Just starting plo hi-lo preflop raising question
Join Date: Jan 2008
Posts: 15
Hi, I have decided that I should diversify my game a little bit, and have decided to play plo hi-lo. I have decided to start at uber micro limits 6 max till I get a feel for the game. Since i am not familiar with how to play this game well, and would like to raise more than just the obvious hands.
Im unsure what I should be raising, below is a raising strategy I have thought up, I would appreciate your comments on it
Ive noticed everyone at these stakes likes to see the flop, and would like to know as a gut feeling whether you guys think that raising every reasonable three card 6 on the btn or co would be a profitable play, since i would be playing inflated pots in position with good hands.
Tight raising out of the blinds since im oop and they will all call anyway
Folding all hi only style hands since i don't wanna be quartered.
Is this a good initial strategy that will get me by at these stakes making a consistent profit?
If theres a thread thats relevent, can someone point me in its direction, since i couldnt find a sticky on the issue.
Many Thanks
eSKPe
Join Date: Apr 2007
Posts: 1,536
do not fold all hi only hands. u wont get quaterd, HI hands win scoops when they hit
i raise alot out of the blinds, but i would have to say its not a great thing, i m trying to stop, becuase playing oop sucks
Join Date: Jan 2008
Posts: 15
In response to your comments, since im new to plo hi lo i thought I wouldn't dice with the high cards until im familiar with how the game plays since I would face a lot of difficult situations with the board pairing when have straights/flushes and with a possible low falling on the river, and someone betting at me.
Presumably if i'm raising hi hands as well as only low ones, I cant be raising 99-jjxx since to scoop, we need a flop a hand like a set and on boards with less than 2 cards lower than an eight, many straights are possible. (Or is this why we raise these hands trying to turn it into a fh and stack someone?) So the high hands we raise are those where we can make high straights with wraps on the flop? If so what do we expect to get value out of? Is our advantage with the highs, the same as in plo hi where we get it in with a wrap vs some fools temporary nuts or worse fh or do we dice with the board going below an eight?
Join Date: Oct 2005
Posts: 1,286
If you're just starting out I wouldn't get too fancy, especially at the micro limits. Just play straightforward with tight hand selection until you become more comfortable with the game. Then you can start experimenting with widening your range and preflop aggression.
Join Date: Aug 2006
Posts: 513
For high hands, if you know Omaha Hi only, see flops with all-broadway hands that play well in PLO (AAhh, QQJTss, yes, KQJTr not so much). Be more inclined to see flops with more marginal high hands and more speculative hands in general from CO or BUT when it is a limp fest. If you can surmise that most players are limping with 3 low cards, your chances of hitting a high and winning half or scooping go way up.
Experiment a little bit with pushing and pulling, raising and limping. A2wx suited doesn't always play best with a raise, if you can read other player's tendencies, jump right to 2nd level exploitation strategies (I can limp, they will min raise, everyone will be less likely to think I have A2wx suited). At those lower levels, if the action is live then you can let others drive the action then swoop in on the turn/river with sometimes even pulling raises, or pushing raises if you have nut low and a decent high to try and scoop.
Join Date: Aug 2006
Posts: 513
Join Date: Jan 2008
Posts: 15
Join Date: Apr 2008
Posts: 10,461
i would say mostly limp (unless for deception) with four big cards, do not raise out of the blinds and also try to not raise from too early position (wow especially with a hand with two aces in it), limp in with four low cards with an ace in it (containing a deuce or trey), raise with hands like A2KQ, A4KKds and A24Js because those hands have good high potential but also play better against fewer opponents (where, say your pair of kings with your nut low draw is worth going to war with - obv it wouldn't be multiway). when it comes to reraising, this should probly be done from late position as much as possible, and definately should not be restricted to a hand with two aces in it! sometimes, there is a really loose player, and he decides to raise it from middle position, but you got AQ45ds after a coupla folds with you OTB, well, thats a good time to pop it right there, for sure, get it heads up, c-bet a decent amount, outplay him, and almost certainly still have the better draws (A45 low draws much more likely to be good against a loose player, especially when a trey is present). hope this stuff helps.