Squeezing, Limpers and Multiway Pots
Preflop play when more than two players are involved
Theory says most PLO5 pots should be heads-up: overcalling ranges are narrow, and 3-bets clear the field. In practice, many games are full of limpers and callers, and three- and four-way pots are common. These situations reward a different approach: fewer hands, higher quality, and aggression aimed at capped ranges.
More players means tighter ranges
Every extra opponent is another five cards that can hold the nut flush draw, the top straight draw or a better set. To win a multiway pot you must beat all of them, so the hands you enter with need more nuttiness. That leads to a counter-intuitive rule:
At loose tables, play fewer hands — not more. The hands you do play (nut suits, high connected hands, strong aces) earn far more than they would at a normal table, because opponents put money in with dominated hands.
Squeezing against capped ranges
When a player opens and another just calls, the caller's range is capped: he would usually have 3-bet his aces and best hands. That makes a squeeze attractive for hands that dominate medium-strength holdings:
- Double-suited kings squeeze roughly a third of the time against an open and a call, compared with only a few percent against a single raiser.
- Strong double-paired hands such as KKQQx double-suited are good squeezes, because they can call a 4-bet with their set value.
- Aces squeeze most of the time, but not always. Against a raise and one caller, roughly 80% of aces squeeze in PLO5 compared with nearly all of them in 4-card PLO. Trip-suited and disconnected aces often call instead.
The original raiser, in turn, should not over-fold to a squeeze. In PLO5 the early position opener folds only around 30% of his range against a squeeze, roughly half as often as in 4-card PLO.
Overcalling
Calling behind a raise and a call puts you into a multiway pot, often with players acting after you. Good overcalls are pulling hands: hands with the nut suit, set value or high connectivity that do well when many opponents put money in. Single-suited or low-suited hands without nut potential are poor overcalls, even from the button. In the small blind, overcalls are tighter still; a connected hand like 99877 can overcall a cutoff open and button call, but hands with weaker structure fold.
Isolating limpers
- Raise over limpers with a range a bit tighter than your opening range from that seat.
- The size matters less than the hand selection; a slightly smaller iso-raise can let you widen a little against players who never limp-raise.
- Expect to be called. Prefer hands that play well postflop against a wide range: nut suits, broadway connectivity and aces.
- Hands like QQ886 double-suited are borderline even as opens; behind a limper and with very loose players to act, they are better folded than raised out of position.
Overlimping
Limping behind a limper can be a useful tool for speculative hands in position, but don't overdo it. Limped pots rarely reach the rake cap, so the rake takes a larger share, and you give the blinds a cheap look. Use it sparingly, with hands that can make the nuts.
Facing a squeeze or cold 4-bet
- After calling a raise and facing a squeeze, hands that flatted were already your weaker holdings — including weaker aces. Many should simply call again rather than "back-raise".
- Against a raise and a 3-bet before you act, the threshold is very high. Even about a quarter of aces fold when both ranges are tight.
See also Playing Multiway Flops for how these pots continue after the flop.