Friday Night Home Game Strategy

Doubleblow

I play a regular Friday night session with friends at a local club. £5 re-buys for first hour, starting stack 5,500 chips, blinds stay at 100 / 200 during re-buys then go up every 15 mins. You can top up for £5 for every 5,500 chips after the buy in period, up to £15. We regularly get around 12 players and the prize money is usually anywhere between £200 to £300.

The problem I have is that I am a naturally tight player but during the buy in period we have some really loose players who will call down / raise big, go all in on marginal hands. Some of the other players have learnt they can often shove me off pots during the buy in period by raising big. Some weeks it's fine - I play good hands and end with a good chip stack but for the last 3 to 4 weeks all I seem to be doing is folding and being bullied off pots during the buy in period and always have to take the max top up to compete on chipstacks.

Should I be playing loose / tight during buy in period? What range of starting hands would you play? Mix it up more? Is it a case that the other players have learnt my playing style and I haven't adapted? I suspect it's my inexperience and not adapting enough to conditions but any advice on how to play a loose table during a buy in period would be appreciated. And if you live on the north side of Nottingham your always welcome to come along!

rancid

If people are getting it wide the widen your calling range

percival09

Hard to give advice just from that. Yeah you obviously need to adapt to how players view you, and if they know you're a nit then use that to your advantage in the right situation. There's no need to be mega loose, but just play the situation. Find the players' leaks and try exploit them because that's what they're doing to you. 

bearlyther

If they are shoving every hand a hand like a6,kq pocket 5s and up then becomes the nuts you have to get them in!

IDONKCALLU

all depends on money if u have enuff to do a rebuy then u can gamble abit more tbh blinds 100/200 so 26 bb im still being patient waiting for big hands if these people are crazy and bulling u of as u say then jst wait your time will come to get a big pot i would sit back take notes on the crazy players then if u have any ace gd kicker call depends on reads on the table but like i say depends on how much your willing to spend on rebuys 

Doubleblow

I understand it's difficult to give explicit advice with just bare details.

I've watched the game and I definitely get more re-raises / all-in shoves from about 3 or 4 players, I guess because they feel that against me they have more chance of getting through.

Uncomfortable as it may feel, I think I've just got to mix it up a bit more. How about: raise on a dry flop with virtually any 2 cards, call from late position on marginal hands and be prepared to float and raise on the turn card, set mine and call any raise with any pocket pair, bang in an the odd bluff and show my cards when it works (usually never show my cards) mixed in with my usual tight game.

Lol, maybe I should be doing that anyway!