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I’m having problems in knowing how to play certain hands under the gun, pocket nines through to pocket aces. Generally I would raise with 99, TT and JJ UTG [1st position to act], as this lets me know where I stand if I’m re raised. I’m a little unsure about QQ and limp with AA and KK in the hope I can re raise, but I’ve heard it is bad policy to limp with any cards UTG? Is this true?
AbigdealA
Hello AbigdealA!
How are you? The weather has been beastly for the past month, so I haven’t had much of a summer I’m afraid (though Jacqueline has enjoyed having me about the house, it must be stated) – luckily, the rain and winds have let me enjoy more online poker than is usual during June and July, so I hope I am better placed to answer your question than before!
Playing from the Under The Gun (UTG) position can be quite tricky. You are 1st to act after all the cards have been dealt and on a full table this means that there will be 8 other players to act after you. As a result, I think you need a very clear plan of how to react in all circumstances that may occur after you decide to stay in the hand by either calling the big blind (limping) or raising.
What will you do if three other players flat call and the player on the button (last to act before the two players who posted blinds) makes a big raise? What if the next player to act after you raises your flat call or re-raises your raise? What will you do if three players see a flop and the big blind raises into you? Unless all the other players in the hand, apart from the blinds, fold, playing UTG means that there will be players to act after you on the flop and perhaps on subsequent streets (the turn and the river), and so your position will be acting against you!
For all these reasons, it is worth thinking hard about your plan for the hand if you decide to play on. I think there is an argument for limping UTG with 99, TT and JJ if you are on an aggressive table where your initial raise is likely to be re-raised by a player closer to the button. Re-raising again (or ‘4-betting’) UTG with these medium pairs can get you into a world of trouble (what if the other player then goes all in and you are unsure about your hand?); but you limp with these hands, you can then can the inevitable raise in the hope of hitting your set on the flop. Set mining on aggressive tables can be very profitable, believe me!
At the same time, if the table is ultra aggressive and you think your raise UTG is more than likely to be re-raised by a player with a very wide range, I wouldn’t be unhappy to pump up the pot pre-flop and re-assess when those three cards have been dealt. Against a serial re-raiser, I would be happy to ‘go to war’ with 99-JJ pre-flop, even to the point of getting all my chips into the pot at this stage, if I believed his 4-betting range was wide enough!
Likewise, on a very aggressive table I would always raise UTG with QQ, KK or AA in the hope of being re-raised. If this happens you can then vary it up by 4-betting 80% of the time and flat calling your opponents re-raise (assuming no-one else is now in the hand, if so you should raise) the other 20%. It is great to have big hands against these aggressive opponents; it is so much easier getting their chips into the pot if they keep on betting at you or happily call your big raises!
On a passive table, I typically raise UTG with 99+, but am willing to throw away 99, TT, JJ and even QQ if there is a huge amount of action by the other players (raise, re-raise, 4-bet, 5-bet, etc!). I would be less likely to limp with KK or AA as there is less likelihood that you will be raised and with your premium hands, you want to build the pot as much as you can while you are ahead, in order to extract maximum value. There is nothing worse than limping with AA, seeing an Ace-high flop and only taking down the blinds when you bet at it!
There was one circumstance many years ago where I was seated UTG with 88 on a very passive table, limped in along with 4 or 5 other players and hit the dream flop of 88x! I decided to be sneaky and checked when action got to me, and it was checked around. On the K turn I couldn’t wait any longer and bet half the small pot, praying that one of my opponents had a strong king and would re-raise. I got one flat caller, who folded when I again bet half the pot on the river. I hardly won anything, as I hadn’t built the pot either pre-flop or on the flop. That soon ended my limping UTG with a medium-strength hand on a passive table!
I’ll end by re-iterating how important it is to have a clear plan in your head if you decide to get involved when sitting UTG. Your position at the table is poor, so factor this into your decision and don’t leave yourself having to fold on the flop or later streets having played passively and still putting too much of your stack into the pot. My Jacqueline constantly berates me for my misuse of position and for not having a plan for what I am doing – yes, the advice given above covers more aspects of life other than just poker, let me assure you!
Best of luck at the tables,
Dr. Jack