Zero 2 Hero - How To Crush Micro Stakes Part 1

There are so many reasons why micro stake games are easy to crush but today I want to talk about one subject in particular. I want to talk about the danger of playing dominated hands, hands that have reverse implied odds.

The picture on the right is a screen shot that I took today which to me summed up everything about the majority of bad micro stake players.

To run you through the action quickly, I raised pre flop, the guy called (not totally horrible, if you are capable of laying top pair down). I fire the flop, he calls, I near pot the turn, he calls, I shove the river, he calls. So the guy is a first class calling station that had no clue what he was doing and will never fold a pair.

Now don't get me wrong, these are the guys that will suck out on you from time to time, rivering all sorts of weird two pair type hands etc. But on the whole they are just going to donate money over and over until you either move up in stakes or they go broke and stop playing. So a side lesson here is make hay whilst the sun is shining and value bet the hell out of these guys.

On the flip side, if you are just learning the game and starting out yourself, avoid playing dominated hands, especially if you're out of position. The reason why is because when you flop a top pair type hand you either win a small pot because your opponent is scared by the ace or you lose a stack because he has you crushed. This is what's meant by the term 'reverse implied odds'.

Patience and position are key to building your bankroll at these levels. Don't be tempted to play inferior hands out of position just because they are 'suited'. Suited hands only gain a little bit of equity for when they flop draws and drawing hands are best played in position, in multi way pots, where you have more control of the hand. You just can't draw to hands out of position as your hand will look pretty obvious and you may not get paid when you hit plus you'll normally be getting charged the wrong odds by the person in position. You are totally at their mercy when you play out of position.

I have no doubt that this player justified the play because his hand was 'suited'. But the cold truth is that just because his cards are the same colour doesn't mean he'll win the hand. The fact that he had no kicker, ended up losing him his entire stack and this will be the case more often than he'll ever flop a flush or even a flush draw.

So to sum up, avoid marginal situations, avoid playing out of position, in fact just refuse to play out of position (premium hands aside). Value bet the stations and patiently watch your bankroll grow. This advice alone with the addition of a good rake back deal will be enough to make you a winning player in these games.

Good luck

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