N/L Hold Em - How do I open up my game ?

[screamin_e]

I'm a fairly new player - but I'm poker obsessed. I play quite a lot, host a weekly home game, and read as many books as I can ( Theory of Poker, Super System etc )
I feel like I've reached a pretty good understanding of good starting hands, pot odds, and position at this point.
My problem is I feel stuck in a break even or very small profit style of play.
I hate to say it - but I think I've learned just enough to become a knit !
Any suggestions on how to open up my game more ? How and when to play more marginal starting hands ?

[Wolitzer]

Post hand histories and you'll get advice. Its hard to say what to do without some idea of what you're doing already.

[AKQJ10]

[ QUOTE ]
Post hand histories and you'll get advice. Its hard to say what to do without some idea of what you're doing already.

[/ QUOTE ]

Quoted for truth.

Do you play online? In B&M casinos?

In your home game, what mistakes do you notice your opponents making?

[Poker Plan]

How many hands have you played? Do you use any tracking software so that you can start to build up a profile of your style of play?

[screamin_e]

I play a home game often - now and again a underground card room in NYC.
In the home game I see the typical mistakes - people chasing down their flush draw etc with no odds to justify it. Lots of gamble and lots of loose calls (paint + anything = the nuts !!! )
A hand examples -
I bought a somewhat shortstack into a 1-2 game at the illegal card room...
this game runs VERY big. nothing like a typical 1-2 game as far as I can tell.
This player was running all over the table - extremely aggressive with just about any two cards. He bought in twice for 500 in the hour that I had been there... he was a maniac.
I was on the button J-10 suited. The typical pre-flop raise in this game was 5-15 bucks. Maniac man brings it in from under the gun for 5 bucks...extremely small pre-flop for him. There were 2-3 callers.. it comes to me and I call (flat call first mistake ?)
The flop comes Q-3-9 rainbow - leaving me open ended...
The maniac however bets 50 bucks out into a 15 dollar pot.
It folds around to me and I'm left with a dilemma... he could have anything.. although I'm guessing he most definately has Q-rag...from what I've seen before.
This guys has at least 600 bucks in front of him to my measly 200... and I know he has no problem calling it down with garbage.
Plus I have no odds to call this at ALL.. Unless the + EV that if I do hit my straight I will double up through this maniac ? But he will punish me on the turn if I miss.. I'm sure of that.
I fold very reluctantly - and he shows me the queen only..

Was I too tight in this situation ? I know odds didn't justify a call.. but do I need to gamble it up now and again against LAGS like this ?

[DGenR8]

Flat call was fine, fold also fine. You could reraise all-in depending on how he'd played post-flop (which you don't mention). Sometimes it's easy to overlook how well (and often) players like this can fold post-flop. Don't assume they'll always call down with garbage just because they'll open (succesfully) and bluff (successfully) with garbage.

Gambling against maniacs takes you off your game and makes you play into their hands. A high variance style can be played very well by some of these guys, but if you try to meet them halfway you'll get crushed. Just check call when you get a good hand and let him donk off to you. Tight-passive is OK here IMHO.

It's never +EV to call against the odds. EV includes the times you miss, not just the times you hit.

[DGenR8]

With respect, if you're only break-even playing "by the book" you're not ready to open up your game yet. The joy you'll feel at playing more hands will be offset by the more lost pots, the higher variance, and the harder decisions you'll have to make.

[Frond]

I've been playing live now for about 6 months(online a bit longer) and while I feel like my game has grown, I am pretty much still playing ABC style poker, not trying to get too fancy, especially at lower limits. Mixing it up a lot doesn't seem to work in low limts the way it seems to in higher limits from what I have seen and heard. I have opened up my hand requirements little by little but for the most part I try and not let poker on tv influence me such as playing bad cards in or out of position just because DN or Hansen do. They can cause they have amazing reading skills. My suggestion would be to stick to the ABC style for a while till you get that under your belt really good.

[jeffnc]

[ QUOTE ]
I was on the button J-10 suited. The typical pre-flop raise in this game was 5-15 bucks. Maniac man brings it in from under the gun for 5 bucks...extremely small pre-flop for him. There were 2-3 callers.. it comes to me and I call (flat call first mistake ?)

[/ QUOTE ]

Calling is perfect here. He raised small. Why did a maniac do this? One obvious reason is that he might hold AA/KK here. The perfect time to get in cheap against him and stack him.

[ QUOTE ]
The flop comes Q-3-9 rainbow - leaving me open ended...
The maniac however bets 50 bucks out into a 15 dollar pot.
It folds around to me and I'm left with a dilemma... he could have anything.. although I'm guessing he most definately has Q-rag...from what I've seen before.
This guys has at least 600 bucks in front of him to my measly 200... and I know he has no problem calling it down with garbage.

[/ QUOTE ]

Fold. This isn't the time or place. If he has something he's not folding. If he's bluffing calling won't help you - you need to get paid off big if you hit. Your stack really isn't big enough for drawing to his big bets anyway.


[ QUOTE ]
I fold very reluctantly - and he shows me the queen only.. Was I too tight in this situation ? I know odds didn't justify a call.. but do I need to gamble it up now and again against LAGS like this ?

[/ QUOTE ]

No, if you knew he had Q2 then folding was right. Wait til you get 2 pair or better and smoke the guy. Of course, he might have had pocket queens :-)

[Killingbird]

[ QUOTE ]
I play a home game often - now and again a underground card room in NYC.
In the home game I see the typical mistakes - people chasing down their flush draw etc with no odds to justify it. Lots of gamble and lots of loose calls (paint + anything = the nuts !!! )
A hand examples -
I bought a somewhat shortstack into a 1-2 game at the illegal card room...
this game runs VERY big. nothing like a typical 1-2 game as far as I can tell.
This player was running all over the table - extremely aggressive with just about any two cards. He bought in twice for 500 in the hour that I had been there... he was a maniac.
I was on the button J-10 suited. The typical pre-flop raise in this game was 5-15 bucks. Maniac man brings it in from under the gun for 5 bucks...extremely small pre-flop for him. There were 2-3 callers.. it comes to me and I call (flat call first mistake ?)
The flop comes Q-3-9 rainbow - leaving me open ended...
The maniac however bets 50 bucks out into a 15 dollar pot.
It folds around to me and I'm left with a dilemma... he could have anything.. although I'm guessing he most definately has Q-rag...from what I've seen before.
This guys has at least 600 bucks in front of him to my measly 200... and I know he has no problem calling it down with garbage.
Plus I have no odds to call this at ALL.. Unless the + EV that if I do hit my straight I will double up through this maniac ? But he will punish me on the turn if I miss.. I'm sure of that.
I fold very reluctantly - and he shows me the queen only..

Was I too tight in this situation ? I know odds didn't justify a call.. but do I need to gamble it up now and again against LAGS like this ?

[/ QUOTE ]

yup, fold was fine. if your read told you you might get to see a cheap river, then maybe...but you indicate you are going to have to pay, so fold.

With these kind of guys I try to be very patient, play quality starting hands and hands with good potential (suited connectors, small pairs, etc) but dont be afraid to dump if you dont hit your had near perfect. You'll make alot when you hit, just make sure you lose a little when you dont.