Optimizing Your Play with Low Pocket Pairs

Low pocket pairs from 22 to 66 are one of the promising yet problematic types of hands in poker. Skillful use of these hands can bring significant profit and make you a more dangerous opponent at the table.

In this article, we will discuss the main principles and strategies that will help you make the most effective use of low pocket pairs in your game.

Table of Contents:

- Main Concept of Play

- Open-Raise

- Don’t Isolate Limpers

- Consider Implied Odds

Main Concept of Play

Low pocket pairs in poker are characterized by the following feature: the main profit from them is generated in situations where you hit a set on the flop.

A set is a very strong and well-disguised combination that allows you to win large pots from opponents when they have two pairs, an overpair, or top pair. However, there is a problem: you will hit a set quite rarely.

This significantly limits your ability to win large pots. In the remaining 88% of cases, you will have a weak pair on the flop with slim chances of improvement on later streets. In these situations, you will often have to fold and give up many small pots.

In Hand2Note 4 reports, using the Did VPIP filter, I filtered all situations where I put money into the pot with a pocket pair from 22 to 66:

On one hand, we can observe very modest statistics: overall, with such hands, I reached the showdown only 19% of the time and won at showdown 51% of the time, which is not excessively frequent.

On the other hand, my expected win rate in these situations is 11 bb/100, which is a good indicator for this category of hands. This happens precisely because of winning large pots when hitting a set.

From these considerations, the main concept of playing low pocket pairs is to see the flop as cheaply as possible and continue playing only if you hit a set. Of course, there will be exceptions to this strategy, and sometimes you will bet or call on the flop without a set, but your main plan is exactly that.

Open-Raise

Despite the fact that usually with low pocket pairs your goal is to see the flop as cheaply as possible, this does not mean that you should always play passively preflop.

Many beginner poker players, as well as recreational players, avoid open raising with such hands and in situations where all the opponents before them have folded preflop, they open with a limp aiming to see the flop for just 1 blind. This is not the best strategy.

In the reports, I selected situations where no one put money into the pot before me preflop:

In the Next Actions tab, comparing the Action Profit indicators of limp and raise, we can see that open limp is an unprofitable action, whereas open raise brings profit.

Aggression is one of the key elements of successful poker play, and playing low pocket pairs through an open raise preflop has several advantages.

Firstly, by making an open raise, you can steal the blinds and take the pot without seeing the flop, avoiding paying rake. Secondly, even if one opponent calls your raise, you will have the opportunity to take the pot with a continuation bet on the flop textures that fit well with your perceived range.

For example, if you make a continuation bet on a flop of AK3 with pocket deuces, your opponent will be forced to fold pocket pairs from 44 to TT, which beat you and against which you have almost no chance of winning at showdown.

Don’t Isolate Limpers

When there are limpers in the pot preflop, the dynamics of the game change, requiring you to adjust your approach. Generally, isolating limpers can be very profitable. However, it’s important to avoid this tactic with low pocket pairs.

Limpers are usually weak recreational players who do not like to fold without seeing the flop, and you generally won’t be able to take the pot preflop, especially if there are several limpers.

And since most flops won’t fit your hand, there is no need to inflate the pot preflop. In such situations, instead of making a large isolating raise, it is more profitable for you to also call and try to see the flop you need for the minimum price.

In the previous report, I changed the filter and indicated that one or more players before me entered the pot with a limp preflop:

As we can see, in this scenario, calling is a profitable decision, but you should avoid isolating limpers, otherwise, you risk incurring losses over the long run.

Consider Implied Odds

When making a preflop decision with a low pocket pair, you need to ensure that both you and your opponent have sufficiently deep stacks to make the play profitable.

While calling an open raise with pocket pairs from 22 to 66 is a standard profitable strategy, calling a 3-bet with such hands, especially when the 3-bettor has a short stack, is a bad idea. Now you are paying a higher price to win less money from your opponent, and your implied odds automatically become much worse.

You won’t hit your set on the flop often enough to justify calling a 3-bet preflop. And considering that when you do hit your set, the opponent will not always lose their entire stack to you, such an action will be negative in the long term.

Preflop, we’ve made a standard open raise with pocket deuces from the Cutoff position and faced a 3-bet from a regular player in the Small Blind.

If we and our opponent had deep stacks, calling would be a reasonable decision, and I would continue playing in an attempt to hit a set. However, given that the opponent has less than 40 bb left in their stack, our best decision in this situation is simply to give up and fold.

With the right approach, low pocket pairs should bring you profit in the long run. The main principle of playing them is to see the flop cheaply and then effectively play your set postflop. Correct assessment of potential pot odds will allow you to minimize losses and maximize profits.

Using Hand2Note 4 will help you improve your game by analyzing the effectiveness of your strategies. With the reports feature, you can track key indicators, identify your weaknesses, and increase your winnings with low pocket pairs.