3 Easy Poker Tips For Low Stakes

In order to beat the low stakes poker games in 2021, you need to do a few more things than you used to. A decade ago, you could play blindfolded and beat the average low stakes game. This isn’t the case anymore due to the calibre being higher. This wasn’t helped by the banning of online gambling in most American states but that’s a debate for another day. In this post, I’m going to show three very easy tips you can use in low stakes poker games to give you an edge.

Stop Limping

The first way to gain an edge on low stakes Texas Hold’em games is to not limp like they do. Limping poker is a terrible strategy to employ. You can’t win the pot outright and have to hope to connect. If you only flat call, you won’t be able to represent a strong hand like pocket kings or aces.

If you choose to play a hand, it’s much better to open raise. By doing this, you’re taking control of the pot and have the aggression. This serves you in two way, you can win it pre-flop without contest. Or, you can build a pot and hopefully win it later in the hand. Both are more appealing than open-limping.

Small 3 Bets

Another easy to use is the small re-raise a.k.a. “3 bet”. This is a brilliant way to take control of a pot and get the pot one on one. I find this works well against “regs” who try to bully the table.  A small 3 bet only needs to be 2.5x their initial bet to work. So, if the blinds are 50c and they raise to $1.50, you can make it $4. These little 3 bets work very well against most players, even tight players. You can do these moves from late position with hands like suited aces, suited connectors and even little pairs. By putting in the small re-raise, you give yourself a good chance of winning it on the flop.

Tighten Up from The Small Blind

The small blind is the worst position to play poker from. No matter who you’re facing, you’re going to be acting first on every round. This just normal poker probability. Experts know this and tighten up their range from here. This concept is lost on players in the low stakes’ games. Don’t fall victim to overplaying hands from here. Instead, play solidly. Stick to playing mid pocket pairs, ace jack or better and suited paint cards. If you avoid the trouble hands like ace rag, king ten, queen nine etc, you will have an edge on your opponents who play too liberally from here.