Mississippi straddle
A straddle posted from the button. It acts last before the flop as well as after it, and the small blind opens the action instead.
An ordinary straddle comes from the seat left of the big blind: a blind raise, posted in the dark, and the straddler speaks last preflop only. A Mississippi straddle is posted from the button instead, and that one change hands the straddler something no other seat can buy — last action before the flop and last action on every street after it.
Because the button now holds the largest blind, the preflop order shifts. The small blind opens the action, then the big blind, then everyone around to the button, who closes it. The straddle is live: the straddler can raise their own straddle when the action comes back, and in most rooms the size is unlimited, so a five-dollar table can see a fifty-dollar button straddle if the game is loose enough.
What it does to the game is more interesting than the rule. Everybody else is playing for a pot that is already large, out of position, against a range that is completely random. That widens the blinds' defending and opening ranges enormously, and it makes the usual positional ranges useless — the button no longer opens the pot, so the seat that used to steal is now the one closing it with a dark hand.
The mistake is treating it as free position. The straddler paid several big blinds for a random hand and still has to fold most of them. Buying the button's action with two blinds is only good if the range that follows is played tightly enough to justify the price, and in most games it is not — which is exactly why the house allows it.
FAQ
What is a Mississippi straddle?
A straddle posted from the button rather than from the seat next to the big blind. The button straddler acts last before the flop as well as after it, and preflop action starts with the small blind instead of under the gun.
Who acts first after a Mississippi straddle?
The small blind. Because the button holds the largest blind and closes the preflop action, the order restarts from the small blind and runs around the table to the straddler, who speaks last on every street.
Is a Mississippi straddle a raise?
It is live money and it sets the price to enter, but it is not treated as a voluntary raise — the straddler can still raise when the action returns to them. Most rooms allow the amount to be any size above the big blind.