It takes a confident poker player to turn a pair of pocket 9s into a winning and profitable hand, but this so-called “middling hand” could honestly take your game of online poker either way. It’s a question of having the courage of your convictions, assessing the table, and deciding to play an aggressive hand, bluff, or fold. Cash games, as opposed to tournaments, are an ideal training ground for playing these kinds of hands, as players can cash in and out of the game at any time and take some time to re-evaluate how they could or would play the same hand differently in the next game. Read on to learn the best ways to play a pair of pocket 9s.
Setting the Scene Preflop
So, you’ve been dealt a pair of 9s. What next? You’re still preflop, so you can afford to call this a moderate to good hand since you don’t know how strong the other players are going to come out. All will be revealed (or not) in the flop, and depending on your position at the table, you may have the luxury of time to assess their game plans. Despite pocket 9s being one of the trickiest hands to play through to showdown, it’s recommended that you take a cautiously optimistic, if not aggressive, approach to your bet as part of your preflop strategy. The advantage in cash games is that blinds are fixed, which means you have already picked the level of game you’re in and know what the starting point is.
Call, Raise, or Fold
When you’re sitting with a pair of pocket 9s, you can call, raise, or fold as with any other hand. It would be unwise to fold in the early stages of the game, as that would be a waste of a hand that still has plenty of potential. Calling suggests something of a limp into the pot despite your hand. Therefore, going in with a raise is the best option, even if you feel like it’s a bit of a bluff. Be steadfast.
To 3-Bet or Not To 3-Bet
Now you’re in the flop. The other players around the table have declared their intentions, and you have to decide whether or not, again, to call, raise, or fold. But now you have another option, which is to 3-bet. While 3-betting is definitely a strategy that can help in a cash game, there are times when it’s not such a great idea, and one of those would be now. If you don’t hit a decent hand at the flop, one reason not to 3-bet with a pair of pocket 9s is that you probably won’t force as many folds as you might like, leaving you none the wiser as to the real strength of your hand (or anyone else’s). And what if one of the other players chooses to 4-bet? That leaves you with a predicament as to whether you can afford to put more in the pot, or it may force you to fold, which would be a waste of a potentially good hand.
If another player 3-bets against your hand, what you do next depends on several factors, including how heavily that player is going in. If they’re betting light, you can probably afford to call and wait the flop out, but if they’re going in aggressively with higher stakes that make you uncomfortable, you should consider folding even though it’s early in the game. Other factors, like the size of the pot and your position at the table, also come into play here.
Play Strategically
There are 169 poker hand variations that you can typically be dealt at the start of a Texas Hold’em game, and a pair of pocket 9s is just one of them. Depending on the flop, you may find yourself with an overpair, wondering just where the other high cards are sitting. If the flop is made up of low-value cards only, or just one over card, your hand is still in the game, although it remains even more tricky postflop.
Your best strategy in assessing how to play your hand postflop is not only to gauge your hand at face value, but to weigh it up against what you believe your opponents are holding, how aggressively they’re playing, and the general feel of the table. In an online poker tournament, when the pressure’s even more intense than in a cash game, this will really test your skill, so caution at this level may be the better part of valor.
Pocket 9s are a good hand to bluff with, so if you’ve had a good track record at the table in this session and have managed to pull a couple of bluffs off already, you can really make something of your 9s. If you’re a hesitant, uncertain player, though, it may be better to fold postflop. Pocket 9s may still be called by players with a weaker hand, but you can still come up trumps at the showdown. Stranger things have happened with poker hands.
Learning Moments
As a middling hand, pocket 9s are neither the best nor the worst hand to be dealt. They require some technical skills to play profitably, even more than a winning or a dud hand, where your strategy is pretty clear-cut. Pocket 9s need you to balance all the buts and maybes at each stage of the game and to make the best decision for your bankroll each time.
Test Your Skills at Borgata Online
Play poker online and test your skills against others of the same level until you start improving. Then move up a grade until you’re playing like a pro — when you might even relish the challenge of being dealt pocket 9s. Register with Borgata Online and deal yourself into the next game.