Re: What do you guys \"read\"?
The difficulty with reads and being a "numbers" player:
as many players here are, they like meticulous math. working the odds versus outs, pokerstove pot equity down to the exact percentage, and generally bogging down with the nitty-gritty. bordering on "anality".
this becomes a hinderance when trying to make a read. trying to put villain on the EXACT hand he has or remembering exactly each board and how they played the hand. Many players probably give up with reads because of this thinking "my math will save me" and "i'm winning already with the way i play, so i'm fine without the reads".
To read players, a helpful start is self-examination. Take notes of what you think, how you think, how you react to certain situations. When replaying hands, play from a villain's perspective: What would I think I have based on my play if I was villian? Transpose these into your play. Once this becomes easier, that is when you begin to think on a multilevel rather than just straightforward.
Another concept is preferences. Preflop calls, Raises, and Cold calls are made on what the villain likes to play: 2 overcards, suited cards, any Ace, suited overcards. Position and # of players in the hand. Start with working on ranging the preflop play- don't jump into postflop as preflop is the foundation of the hand.
Postflop is also preferences. A number of posts in this thread already address most of them: calling down with, c/r, etc. My encouragement is to ask questions rather than memorize villains every move. Develop a line of questioning as play continues to narrow down the range you put him on preflop.
Face the facts: you will be wrong on your read sometimes. Don't think you can't read people. Adjust. Take notes and put them in to PokerTracker for analysis later. A read is not instantaneous, but a process.
edit: i never did a "pooh-bah dissertation"- not that know enough to do one, but i'll just let this be it [img]/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img]
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