Quote:
Originally Posted by Doctor Futtock
I'm coming at this from a 1/2 player perspective and I'm beginning to understand your argument but it still seems quite subjective (more from the point of view of a player who plays 2/5 or 5/10 but who's bankrolled to play larger if they want). I remember turning up to play 1/2 at The Empire a few years back and there were about 4 players at the table straddling £5 every hand. I got put on that table and was "that guy" who refused to straddle. One player in particular (clearly the Alpha male who instigated the whole thing) tried to make me feel bad about this and my argument was (a) that I had turned up to play 1/2 and (b) they could turn the game into a 2/5 game if they wanted and I'd go away.
Still, if I was over-rolled for a particular stake then I think I would see straddling as "a bit of fun" as well but for the average Joe Shmoe who earns less than or equal the average wage and has little savings, it would be a bad decision to suddenly start playing in a game they are under-rolled for and foolish to do this for the benefit of "a bit of fun". In saying that, could you not put the non-straddling player on scared money and simply raise the **** out of them in relentless fashion?
I understand what you're saying and actually, I think at 1/2 it should remain as you say with no straddles unless it's the highest game in the room, and higher stakes players are playing it, for exactly the reasons you're alluding to and there's nothing else to play and they want to be playing higher. I played 1/3 at the vic recently and one evening it was playing higher than a 2/5 as it was straddled and was crazy action, and then another night it was the most nitty (coming from a nit lol) and when I tried to straddle nobody wanted to know. I don't really get the 1/3 stake, it's a deeper stacked 1/2 game when really it should be a 2/5. Very hit and miss. Should probably be removed and more 2/5's added.
Essentially lots of 1/2 players are beginners because there's no lower games and I can see them being put off playing if suddenly they are thrown into a much higher game than they anticipated. At 2/5+ this is not really the situation, its usually the highest or 2nd highest game with plenty of games lower, if a player comes to 2/5, they know full well that it's a more aggressive and higher stakes game so should really expect some more action. In a deep stacked 2/5 there's not much difference to a slightly shallower 5/10 game. The whales at mid stakes are quite well off, straddling makes it fun and usually those playing 2/5 want to play a little higher its best to accommodate it and make it fun/gambly.
This is coming from someone who plays maybe 1-2 times a week at best, plays more abroad than here in London, but has been playing a decent amount live in london recently and have been playing for nearly 20 years, I'm by no means some super reg who is there daily nor do I want to be, but I want to play mid-higher stakes and when there's fish who want to gamble - thats the reason I'm in the game anyway, so it has to be fun (and in their mind fun is gambol).
Last edited by dappadan777; 11-06-2022 at 07:25 AM.