When playing low pocket pairs (2's,3's,4's,5's6's) in texas hold'em poker you have to know what your looking for, and how to proceed dependent on what you see on the flop. Too many people think you should just throw them away in most situations, but these types of starting hands can be the most profitable of all.

This is because low pocket pairs are not the typical ace through ten type of starting hand. Also when you make a set it won't be obvious because the card needed to make your set won't be a face card which would normally be part of a typical texas hold'em poker hand. You can use this to your advantage. By not making bets that give away your pocket cards hand strength you will be able extract the maximum amount of money. Keep in mind what cards are on the board, and what your opponents hole cards are likely to be given their actions. It may be that at some point in these types of hold'em poker hands you will have to make more forceful bets to force out chasers.

In addition to being hole cards that won't have an obvious flop they also will have a very high potential hold'em poker hand strength. This is because if you make your set then all you need is for the board to pair. This will give you a full house which has a very high hold'em poker hand strength. Often times in this type of situation the board pair will give an opponent a set while making your full house. This is like money in the bank. While your opponent feels he has a dominant hold'em hand strength he in fact is drawing dead. It is still important not to make obvious and aggressive raises which may communicate your hand strength. Often times the best course of action is to just call till the river then make you move. If your opponent doesn't get any kind of obvious cues before the river he will be more apt to go ahead and call your post river bet even if it is sizable.

It is important to know what to look for when your starting hand is a low pocket pair. It isn't always the third card to make your set. For example if you have a pocket pair of 5's and the flop is 3, 3, 4. In this situation more often than not your ahead in the hand strength. Most opponents would not have a 3 or 4 in a starting hand, and the fact that there are 2 3's makes it more likely that the remaining 2 3's are in the deck or folded. In this type of situation I would suggest making a value bet to see if your hand strength is on top. Two or three times the big blind usually would be sufficient. Also you don't want to make the mistake of acting to minimally and letting players get a free look at the turn. With a flop like that any players holding an ace would like to see a 5 or 2 on the turn. If they then only need on card to make a 5 high straight they may stay in with a small bet. Also there is always the chance they will make their straight. In which case you would have made your set of 5's but to no avail.

More often than not if you don't make your set on the flop it is best to just fold your hand. Low pocket pairs though very profitable have to be played for what they are. If they don't make a set on the flop they are most likely behind in hand strength and will finish the poker hand that way. The exception to this would be if you go all-in preflop against a drawing starting hand. You are slightly favored. Of course if your opponent does hit either card then the low pocket pair starting hand strength becomes a nearly assured lose. This is why it really is not a very good play to make very often. In desperate situations in poker tournaments as blinds are nipping at your heels you may have to make some desperate plays with low pocket pairs for starting hands, but otherwise you should really just try to see the flop with them.

With this said I still in most situations feel that a starting hand worth playing preflop is worth raising preflop. Even though your starting hand strength with a low pocket pair is most likely behind; a preflop raise can still chase out some opponents that could have potentially benefitted from the flop. By chasing some out you can maximize the chances your low pocket pair will be ahead in hand strength after the flop. Even if a queen or jack come out on the flop you may have chased out an opponent who had a queen and a rag that may have stayed in where it not for the preflop raise. You can make your feeler bet and see where you are in hand strength and see if you want to play the hand further or fold it.

About 3 out of 4 times that you play low pocket pair starting hands you should end up folding it post flop when you don't make your set. The hold'em hand odds of getting a set are low enough that you won't make your set very often. Don't make the mistake of continuing to chase it. Every once in a while if the table conditions allow it perhaps, but most likely your just contributing your chips to someone else's pot.

Now after reading this you may get the impression I am advocating playing low pocket pairs when ever you get them. Often times if there is a raise and especially if there is a reraise you should probably fold your starting hand preflop. This is because the probability of making your set is low and faced with an aggressive better you don't want to pay a premium to see a flop that is more than likely not going to improver your starting hand strength.

Playing low pocket pairs in texas hold'em poker is not something to be afraid of. Rather you should look forward to them and play them accordingly. Capitalizing on the less obvious starting hands can greatly increase your level of play in texas hold'em poker, and will keep your opponents guessing which will help your play no matter your starting hand strength.

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