How to Play Small Pairs Pre Flop (Poker)

These are other starting hands that you will get time and again and for sure you will be wanting to see a flop. Small pairs are 77, 66, 55, 44, 33 and 22. In Low Limit Hold'em games, players love to play these cards in all situations but this is not the right play all of the time and it is important that you understand when you should get involved. For most, the chance of hitting a set and taking down a mammoth pot is all too tempting and reason enough to get involved. Small pairs do not hold much value yet time and time again, players commit too many chips hoping to catch one of the 2 remaining cards in the deck.

There are not many hands that your small pair will dominate with a small pair. A word of caution. You are a small favorite against two random big cards but a huge dog against big pairs. The problem with playing small pairs is that you are either marginal favorite of way behind. The bottom line is that in a multi way pot you are going to have to improve your hand to win the pot.

To give you an example, lets say you hold a pair of 5's heads up against 2 random cards and the board reads A-Q-7-3-4. You will win 58% of the time (well just under). With the same board against 3 opponents you will win only 18% of the time. Play against 9 opponents and you have a 0.2% chance of winning without improving. The moral of the story, small pairs must improve in multi-handed pots if they are to win. You should hope to see a cheap flop so play the cards if it is not costing you too much to do so.

Always treat small pairs as a drawing hand. If you can see the flop for little chips, do so. If you miss the flop and there are raises, fold. Similarly if there is over cards on the board, you should get out of the pot. The chance of you improving does not warrant the call. Avoid a familiar mistake in Low Limit Hold'em games- don't raise with small pairs. You will end up committing yourself to a pot that you have little chance of winning.

The way i like to look at poker is this. All hands have the potential to improve, even 2-3. So if you are tempted in to play pots merely by any chance of improving, why not get involved in all pots? Why, because unless you hit some cards, you will be out of chips in a flash. You want to maximize your chances of hitting good cards and ideally you want to see the flop for as little, why, because if you do this you will get to see much more flops. More flops seen = more flops that you will hit a good hand and have the chance to take down a big pot!