. Figure out your minimum range you want to commit to because picking up dead money pre flop with no rake is goin to be crucial. You should never be flatting raises only 3 bet shoving/committing yourself.

Never call a raise when this short or the villain is this short. Complete the SB with suited aces, 2 broadways, and all PP. Jam range depends on what people are limping with. Probably jam hands like 99+ and AJ+.