Loose Blind Steals - the LAG Approach

4.2. The button call

(with a tight button you can also call on the CO)

This style is often frowned upon at most tight tables, as the move itself already implies weakness: You're in position, only playing against the blinds, so why not raise if you have a legitimate hand? As calls seldom happen on the button, most players don't know how to react to this. This gives us an edge over such players, at least for the first few times.

First and foremost, the move is good to vary your own game after you often raised on the button. It is preferable to play hands which don't have a high equity against the blinds in pre-flop match-ups, but could become very strong with a good flop, thus suited connectors or hands like KTo.

Especially against opponents who like to defend their blinds it is a good move, as you didn't attack their blinds in their opinion. If you get raised from the blinds, you can easily fold without the correct odds. After all, you hardly invested chips into the hand.

The button call is highly effective with stacks of about 15 BB, as your opponents now have the choice of either pushing all-in with 15BB or check, as they would have to fold themselves following your push after their 3-4 BB raise. Hence they often check, even with somewhat strong hands like A9o with which they would have gone all-in after a raise.

If both (or only the BB) checked the flop, you should bet ½ pot size on any board. To not ruin this bet's credibility, you should even bet the nuts, especially with regulars on the table.

If one of both players donk the flop, you should fold all weak hands, and continue playing good hands the normal way, or eventually, as described previously, bluff call if the situation is ideal for it and the board doesn't look too scary. Keep in mind that you won't get much credit for an ace, as you didn't raise pre-flop.

If a blind calls the bet, you should give up in most cases or bet again against very weak opponents on a checked turn. For this you have to check the value “fold to flop bet” and the opponent's stack. Low stack and high fold to flop bet value indicate a strong hand and the will to call down to the showdown or check-raise. Middle to big stack and low fold to flop bet value indicate that the pot is still worth buying.

If you got called on a draw heavy board, you can also check behind on the turn and make a small river bet after a check when an obvious draw didn't hit. After the check on the turn you showed enough weakness for...

• the opponent's check on the river to already look very weak.
• a river bet to be a bit higher. River bluffs should generally turn out to be higher, as only this bet separates the opponent from the showdown and he no longer has to worry about reversed implied odds. 3/4^th to pot size is a good river bet amount.