As long as it remains live, your hand should play reasonably well against one person with two low straight cards.
You are in a scary situation, but your hand still has value. When the player on fourth street who started with a low card now catches another low card, which is a straight flush card, It is usually best to go out.
You will have to play the rest of the hand in the dark, because you won’t know whether your opponent is going high or low.
Unless you have improved a great deal or have a hand that can win on its own – which may not be likely at this point – you should fold unless the pot is quite large.
Even though you might be throwing away the best hand, your fold is still correct, because it now will be extremely easy for your opponent to outplay you with two low cards to a straight flush showing.
The situation is often similar if your opponent catches a suited ace. That is, you usually should fold.
In fact, the suited ace is frequently more dangerous, as in most cases, you will be behind in both directions.
Also, if you are playing the high hands and a player who stood a raise going in catches a live ace on fourth street, it is usually best to give up your hand if your opponent bets.
Routinely calling in this spot will prove costly. If you start with a low hand and catch bad, usually get out. The exceptions are:
- The pot is extremely large.
- You started with a premium hand. Or
- Everyone catches bad.
For you to continue playing when you catch bad, one of these exceptions needs to be in force. For example, if you start with a hand like and catch the usually give up.
Calls in this situation prove to be very expensive in the long run. Also on fourth street, think about how to set up your play of the hand.
When it is heads up, the cards usually fall so that the best hand will be betting.
The high hand either will lead or, if the low hand will be betting. The high hand either will lead or, if the low hands looks strong, will check and usually make “crying calls.”
When many players are in the pot on fourth street, you will be able to determine how you want to play the hand and how you want it to develop.
For instance, if you have a strong hand, you might want to play it fast, but you also may want to look weak and play it slow.
Generally, if a player who showed strength on third street catches good, he will be checked to and will bet. If he doesn’t bet, most of the time that card was of no help.
A few tricky players will check if they have made four to a very strong hand, but most players will just bet it and try to take the value.
If you have the best high hand, this is the time when you must decide whether to narrow the field and play against just one or two players.
But if you don’t think you can narrow the field, you don’t want to take charge and put a lot of money in the pot.
It is sometimes good not to play fast so you can determine where the strength lies. (This is not the same as a slow-play.) By seeing where the strength is, you will be able to make better decisions later in the hand.
Remember, this is a game where many hands run close in value, and you don’t always have information as to what your opponents hold.
Not playing fast may allow you to save money or to subsequently punish someone, since mistakes on the later rounds can be very costly, especially when drawing dead or close to it.
When you have the high hand, most everyone will know you are going high, so your play should be fairly straightforward.
If your hand looks strong, you should be betting or raising with it; if it looks weak, you should be either folding or calling.
But when you have a quality low hand on fourth street or a hidden high hand, such as small trips or aces in the hole with two small cards, you might want to disguise your hand.
That is, you may want to play it differently from what most people think is correct. By doing this, you may not get the optimal number of bets on fourth street.
But later, when the big bets come, you will be much better off if some of your opponents are now misreading your hand.
For instance, if you look low but actually have a strong high hand, you may get to knock a weak low out of the pot by jamming on a later streets.
Introduction / General Strategy / How Far Do You Go? / Fourth Street / Check-Raising on Fourth and Fifth Streets / Fifth Street / Sixth Street / Seventh Street / Afterthought
