Small pairs advice

I folded both of these because of the raise and re-raise when it got back to me. Getting in cheap with small pairs is important, but how far can you stretch that because if you get your set you'll likely stack someone?

Party Poker No-Limit Hold'em, $ BB (10 handed) FTR converter on zerodivide.cx

MP1 ($15.25)
MP2 ($27.43)
MP3 ($10.92)
CO ($60.55)
Button ($28.79)
SB ($31.81)
BB ($7.75)
Hero ($39.25)
UTG+1 ($14.75)
UTG+2 ($18.20)

Preflop: Hero is UTG with 5, 5. SB posts a blind of $0.10.
Hero calls $0.25, UTG+1 calls $0.25, UTG+2 calls $0.25, MP1 calls $0.25, MP2 raises to $0.5, MP3 calls $0.50, CO raises to $4.55, 3 folds, Hero folds, UTG+1 folds, UTG+2 folds, MP1 calls $15 (All-In), MP2 folds, MP3 folds, CO calls $10.70.


Party Poker No-Limit Hold'em, $ BB (9 handed) FTR converter on zerodivide.cx

CO ($17.90)
Hero ($22.05)
SB ($23.71)
BB ($3.75)
UTG ($39.73)
UTG+1 ($29.65)
MP1 ($20.90)
MP2 ($25.20)
MP3 ($24.40)

Preflop: Hero is Button with 5, 5. SB posts a blind of $0.10.
1 fold, UTG+1 calls $0.25, MP1 raises to $1.1, 1 fold, MP3 raises to $2.95, 4 folds, UTG+1 folds, MP1 calls $1.85.

with small PP I typically limp and will call a raise of up to 4-5xBB if the raiser has a stack that can pay me off when a set hits. In both situations you posted, I would fold. In late position, I often open raise my pocket pairs, but again for the smaller ones OOP it is important to be priced in correctly and make sure that you arent calling huge raises against opponents who cant or wont pay you off.

There's some analysis in this HE strategies sticky:

http://www.flopturnriver.com/phpBB2/forum/poker-83.htm

Don't know if that helps.

Originally Posted by Anosmic

There's some analysis in this HE strategies sticky:

http://www.flopturnriver.com/phpBB2/forum/poker-83.htm

Don't know if that helps.

It does-- thanks! Somehow I missed that one.

Here's something to remember when you are playing the low pairs for sets. In a case like hand one where you can be pretty sure CO has a big pp, you need to realize that even when you hit your set, he will hit a bigger set about15% of the time by the river. A percent or 2 more, he will win with a straight or flush. So when you hit your set you are probably about 83% to win if the other guy has a bigger pp. Since you win 17%, your expected return on the money that goes in the pot post flop is about 83-17= 66%. You will hit your set about 12% of the time, so your 'share' of the money that goes in the pot postflop is about 8% (66%*12%). 100/8 is 12.5, so if you know you will get his stack if you win, both your stack and his stack must be 12.5x the money you have to put in the pot to see the flop ... and this is if you close the betting and know no-one else will raise. Since you will not always get the stack when you win, if you are pretty sure your opponent has a big pp, you probably need both your stack and his stack to be 16-20x what you have to put in the pot for the call to be worth while. If you can put your opponent on a wider range, then you don't need as much overlay to make the call ... a non-paired hand needs to hit the board 3 times to beat a set compared to the single time a bigger pp neads to hit the board.