The 4-5 Offsuit Legend at Our Pub Game

I’m not sure if this fits into the usual online poker blog category, but it definitely fits into poker psychology.

Every week we play a £20 pub tournament. We start with 30,000 chips, and the blinds go up every 10 or 15 minutes depending on how many players turn up. Personally, I think the blind levels should stay the same regardless of numbers, because changing the timing really affects the structure and how deep you can play.

But the structure isn’t the interesting part.

The interesting part is one particular player.

He’s in his late 80s—though I’m not even sure that counts as “old” these days—and every single week he plays 4-5 offsuit. It’s his favourite hand. Not suited. Not connectors with any real strength. Just 4-5 offsuit.

And here’s the unbelievable part: he wins with it. A lot.

Time and time again, he’ll turn up with some strange two pair or a disguised straight. It’s got to the point where if there’s even a hint of a low straight on the board, people start folding because “he could have it.”

Now let’s be honest—4-5 offsuit is not a strong starting hand. From a theory perspective, it’s marginal at best. You’re not meant to be building a strategy around it.

But this isn’t an online solver environment. This is the same group of people, every week, in the same pub.

And that changes everything.

When you play with the same players repeatedly, poker becomes more about image and psychology than pure hand strength. He’s created a reputation. People expect madness. They fear the low straight. They remember the times he’s shown it down.

So now he doesn’t just win with the hand—he wins because of the story behind it.

Is it technically good poker? Probably not.

Is it effective in this exact environment? Absolutely.

That’s the beauty of live pub poker. It’s not just about ranges and GTO charts. It’s about history. Ego. Patterns. Table myths.

And somehow, an 80-something-year-old gentleman playing 4-5 offsuit every week has built a legend around himself.

Maybe the lesson isn’t that 4-5 offsuit is a good hand.

Maybe the lesson is that in a weekly pub game, the most powerful thing you can hold isn’t your cards.

It’s your reputation. 🃏

Does anyone else have favourite cards ????