Something I read in a book..

kmuffman k

Hero open 78s. Playing 75bb utg+1 (tournament)
Author wrote,
'i wouldnt open this hand from early position
without antes with less than 50bb because the implied odds aren't good enough."


I don't understand the less than 50bb comment. Pls help. Thx

moishetreats

Let's use extreme examples. Say that everyone at the table has 2bb. Would you open with this hand? Probably not. This hand does well when you can use your flop to semi-bluff. This plays better with deeper hands so that you can apply multiple streets of pressure with both fold equity and equity-when-called.

Now, say that everyone had 5,000bb. Would you open with this hand? Absolutely, because, if/when you hit your monster, then you get paid off big (ignore reverse-implied odds for a moment).

The challenge is determining the tipping point in between. What the author is suggesting is that 50bb isn't worth it: you don't have enough real fold equity and, when you do get called and make your hand, you don't have enough big stack behind to make the payoff worth the gamble.

Obviously, other factors beyond simply stack sized are involved, and, obviously, you can agree or disagree with the author. That's his or her reasoning, though.