[kak1154]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
And this is why just playing the odds in a live, capped game may not be the best strategy all the time. We are having this same discussion in another thread here about 2+2 strategy forums and the different types of advice for online vs live. There may be no reason to call a post flop push on a coordinated board even at 2:1 because you may very well already be a less than 2:1 dog.

[/ QUOTE ]

I agree it's not impossible to get away from. But it's a LOT harder. The reason is that you don't have room to bet for information. You can't bet a decent continuation or even a feeler bet without REALLY pot-committing yourself.

So, if I raise the guy to $60 (1/3 my stack), he calls. I have $120 left, he has $120; pot is $120. If I now bet out 1/3 the pot (feeler/trap bet), that leaves me with $80. If he moves in, the pot is now $280, and I have $80 left. I'm getting 3.5:1 to call. Unless that flop was way scary, I have to call.

If I bet a half decent, 1/2 pot continuation bet of $60, and he moves all in, then the pot is $300 & I have $60 left. 5:1, begrudgingly insta-call.

I totally agree that you don't want to push small edges live -- because you can't play as many hands, you need to maximize your returns on the hands you do play. It seems to me that betting a big portion of your stack pre-flop minimizes the ability to trap opponents, and out-play them after the flop. You price them & yourself in, so you are maximizing the luck-factor.

Just my thoughts right now... I'm still learning.

[/ QUOTE ]

I think live, much more so than online, you need to be keenly aware of stack sizes at all times. This is because there is generally a much wider range of stack sizes live. Online, your bets are standard size (1/2 pot c-bets, or whatever). But live, you need to bet according to stack size more often.

If you find yourself calling with 5:1 odds when you know you're behind, it's because you didn't bet properly. It's something I've been working on a lot lately. Bet so that you don't have to make these tough decisions. Either small enough so you can easily fold, or large enough so you can easily call.