I was playing $1/$2 no-limit hold 'em at a Casino a week ago. My experience playing this game live led me to expect a very tight game. In Las Vegas I sat at the poker tables for about 15 hours, and saw very few big raises pre-flop. Here, however, I suddenly found myself in a very loose game. Players were frequently betting $20, $4o or even $60 before the flop. In addition many were also "straddling" - something I had never seen before. It took me awhile to figure out how the straddle works, but eventually I clued in.
How it works is this; the player under the gun (The guy sitting to the left of the big blind - the first to act) can announce "straddle" before the cards are dealt. He then puts up a specified amount (in our game it was $5, which was 2.5 times the big blind). The cards are dealt, but the guy who straddled - who was under the gun - now does not have to act first, that honour goes to the guy on his left. Now, with the straddle on, the remaining players no longer have the option of limping in at the price of the big blind ($2) but now have to cough up a minimum of $5 (in our example) to see the flop.
It seems that straddling is a way loose gamblers try to juice up the pot a bit. Or, perhaps players who are confident they will be able to push others out of the pot later will straddle.
To me it just doesn't make much sense. Why risk more of your money than you need to before you even see what cards you have?
I do see one use for the straddle. I am a very tight player, but after a while other players clue in that I just don't play loose, and so they just fold to me when I play a hand. What I need is a way to look loose while remaining tight. Straddling might just do the trick.
I'll let you know how it goes.
Thanks for the great analysis, Tyler. I'd heard the term before, but never really knew what it meant.
ReplyDeleteI can think of another use for the straddle: It seems to me like the kind of move that would really tick some players off, especially if you did it repeatedly, and it's always fun to play against angry opponents. They just do the cutest darn things, don't they?
That said, the whole concept of raising a bet before you know anything about your hand just doesn't seem very "poker-like" to me. I think I'd generally avoid games that allowed straddling. (Maybe I'm one of those guys that would get ticked off!)
I understand and agree Ampersand, but something else just occured to me.
ReplyDeleteIt seems that if you are a tight player and other guys are straddling, then the pots you win are just going to be that much bigger. Stay tight and let the straddlers build the pot for you.