Button Straddle

Also known as: button straddle, Mississippi straddle, btn straddle

A blind raise posted by the button instead of UTG, which reorders preflop action so the blinds act first and the button acts last.

A button straddle (a Mississippi-style straddle posted on the button) is an optional blind bet of typically 2× the big blind put up by the player on the button before the deal. Unlike a standard UTG straddle, it changes the action order: the most common ruling is that preflop action starts with the small blind and proceeds clockwise, with the straddling button acting last (buying the single most powerful seat in the hand both for the straddled round and on every postflop street).

That positional bonus is what makes a button straddle materially different from a UTG straddle. The UTG straddler pays for last preflop action but plays out of position postflop from early; the button straddler gets last action preflop and keeps the button postflop, so the straddle is far closer to break-even and can even be defensible against passive opposition. Rooms vary on whether the small blind or UTG acts first when a button straddle is in play, and many cap or disallow it: confirm the house ruling before posting.

Like any straddle it doubles the effective stakes and compresses everyone's stack-to-pot ratio for the hand, inflating variance. Its main use is to juice a deep, action-friendly game while sitting in the best seat. Re-straddles and over-the-top straddles are room-dependent; when in doubt, ask the floorman.