Reading Their Hand in Small Stakes Poker (Just Do This!)

In the increasingly competitive online poker environment today it is more important than ever to pay attention to the little things. 

In fact these small edges can add up in a very big way over time. And understanding how to read their hand correctly is crucial.

Today I am going to walk you through two examples of reading their hand in small stakes poker.

Reading Their Hand (Small Stakes Poker)

Poker Stars, $0.01/$0.02 NL Hold'em Cash Game, 7 Players

SB: $2.32
Hero (BB): $5.29
UTG: $1.30
UTG+1: $2.19
MP: $0.96
CO: $0.76
BTN: $0.84

Pre-Flop: Q♦️Q♠️ dealt to Hero (BB)

UTG calls $0.02, 3 folds, BTN raises to $0.08, SB folds, Hero raises to $0.32, UTG folds, BTN calls $0.24

Flop: ($0.67) 6♠️ 4♦️ 3♣️ (2 Players)

Hero checks, BTN bets $0.52 and is All-In, Hero calls $0.52

Turn: ($1.71) 4♣️ (2 Players - 1 is All-In)

River: ($1.71) 4♥️ (2 Players - 1 is All-In)


Results: $1.71 Pot ($0.08 Rake)

Hero showed Q♦️ Q♠️ and WON $1.63 (+$0.81 NET)

BTN showed 9♣️ T♣️ and LOST (-$0.84 NET)



Poker Stars, $0.01/$0.02 NL Hold'em Cash Game, 7 Players

SB: $2.60
Hero (BB): $5
UTG: $1.52
UTG+1: $0.91
MP: $1
CO: $1.52
BTN: $0.76

Pre-Flop: A♠️ A♥️ dealt to Hero (BB)

UTG calls $0.02, UTG+1 raises to $0.10, 4 folds, Hero raises to $0.30, UTG folds, UTG+1 calls $0.20

Flop: ($0.63) 7♥️ 9♦️ T♦️ (2 Players)

Hero checks, UTG+1 bets $0.26, Hero raises to $4.70 and is All-In, UTG+1 calls $0.35 and is All-In

Turn: ($1.85) 6♠️ (2 Players - 1 is All-In)

River: ($1.85) Q♠️ (2 Players - 1 is All-In)


Results: $1.85 Pot ($0.09 Rake)

Hero showed A♠️ A♥️ and WON $1.76 (+$0.87 NET)

UTG+1 showed Q♥️ A♣️ and LOST (-$0.91 NET)

Reading Their Hand in Small Stakes Poker (My Thoughts)

The villains in both of the above hands were extremely aggressive. Even though I didn't have a huge sample on either of them (around 100 hands) they both had an aggression factor of 5 or more. 

You can find this information by using a free poker HUD.

It is important to sometimes have a look at a stat like this before you make an obvious cbet. Because with players like this, we can pretty much depend on a bet from them if we check.

If we cbet, they will obviously always call with their paired and drawing hands in a spot like this. But there is also a no pair, no draw part of their range that will fold if we make a cbet. 

By checking we give them the opportunity to stick in the rest of their money with those hands as well. A small detail, but one worth considering, since it amounts to a 20bb loss if you auto cbet and make them fold their air.

I just want to be clear that these are rare spots, especially at the micros. Most players are passive and you should just make a standard cbet here. But it is still a good idea to have a look at your opponents tendencies before you act. 

Because making sure that you pick up that dead money is one small way to boost your winrate in a big way over the long haul.

By the way, for my entire poker strategy, grab a copy of my free poker cheat sheet.

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