RYANCMU teaches struggling NL50 and NL100 players

[RyanCMU]

[ QUOTE ]
ok, lets start w/ some uncomfortable positions I find myself in as a nitty TAG 12/9/3...

I find that lately more of the 15/12 regs that have been moving down are calling in position my EP and MP raises. Due to my lack of experience in these spots I find it difficult to play hands like TT-KK, AQ+ on a flop w/ 1 or 2 overcards(TT-KK) or a blank flop (AK)

what do you recommend as the best way to approach these situations.... also how to approach the more favorable flops like no overcards (pocket pairs) or TPTK (AK) in a way to not telegraph the relative strength of my hand

I think I find myself taking the same lines I'd take against a more predictable player (like myself or an even donkier player) and I feel I am being exploited, just simply by the amount of time I am put in uncomfortable spots by the better players

thoughts?

[/ QUOTE ]

Take notes on players, establish more accurate ranges vs these players. Play accordingly vs these ranges for a basic premise.

I can't stress enough how player dependant this is. Some people coldcall lots of sutied connectors in these spots then bluffraise lots of flops. Take note.

Others, while coldcalling a wide range are playing very honest postflop, take note.

Take into account your percieved range vs thier range. Do you think you can hit that flop? Ask yourself that before you cbet.

Do they float a lot? Can we be c/r'ing turns and taking lots of pots away from them w/ inferior hands after they float and bet turns?


I'll elaborate more later.

[RyanCMU]

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Any suggestions how I can practice hand reading? For example, fire up 4 tables, tile them and start playing and think each hand and look what opponents doing. It would be good exercise? Or anyone have better ideas?

[/ QUOTE ]

Diebiters hand range tool is a great way to start, I'll look up the link a little later.

[coordi]

So much to say

I wish I could elaborate my thoughts better than 1 liners lacking real content.

[Chargers In 07]

[ QUOTE ]
Diebiters hand range tool is a great way to start, I'll look up the link a little later.

[/ QUOTE ] No longer works. I pm'ed him about that and he said he's going to rehost it soon.

[oldschool]

FR game, 9 handed. all full stacks. early position fish limps, mp raises 5x and hes a tag, YOu hold AsQh, what do you do?

[RyanCMU]

[ QUOTE ]
FR game, 9 handed. all full stacks. early position fish limps, mp raises 5x and hes a tag, YOu hold AsQh, what do you do?

[/ QUOTE ]

We are in LP I assume? There are so many different classifications of TAGs, is he a more aggressive type? Does he actively isolate weak limpers? There are so many things about players that people don't consider enough...

Generally, I think we can give his range something like - ATo+, 22+, 89s+. If he is more agressive and isolates limpers regularly, I think we can expand that to include lots of Axs type hands as well as some suited one gappers 79s+.

Vs. that range I like a 3bet to around 3.5x to 4x his initial raise size. Vs. some opponents I'll sometimes coldcall and plan to raise lots of flops that I think they could see my range hitting. Plus, we can do things like float lots of flops and take pots away on turns.

Also, the type of limper that they are isolating has lots to do w/ my decision here whether I 3town or coldcall. For the most part, I'd say 85% of the time, I'm 3betting.

I'm pretty much never folding though, even vs the tightest and most straightforward of TAGs, simply because thier range of calling my 3bet is so narrow compared to what I can possibly be 3betting there, that its going to be very easy to play postflop vs them. ANd, they fold way to much preflop OOP to my 3bets.

[thevirus32]

If im not currenlty in any pots I tend to watch one table thats heads up and try to put each player on a range of possible hands. If it results in a showdown you can typically get a decent idea of your hand reading abilities. Its also a productive way to pass the time when your not currently in any pots.

[RyanCMU]

Merging Ranges and Making yourself less horrible.

There has been lots of talk in my posts and specifically other respected FR's latley about ranges and more impotantly balancing and merging ranges.

I'm going to give my brief and likely badly worded thoughts...

It's important when you take an action in poker, that your opponents can't immediatly associate your action w/ a specific and accurate hand range assement.

A simple example, 3betting. Most TAGs have very unimaginative 3betting ranges, so when a solid player gets 3bet, its very easy to quickly establish where we stand in the hand vs the 3bettor. Solution, balance your range, by adding in other hands to your 3betting arsenal. (Be careful to not just start randomly 3towning junk, make sure you have a reason!)

The above is a very simple and easy to understand example. Below is another simple and similar one.

When I 3bet another regular and they call, their range is again very easy to define, and subsequently it becomes very easy to play vs them throughout the hand. Since we always have a somewhat accurate idea of where they stand.

Ok moving on to a more elaborate yet still simple example...

A lot of people may be thinking, ok so if your 3betting a wide range vs me and then cbetting lots of flops, I'll just call the 3bet PF and then c/r hard lots of flops. Uh oh, see where I am going w/ this? That is a sitation where your range again becomes very well defined as being in the upper echelon of your hands. You can balance this by again making this play with a wider range, so it's not so easy for me to play perfectly vs your range. (Again, don't just randomly go c/r'ing flops in reraised pots, make sure you have reasons)

From those 3 simple and brief examples, hopefully you can start to think about how your giving up so much by having such an easily defined range so often, and then it will get you thinking on your own of ways to combat this and play better.

[RyanCMU]

Note taking.

Learn the importance of taking notes, especially taking notes on regulars in your games.

Your notes should be structured in a way that you can quickly glance at them and gain valuable information about how they play.

DO NOT wirte down entire hands or entire action on hands, too hard to quickly process and gain infomation from when multitabling.

Often times more deailted notes are worse then breif simple notes.

Your notes should be worded and constructed in ways that they are general...

For example

"Capable of calling raises light OOP"
"Can't fold overpairs postflop"
"Capable of LRR w/ marginal hands"

Notes should be taken in a way that at a glance can tell you about a player, you don't want to have to be piecing together information from your notes while your trying to play a hand.

Learn how to take good notes, its one of the most importants aspects of my game I think.

[RyanCMU]

I'm going out for the night.

Hopefully, this has been helpful to some so far.

When I get back late tonight/morning I will be able to answer any questions and hopefully I'll have tons more thoughts and ramblings to type out.