Superior post-flop play vs. weaker player

[ibi]

I've read several times how, when a weaker player has limped from early or mid position, a strong player in late position, who "plays well post-flop," should try to isolate the weak player by raising with "a wide range of hands," and then outplay the weak player post-flop.

First, how wide is this wide range of hands? I assume we're not talking about trash hands. Are we talking medium-strength and up, or do some of you guys try this with marginal hands also?

Now the point: Say you isolate a weak player like this, and then you whiff the flop (which is often the case). Now what if the weak player bets into you? Does superior post-flop play simply mean that you know when to get out and lay down here? Or does it mean you're going to try some cunning ploy to move the weak player off his hand (assuming you are putting him on a hand)?

This is probably a *really* noobish question, meaning I'm not someone who should be making this play yet. But I'd like to be. And will be. Someday....

Thanks.

[Douglas Leslie]

Most weak players are not going to be shifted from any kind of hand HU. I guess that what you hope for when you raise is that your opponent will fold to a continuation bet when he misses the flop completely having limped with 75o or such other garbage. When making notes on opponents, one of the most important is whether they have a tendency to peel one off on the flop before folding the turn, or if they will fold to a flop bet when you have shown aggression pre-flop. If the latter, you should be slowing down if your continuation bet is called. If a passive player bets into you after you raised before the flop, you should probably be guided by pot odds whether to continue or not. I would raise a very loose passive player with just about any playable hand. I am not planning to go to showdown, but I have to take account of the possibility that the blinds are going to come along for the ride before raising with 72o. If the blinds are pretty loose and call a raise with just about anything, I probably just limp along with some hands I would otherwise isolate raise with. Then again, I don't have any claims to be an expert!

[Aaron W.]

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I've read several times how, when a weaker player has limped from early or mid position, a strong player in late position, who "plays well post-flop," should try to isolate the weak player by raising with "a wide range of hands," and then outplay the weak player post-flop.

First, how wide is this wide range of hands? I assume we're not talking about trash hands. Are we talking medium-strength and up, or do some of you guys try this with marginal hands also?

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How wide your hand range is depends on how wide his hand range is. Medium-strength and marginal are relative terms.

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Now the point: Say you isolate a weak player like this, and then you whiff the flop (which is often the case). Now what if the weak player bets into you?

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What does "weak" mean to you?

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Does superior post-flop play simply mean that you know when to get out and lay down here? Or does it mean you're going to try some cunning ploy to move the weak player off his hand (assuming you are putting him on a hand)?

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It depends on what "weak" is.

[ QUOTE ]
This is probably a *really* noobish question, meaning I'm not someone who should be making this play yet. But I'd like to be. And will be. Someday....

Thanks.

[/ QUOTE ]

You're starting to get a glimpse of higher-level thinking: Getting into your opponent's head. When you understand what a "weak" opponent is doing, it's because you've learned how he thinks about hands.

[NIX]

Part of outplaying is maximizing value and minimizing losses. A lot of weaker players have a hard time folding hands. If that’s the case, you really don’t want to put a lot of bets in trying to induce a fold that you probably aren’t going to get. If he’s a passive player and suddenly wakes up, you can outplay him by losing the minimum whether it be showing down as cheap as possible or simply folding.

Personally, I like to isolate with hands that have showdown value, connect well with a lot of flops, or are simply ahead of his limping range.