This is something I see a fair number of players at 1/2 and 1/3 do. For some hands at 1/2 they'll raise between $10-$15 and others $5-$7. In a few cases I've seen people do the small raise with super premium hands like KK+ probably cause they wanted to make sure they get callers. But normally when people do this they never make it to showdown and the rare times they do it tends to be with stuff like small pairs SC or marginal stuff like Q10. I'm guessing the reason is cause they think nobody will 3 bet them so they keep the pot small.

Personally I don't do this cause I think it makes my range too face up and cause I wouldn't even be playing most of these hands except small pairs OOP. If I see an opponent do this I usually 3 bet them with hands I would normally 2 bet with if I think I can isolate them. If I don't think I can isolate I usually just call cause some people will not 3 bet with really strong hands.

I'm curious to hear other peoples opinions on whether the blocker raise has any value and how you guys usually play against it?

It's not a "blocker," it's a "pot sweetener." It is ridiculously face-up, and in addition to raising over them with hands you would have opened, raise over them with trash from time to time. Most players bad enough to do this will call, because they think they'll stack you if they hit and can get away easily if they don't.

This is printing money for you, as most of the time they'll fold to a c-bet, and when they don't, you can just shut down unless you are ahead of TP (if they call) or sets+ (if they raise). Then when they show down QT on a Q37 board after you checked back turn and river, you can make some dumb comment about how you hate Jacks, and as long as you aren't 3-betting pre every time they open for a pot sweetener, you'll keep a the image of 3-betting premiums, letting you get away with it when the board is K73 instead and their QT whiffs, etc.

I used to raise for pot sweeteners... actually with similar logic to what Garick expressed... I'd do it with 55-88 thinking that:
One, now I have initiative and can maybe take down the pot with a c-bet.
Two, I could flop a monster and no-one will see it coming.

However, I've found flaws with this and no longer do it.
Because my raise was a bit smaller than a typical raise, I had more callers... Great for when I flopped a monster... terrible for the majority of the time I don't.

So If I'm going to pre raise with the bottom end of my range (More of the spec hands) I make sure to raise the same as any other, and I make sure I'm in position and can narrow the field. I quite often win with a c-bet, or I can out play my opponent, maybe flop a monster, or can get away easily if need be.

Nothing wrong with these raises when your opponents aren't exploiting it, even if it's obvious to you. That goes for a lot of things in poker.

When you do this and get 3bet, how do you know if you're being exploited or not?

I really don't like it unless stacks are 200-300bb deep. If you're 100bb deep, then you can just limp cheaper, get more people in the pot, and still get all in. If the game is deeper you can do it to make sure you can get money in post flop.

All this supposes as said earlier that it won't get exploited. Sometimes it won't, but sometimes it will. I wouldnt put to much stock in having impetus with this play. It doesn't count for much when you have 4th pair OOP in a 6 way pot. Most of the time limping to set mine is better than raising to set mine.

FYP, imo.

4 bet shove. If you get called, you weren't being exploited....

Agree assuming you have some FE. If you can't double barrel effectively due to your ability or the opponents then you're better off not doing it at all.

I sometimes make this sort of raise is when there is a player who likes to make a big raise after a bunch of limpers and I would rather see a flop multi-way for a small raise. I think that Garick would agree that my example counts as an actual blocker.

lol

Besides PP's, suited aces, what hands might we want to pot sweeten IP when we can expect to see the flop with 5+ opponents and we are deep?

Yep. I know a couple of whales who will open just about every hand for $25, but if someone raises $10 infront of them they will just call without a legit. 3! hand.

Grunch.

I think a blocker raise is an exceptionally bad idea.

Just a couple quick reasons would be that it makes you exploitable, and also there's seldom justification for making smaller raises w smaller hands, and no justification for making smaller raises w bigger hands.

If your preflop range is in check enough a huge % of the money you make at these stakes is getting value by being ahead of people's preflop range and/or exploiting the fact that they limp/fold or limp/call and play fit or fold WAY too often in bad spots. The smaller the raise you make here the less effectively you exploit the weak players that frequent these games.


***AsianNit did have a good example that I didn't consider. Pretty rare case though, and probably not employed effectively by 95% or so of players.

In fishy games making a small raise with a small PP or a suited ace means you get to see a flop for cheap as no one 3 bets without a monster. However if you limp someone might bomb it with KQ or AJ in late position

This has become my bread and butter. Seems no matter how bad i run in a session i can come out on top from doing this. Profiling your opponent correctly is the most important factor ive come to learn.

You probably should not assume people who do this are all bad. One time I 3bet one of these raises with trash and not only did the guy call the 3bet, he called a flop c-bet with AK high, seeming to know it was good (and it was). I promise you this was a very good player, not a station.

Almost any preflop play involving small bets can have a place in a good player's strategy. It's just a question of how it's used.

Yeah... I actually play this way whenever table conditions allow it. It's my favorite style of play. I raise $10-12 with a DISGUSTING range from late position, and with a pretty wide range from early position too.

Conditions that make it awesome:

1. Most of your opponents know "tight is right" and will wait for their premium hands.
2. No one will 3-bet light, so I can easily fold most of my range to 3-bets.
3. There are 1-2 players who will happily limp-call almost atc, but then play fit-or-fold post flop.
4. There aren't sticky players willing to pay off big turn or river bets with TPWK or worse.

Those conditions fit 30-40% of the tables I play at (mostly weekdays at MDL).

Under those conditions, relentless small raise+cbet on decent boards+bluff at good runouts just PRINTS money. And it's far superior to waiting for premium hands against opponents who have figured out how to not go broke with one pair, but haven't figured out how to abuse playing styles or position.