www.doylespoker.com – For the most part, I feel that picking up blinds is about timing, and of course luck. When trying to pick up a players blind, you will need to both be in late position. This nullifies any threat from the other players at the table because they will have already folded for you to even attempt this type of play. If one player has limped in and the rest have folded, you can still make an attempt to pick up both the big blind and the limpers money from a small blind position.
This involves more danger of course, but as with simply stealing the big blind when the rest have folded, the primary danger is still with the big blind player usually. This is because their hand strength is unknown, and you do not really have much information to go on.
When making these blind steals we are often working on the very likely assumption that they do not have a strong enough hand to call a large raise. It is possible that we will be unlucky and walk into a hand, but when the blinds get quite high, such moves are worth attempting I feel.
As with many plays in poker, we know that they may be profitable for us, but care must always be taken in terms of how frequently these blind steals are attempted. Players will soon realise you have no hand each time, and look to hit back at you, perhaps even with no hand themselves. So keep these types of plays to a minimum if possible, but also be aware of their potential to keep your chip levels afloat if you are getting short stacked.