I recently had someone e-mail me a question about a hand they were involved in; this hand really shows the importance of being aware of what your image is and what the other players on your table are doing. If you stay aware of the way that they play in hands you are not involved in, it can give you a lot of information about a hand you do tango with. The e-mail begins as follows:

I’m playing 5/10 NL Hold’em and the small blind is a professional player who is a regular at the casino I am playing at. He knows a lot of the players in the high limits, so it gives me the impression that he has been playing for a living for some time. He is tighter than most pros. I’ve seen him fold AQ suited, AQ off suit, and A10 suited in early position to a raise 2-2.5 times the BB. Middle Position is very loose. I’ve seen her raise 10 7 suited in early position and make similar loose plays.

In this hand middle position opens for $30, and I raise to $80 with 7s 7h. It folds around to the tight guy in the small blind and he makes it $180 to go. Middle position calls, I call. Flop is 5s 5c 2s. Small blind bets, middle position calls, what should I do?

Read the answer in Pokerblog.com!