bonycamel's poker diary

pot-limit omaha preflop hand groupings

noreply@blogger.com (bonycamel) — Tue, 03 Jun 2008 07:33:00 +0000

I noticed in another thread that 30ish% hands played is probably on par with a winning omaha player, which explains yesterday quite a bit. But I have another pre-flop question in mind that is sort of close to home for this.

I did a quick google search and didn't come up with anything(not to say it's not out there, I may be searching with the wrong keywords in mind). But does anyone know of a general guideline of pre-flop hand groupings for omaha?

I have a really vague list i compiled today, and was looking for some input-- please be kind.

group 1

AA+faces/tens
KK+faces/tens
QQ+faces/tens

group 2

JJ+faces/tens
TT+faces
sequentials starting with 8 and up
AA-QQxx(dangler's above 7ish)

group 3
sequentials below 8
"double run" sequentials-- eg 6778
gapped connectors - high card queen & above -eg: 8-TJQ

group 4
gapped connectors - high card jack & below -eg: 5-789
double gappers - eg 5-7-9T

group 5
scattered high cards - eg: AT8K

group 6
most others, trash hands and muckable pre-flop in most cases

I've played way too much heads up with a friend here lately which has taught me some bad fundamentals for ring games... Trying to do some damage control to keep from killing myself like i did yesterday.

The groupings are in seriously early stage, and just something i'm trying to finalize to make myself play a little tighter, and get rid of some leaks i found.
I'm not trying to formulate a "what to do in every circumstance" guide, but just some ideas of where and when to my hands pre-flop stand better chances. Any input would be appreciated

PokerStars Donation on China Earthquake

noreply@blogger.com (bonycamel) — Thu, 22 May 2008 05:03:00 +0000

As we all know, Sichuan, a province in China has suffered horrible earthquake on May 12th. PokerStars has created a kind event on donation. We donate one dollar, PokerStars would also donate one dollar.
I post one thread on 2+2: http://forumserver.twoplustwo.com/showthread.php?t=208195
It seems that it works well. Lots of guys would donate.

Some thoughts on ICM(poker, sng)

noreply@blogger.com (bonycamel) — Tue, 13 May 2008 08:07:00 +0000

Those guys who know ICM, and the principles I’m discussing here, well will find this very yawnsome. Those who don’t might like it and they might find it useful to see figures. I am trying to make some of the posts I wish I had been able to find six months or a year ago. They may exist but if they do, I haven't found them.

These are two common setups on the bubble. You have 3000 chips. In one example the chips are reasonably evenly shared out; in another there is a shorty and a bigstack. Compare these tables, which show stack size and equity (share of the prizepool):

3000 0.251
3000 0.251
1500 0.147
6000 0.351

3000 0.232
3000 0.232
3500 0.257
4000 0.278

You can see straight away that you have more equity when there is a shortstack. This is a feature of ICM that it’s important to grasp: even though you have the same number of chips, you have more equity if someone else is short. And you'll notice that it's quite a decent chunk: 1.9% in this example. The shorter he is, the better. If he has 500 chips and the bigstack has 7000, your share is .278, even though you still have the same share of the total chips: .222

And note that the chipleader having a bigger stack is only partly what affects your equity (so long as the chips he is gaining are not yours, obv.). Give the 1000 chips to the other stack and your equity is .274.

Well, it’s because he will blind out quicker, right? Not really. Here’s something that may not be obvious (or at least its implications might not be): the blinds don’t matter. You have the same equity no matter what the blinds are in ICM. Some people think this makes it a poor model when blinds get higher, because it doesn’t account for what the blinds eating your stack does to your equity. But that’s not a problem with the model as such; it’s just something you have to understand and account for.

ICM is static. It measures your equity right now. This is something you’re well advised to bear in mind when using SNG Wizard to work out whether shoves are +EV. If blinds are reasonably low (say t200), your change in equity after eating the blinds will rarely be huge. Let’s say the bigstack stole both your blinds in these scenarios. Your equity will drop to .238 with the shortstack, and .217 with the more even distribution. That’s not too bad. If the blinds are higher, it starts to be painful quite quickly.

So let’s say that you play a hand with the second stack, and you take 1200 chips from him. Here are the new equity tables:

4200 0.305
1800 0.184
1500 0.157
6000 0.355

4200 0.292
1800 0.16
3500 0.264
4000 0.284

Two things strike me here. One is that you do not gain all the equity the second stack loses. In the first example, he loses .67 and you gain .54. The other two stacks gain the rest. (We all understand that this happens with allins, but it’s true too of any gain or loss of chips. Look at the figures closely. The chips you gained in the first example were only worth .54/.67 = ~80% of the chips he lost. It’s an easy mental jump to imagine that you are either player and could have won or lost the 1200 chips. It’s not so easy to realise that if you play pots in this scenario, you must adjust pot odds at all points so that you will gain enough more chips to offset their lower value. It's no good taking even-money bets. Imagine that you wagered on red at roulette. There's no 0 or 00 but you bet in American dollars and are paid in Australian dollars. You are not liking that bet if the Australian dollar is buying US80c.) But the other stacks don’t share it equally. The shortstack takes nearly .1 and the big stack about .04. In the second, the second stack actually loses more equity, and you gain a little bit more. The other two share the residue more evenly.

What does that tell you? Well, it tells me three things. First, other people playing pots makes me money. Yes, that’s right. I gain if anyone else plays a pot and I don’t. (Not just when they put it all in, but any time I’m not in a pot.) That should make folding marginal hands feel that little bit better. Also, think it through: if folding makes you money if others are playing, then when you consider what you risk by entering a pot, you must add the equity you would gain if you simply folded and let others play. Second, shorties gain more when they avoid playing pots than other stacks do. Sometimes it’s frustrating when you are at, say t150, with a 1000-chip stack, and the table is really active, so that you can’t steal the blinds. But you can console yourself that you’re still making money, and what’s more, you’re making more than others who have also had to fold. And third, when stacks are reasonably even, you lose more equity when you lose. I guess that means you should be more apt to play with a medium stack when there's a shorty than you are when there isn't.

These effects are on the whole fairly small, except the disparity between equity won and equity lost. That's huge, and the bigger the percentage of your stack you are risking, the worse it gets. Look at this last table. This is the equity situation if you take 2000 chips from the second stack with the shorty in:

5000 0.337
1000 0.123
1500 0.179
6000 0.361

You gain .086 in equity. He loses .128. Your gain is worth only 67% of his loss. Meanwhile, when you make that bet on the flop, the shortstack laughs his nuts off. You just made him money, whether you win the pot or lose it. He gained 3% of the prizepool, more than $4 in a 16, because he folded and you played a big pot.

Common Beginner Pitfalls To Avoid

noreply@blogger.com (bonycamel) — Tue, 06 May 2008 09:11:00 +0000

After a few months of playing online poker for real money I thought it would be appropriate to summerize a few of the common mistakes that I learnt through losing my money, and I saw my friends make and I commonly see on this site.

Nothing I say here is any new and amazing stuff, and it is stuff that you will see in most Poker Books and in this site, but I still think it is valueble for new beginners to avoid those pitfalls.

My experience is mainly in Sng's and is aimed for Sng players.

OK, enough introductions:

1. AJ, AT, KJ - Most beginners tend to overvalue those hands. In late stages in Sngs they are gold but in early stages (7-9 players) they are very dangerous hands. It is exactly the kind of hands that you either win small pots or lose big ones. In early stages I fold those hands to any agression preflop, limp from MP, maybe raise from LP, depending on the table structure.

2. Suited connectors are for flushes or str8s - I believe that limping with suited connectors is a profitable move in Sngs - assuming you remember why you play them!
You want to make a str8 or a flush, not Top pair. Way too often you will limp with T9 to have a flop of T,7,2 rainbow - your hand is not good. You may be able to win the pot, but you have a very mediocare hand, be willing to drop it.

3. KK - This is a great hand ofcourse, but by no means it is a guarenteed winner. When an A comes on the Flop you have to be very careful. If you raised nicely preflop and you had 1 or 2 callers there is a very good chance they are holding the A. If it is checked to you and you are last or one before last to bet throw in a continuation bet, but be willing to fold to a reraise.

4. JJ, TT - my least favorite hands of all time - Early in the tournament I am not willing to invest too much money in them, maybe 10% of my stack. From EP I will play them as I would low pair (see the flop cheap, if you didnt hit a set or a low flop when you have overpair fold to agression).

5. Once you put chips in the pot they are not yours anyomre - Dont feel compelled to chase the hand just because you invested money in the pot. Sngs are not about any one specific hand - its about making it to the money.

6. Slowplay monsters only at early stages - And by monster I mean a boat, a nut flush or a set on a very uncoordinated board. Dont slowplay two pairs in the early stages, you will get burned more often then you can believe. If you have JThearts and the flop comes 2 7 9 hearts dont let the Q, K, A hearts get a card for cheap. Make them pay to chase.

7. People can get a few good hands in a row - It is not uncommon to get 3,4 or even 5 good starting hands in a row. Just because someone raised 3 consecutive times preflop does not mean that he is a bluffing maniac, he could be, but he is not neccessarily is. When he raise 7 out of the first 10 hands you can assume he is a maniac.

8. Dont minbet at early stages- It accomplishes nothing - You will not scare anybody with a minbet when the minbet is 1/50 of their stack. If you think you should bet do it agressively.

9. pot odds are less important then stack size - In ring games pot odds is king. In Sng your stack size matters much more. It is way too easy too blead half your stack on chasing hands that you had pot odds to call ,and then have a short stack and having the entire table picking on you trying to knock you out.

10. He is bluffing syndrom - Everybody I know had this syndrom at one point or another - You are sure everybody is bluffing all the time - so you reraise somebody with your TPLK only to discover - surprise,surprise they have you outkicked. You need good reads to find out that people are bluffing.

11. Good players change pace - the ABC of Sng is to play tight in the beginning and agressively towards the end - dont be surprised when people do it. Just because somebody playing only 2 hands in the first three orbits does not mean that they will be tight forever.

12. Dont limp when you are short stacked - When you are the short stacked (5BB or less) you can't limp into hands - pick your spot and try to double up.

13. Think about the entire hand - When you bet/raise/call think about the entire hand - remember what you opponent did at every stage and try to anticipate what he will do next. A poker hand is not a series of indpendant decisions, its a series of connected decisions each affecting the other.

14. Notice the tight players too - It is way to easy to overlook the tight players at the table and focus on the loose/agressive ones. Pay attention to those who fold 80% of the hands, they probably know what they are doing

Poker SnG Strategy At Last!

noreply@blogger.com (bonycamel) — Thu, 24 Apr 2008 02:19:00 +0000

Ok. First things first. Have you read Poker Nerd's SnG strategy? If not, go do it.

With that under your belt, I want to establish that I do have success on the Party SnGs. I've been reviewing my SnG numbers since I resumed playing the $30+3 SnGs in late July after a long hiatus of most of the year. Here's the breakdown:

[updated 8-16-04]
55 tournaments
$1815 invested
30 money finishes (55% ITM)
1st place: 8
2nd place: 10
3rd place: 12
Profit: $1,027
Total ROI: 57%
Hourly rate: $26.95

My historical ITM last year, before I stopped playing the SnGs, was in the high fifties, so although this sample size is on the small side, the numbers sound about right. I think the lower than normal ITM is probably accountable to two brutal days right at the end of July when I went 1 for 9. Also, in an ideal world, I'd love to see one or two of the seconds become a first for a more even progression, but wouldn't we all.

Ok, enough of that. Actual strategy time. Poker Nerd eschews the traditional early/middle/late strategy for a stack-based strategy. However, I believe that a combination of the two, with an eye to table conditions, is the ideal method of play. So complex! At the start, however, everyone will have the same amount of chips, and you won't have a read on the table, so let's begin with...

Early Play
In the early rounds (on Party, this is the first two rounds), you should play generally solid poker. That means, play your position, raise when you should, etc. There is no sense in getting fancy in the early-going; it's giving the average SnG opponent FAR too much credit. It is definitely ok to limp speculative hands in the early-going, because the implied odds of catching the right flop are huge. Keep in mind, it is not uncommon for four people to be eliminated in the first two rounds of play on Party. Those chips are up for grabs; this is an excellent time to double up if you catch the right flop.

However, I tend to play a little tighter than normal in the first two rounds. Why? Two reasons. Number one, I see absolutely no point to stealing the blinds. On Party, the first two rounds are 10/15 and 15/30. Those chips are not going to make or break me. Number two, there are usually several people in the early going who don't know how to fold preflop and are willing to gamble it up. I think the better strategy is to conserve those chips for later rounds where they can be put to more effective use, or for more clear-cut hands in the early going. I will still limp the speculative hands, of course, but I generally play fewer hands than I otherwise might. This also allows me to get a feel for the table.

A few other pointers:

1. Group 1 hands need to be played hard. A 3xBB is not going to scare out ANYBODY in Levels 1 or 2. AA, KK, QQ, and JJ to a lesser degree depending on position, need to be raised aggressively, by as much as 10xBB. If you do not raise them aggressively, watch as 6 people call your raise, and then be prepared to lay your hand down when an ace flops (while holding KK through JJ), because you can be sure that somebody called with A6, and shame on you for not protecting your hand with a bigger preflop raise.

2. AK and AQ, on the other hand, are a different matter. With AQ, suited or not, I will only play the hand in position and will limp it most of the time. This does two things: keeps the pot small, and allows you to get away from the hand when you miss the flop. AK I think requires a raise (again, depending on position) but raising to 10xBB with AK is asking for trouble. Mark my words here. Somebody will call you, and when the flop misses you, you'll have a hard time getting away from it.

3. In Level 1, I will call with ATC in the SB if the pot is unraised. The SB is 2/3 of the BB, it doesn't make sense to throw it away. What you're hoping for here is to flop something more than a pair.
--

I assume that, if you're reading this blog, you probably have a handle on post-flop play in NLHE. However, I will point out a few areas where I disagree with Poker Nerd. Number One on this list is top pair, solid kicker on the flop. I'm the first to admit more money is lost on top pair in NLHE than just about any other hand, especially in an unraised pot. Remember what the Texas Dolly says about this: "Never go broke in an unraised pot." However, also keep in mind that on Party Poker, especially in early levels, bad players can't get away from hands that have missed or only caught a small piece of the flop. If the pot is unraised, there will probably be as many as five players seeing the flop. Bet your top pair and narrow the field. The bad players will call all the way looking for that inside straight, the fifth heart, or two pair, or whatever. Sometimes they will hit; that sucks, but you will know when they do. Most of the time they won't. Sometimes you will be beat on the flop; that sucks too, but again as long as you don't overvalue your top pair you will be able to get away from it. Keep in mind that the bad players are the ones who aren't going to be around long. You want to get their chips while they're still in the tournament. And if you have enough NLHE experience, you'll know when your top pair is no good. I don't know how to articulate it better than that; it's a feel that comes from experience.

I do agree with Poker Nerd that you shouldn't bluff on the flop in the early levels, for the most part. A semi-bluff is ok once in a while when you're HU or if you're sure that an orphan pot is out there waiting for an owner, but if you get called, you're done. You have to go into check-fold mode.

Not much to say about turn and river play. The river is straightforward and self-explanatory, I think, and if not, Poker Nerd covers it fine. Value bet your winners; check behind if you think you might be beat; etc.

By the end of Level 2, you should have a read on the table. My general experience on Party is that there are either: a) 3 to 4 people eliminated, with the remaining players breaking down as 1 or 2 poor players, 2 or 3 tight-weak, and 1 or 2 decent players; or b) the entire table remains, in which case you can be sure that you're playing at a table predominantly populated by tight-weakies. Keep that in mind as we move to...

The Middle Rounds
On Party, the middle rounds start at Level 3 (25/50). By this point, you will generally either have an above average to large stack by having taken down a couple of hands from the poor players and/or having doubled through in the early going, or you will have a bit under 700 chips from blinds and missed flops that you check-folded. You will also have a read on the table: again, either 6-8 players remaining broken down as above, or a table of tight-weakies. This is where the strategy starts to branch off.

Table of Tight-Weakies
Start raising. And when I say start raising, I mean don't stop raising. Any time it's folded to you in LP, you should be raising to 3xBB with ATC. Watch them fold. They will do it. If they don't, or if they reraise, it's easy to let it go. This is where stack play gets involved. If you're a big stack, you can pretty much turn into the table bully. Don't raise EVERY time, of course, but do it often. They'll be afraid of tangling with you. On the other hand, if you haven't managed to pick up any pots and your stack is ~700, selective aggression is key, because losing one or two steals is going to put some hurt on your stack. Also, keep in mind that the table does not have to fold to you in order for you to raise. If you see somebody trying to limp in from EP who you've seen trying to limp in from EP position before, don't be afraid to raise to 4xBB. Again, watch them fold.

Table of 6 to 8
If you're already down to 6-8, you should still be raising, but you needn't raise with as much fear. Few players will make the adjustment that they should be playing a wider spectrum of hands, so you will still win many blinds uncontested. When you do get called, you will (hopefully) have position and can proceed cautiously.

Both Table Types, After the Flop

Either you raised with a strong hand to begin with, in which case, proceed with normal post-flop play, or you raised with trash. Remember, if you've been using a "standard" raise every time, you have given your opponents no signal as to the strength of your hand.

If you raised with trash and were only flat called (not reraised; if you were reraised preflop, just let it go), you have some choices. With a large or above average stack, if the caller checks to you, fire a 3/4 pot-sized bet. What you're doing here is guessing that your opponent missed the flop, and will credit you for a hand and fold. This is especially effective at the tight-weak table, because even if your opponent did hit the flop, if it's not top pair, they're still likely to fold. If you get called, it's check-fold from there. No harm. You lost a few chips, but your stack can take it. You'll get them back by continuing to aggressively pummel the blinds.

With a below average stack, you have to proceed very cautiously. A flop bluff, if called, will decimate your stack. I almost think it's better to check-fold in this situation and conserve your chips for better opportunities. So you got caught trying to steal. So what. One or two players might take notice of that, but with your stack now bordering on "short", you're probably not going to be steal-raising anyway. That works to your advantage, because when you do push with a strong hand, you're more likely to get the action you need to double up.

Keep in mind that this strategy is for HU play only. If you get called in more than one place, you are beat. Let it go unless you get a miracle flop.

If You Fall Into Short Stack Land in the Middle Stages

You're looking to double. Plain and simple. Get all the chips in preflop. Ideally, you want to be the first raiser if you're going to get all your chips in. It's a bad idea to be calling other people's raises unless you've got a strong starting hand, so be the first one in. Sometimes you will win the blinds. That is probably a small victory, because the blinds are starting to get big. Sometimes you will get called and win; sometimes you will get called and lose. That's poker. At this point, any pair from any position looks good; a medium ace or two faces in MP/LP; and of course the big hands.

"But asphnxma," you ask, "how will I know if I'm a short stack?" Good question. In a SnG, the rules are a bit different than in a typical MTT, where often the 10xBB is a good rule of thumb. Here's my guidepost: if you raise to 3xBB, and get called, and can't make at least a 2/3 pot bet on the flop, you're a short stack and need to get 'em all in preflop. So, at the 50/100 level, with 800 or 900 you're getting close but still treading water; at 600 or below, you may as well just push. It's true that committing 300 chips with only 800 or 900 behind is putting 1/3 of your stack out there, in theory pot-committing you. But it's a weird quirk of SnGs that you can still get away from that pot and not be completely desperate, and I think that's largely because 3 out of 10 places get paid, as opposed to the typical MTT, where only 10% of the field gets paid.

The Late Stages

I usually define this as the Final Four. Table-type is not really important anymore, so the strategy is going to merge back into stack size considerations.

Large Stack
As a large stack, you should still be raising LOTS. Remember, you're 4-handed now. Almost anything looks raisable. You should be especially keen in picking on the players in 2nd and 3rd place. Very often, they will be unwilling to play back at you, instead choosing to follow the (dangerous) strategy of hoping that the short stack busts before they do, so they can slide into the money. With the blinds starting to reach the stratosphere, you can rack up the chips to position yourself well for heads-up play.

Medium Stack
As a medium stack (~2000), it's very important to keep up with the blinds. If you miss one or two orbits without picking up blinds, you'll quickly start falling into short stack land. You cannot wait for cards at this stage of the game. If you get them, fantastic, but don't rely on getting them. Watch your opponents instead. If you see someone folding his blind every time because he doesn't want to tangle until after the bubble pops, go after him. If it folds to your SB, raise with anything.

Small Stack
As a small stack, your work is cut out for you. You should be pushing with any ace, any pair, any two faces, any medium face, etc. Basically, all but the crappiest of crappy hands. The goal is to double up before the blinds gobble you up. The caveat, here, is that if there's a shorter stack, you can try to play the Waiting Game, hoping they bust before you so you slide into the money. It's dangerous, though, because if they double up, you are Screwed with a capital S. This is a very situational decision. Some money is better than no money, and I disagree with Poker Nerd that one first place finish and three fourths is better than four thirds. While it's true that one first place finish will get you (slightly) more money than four thirds, the psychological impact of making the money four out of four times v. making the money one out of four times shouldn't be overlooked. You will feel like you won four times, instead of feeling like you won once and lost three times. And, if you're like me and play several SnGs in one sitting, this can affect your subsequent play. But again, keep in mind, that if the other short stack doubles up, you're in trouble.

Oh, another thing I can't stress enough that applies to all stack sizes: there should be NO limping at this stage of the tournament! I -might- limp in Level 3, but after Level 3, if I'm coming into a pot, it's for a raise. Limping at these levels is suicide, because a) you're asking to be reraised behind you; or b) you're giving the BB a free flop when most likely you could be scooping his chips preflop. How many times have I seen the SB complete and then get reraised by the BB? I do it all the time, to punish stupid players for completing their small blind with crap instead of raising/folding it. Also, how many times have I seen the button limp, the BB check, and then the BB check-fold to a flop bet from the button? Does anybody REALLY think the button caught a piece of the flop? Of course not! It's just that the BB didn't have anything to begin with. By limping, the button gave the BB a chance to put the hurt on. Don't do it.

Big Hands
I sometimes see people try to get cute with a big hand (aces, kings, queens, jacks) in the late stages, trying to maximize it's value by limping it. Don't do it! If you hadn't been throwing away all those garbage hands that you should have been steal-raising with, you wouldn't need to maximize the value of your big hand when it comes along. Raise those big hands, the same way you would any other time. Don't give the BB a chance to flop some weird two pair for free. If you only get the blinds, so be it. That is NOT a tragedy in the late stages of a SnG. If you do get action, even better! Because of all the raising that's been going on, your opponent will be hard-pressed to put you on a big hand.

Heads Up

Raise or Fold?
With a pinch of luck, you made it to the final two. Great. But it's not over yet. Finishing first is significantly better than finishing second. My general rule of thumb at this point is to be raising any two cards that are a heads up favorite. Don't know which cards are heads up favorites? Take a look at this handy chart. If it's at least a 54% favorite, I'm definitely coming in for a raise.

Now, if you don't have one of those hands, then you're put to a situational decision. Obviously, you can't fold the crappy hands every time. You need to raise some of them, but you don't need to raise all of them. If your opponent is weak, raise more of them. If he's aggressive, raise less of them. Etc. Remember, it's ok to fold sometimes. Just for the love of god, don't limp in. When your opponent raises you, you will be swearing to yourself as you fold.

What If It's MY Big Blind?
On the other side of the coin, if I'm the one whose blind is being raised, I will play all of the above-mentioned hands for sure. I will also consider a mix of smaller cards if they're connected, suited, etc. But crap hands (93o) are still crap hands and should still be folded, I think. It's true that at this point, ATC can win, and that my opponent could be raising with crap, but I'd rather be in there with two cards I'm a bit more confident about. It takes more hand to call a raise than it does to raise. It's also very hard to pick off steals at this point in the tournament, so calling a raise generally demands SOME sort of hand.

[To head off any controversy on this point: I am aware that even the worst heads-up hand, 32o, has 32% equity against any random hand. Thus, in theory, I should be willing to call with ATC at this stage since I'm getting 3-to-1 for my money. I'd just prefer to get me money in where I'm have a better chance at taking down the pot, either by being the aggressor or by having a good hand. Argue this point if you want; maybe it's why I have slightly more 2nd place finishes than 1sts.]

Big Hands
This is the one, and only, time I submit that it is ok to limp. However, if your opponent is sharp, and sees that you've been raising or folding EVERY time but suddenly limp in, his trap radar will go off. It's more effective to CALL a raise with a big hand, then it is to limp the big hand in. Unless your opponent is an idiot, in which case feel free to limp away. =)

Stack Considerations
If you're on the short end of the stick (really short, I mean; he has a greater than 3-to-1 chip advantage on you), find a decent hand and go with it. If you're on the short end but less than 3-to-1, be patient. You can't be afraid to bet at flops that miss you, but you don't have to pick one hand and go all-in. Continue to wear your opponent down by raising his blind and getting him to fold on missed flops.

If you're the big stack, keep the pressure on. Raise, raise, raise. If you get your opponent down to under 1000 chips at any point, take a stab by putting them all-in with anything even marginally playable. They will be forced to call with just about anything. If you double them up, so be it. It doesn't hurt you that much, but at least you took a chance of knocking them out right there and taking down first place.

Conclusion
Unfortunately, luck plays a huge role at this stage of the tournament, with the blinds consitutint more than 10% of the chips in play. One SnG, I got the short stack all-in three times as a dog (one of them a severe dog) and he won all three. The last all-in crippled me and I finished in second place. Boo. This will happen. Just keep grinding away, and the first place finishes will come.

I guess that's it. Some of this advice overlaps with Poker Nerd; much of it differs. Clearly, no one style is more correct than another. Go with whatever works for you in the moment.

sit and go Poker high blind play

noreply@blogger.com (bonycamel) — Wed, 23 Apr 2008 10:26:00 +0000

This is easily the most important section of the book, as this is the stage of a STT at which it is least like any other tournament or cash game format. Anyone with even a tenuous grasp on a winning STT game knows prize pool equity trumps chip equity so often that discussing decisions in terms of chip equity can't be effective at determining correct plays. Independent Chip Model (ICM) prize pool equity calculations have passed many rigorous theoretical and practical examinations and have proven sufficiently accurate in the overwhelming majority of high-blind STT situations. ICM modeling is introduced in Part 2 and is covered sufficiently for a beginning player to grasp. Therefore, I’m quite surprised that prize pool equity is largely ignored in Part 3, and when it is applied, it is often applied in a very hand-wavy, qualitative manner nothing like the simple, methodical calculations most good STT players perform on a regular basis.

The Fundamental Theorem of Sit ‘n Go High Blind Play is really more of a good general principle that follows from correct mathematical play. It is too general of a statement. There will be so many “exceptions” that if this “Fundamental Theorem” is taken as such it would cease to look very fundamental at all. There exists a very simple approach to solving high-blind STT problems. The author very obviously knows it well and applies it to a number of his example hands. What I don’t understand is

a) Why this problem-solving methodology isn’t the singular focus of Part 3 until it is fully explained and
b) Why chip equity even shows up at all outside of a comparison to highlight the differences that can arise between it and tournament prize pool equity.

I need to form an argument to debate some of the author’s conclusions in his hand examples, but this is extremely difficult. What I want to argue about is the hand ranges, but the way the material has been presented, it isn’t clear to the reader that opponents’ hand ranges are a critical parameter.

Understanding and executing correct play during the high-blind sections of STTs at the highest levels consists of four steps.

* 1) Understanding how to execute push/fold/call calculations given the input parameters of chip stacks, prize payouts and hand ranges, and a good prize pool equity model. This is basic STT mathematical mechanics and is very similar to what is considered basic and essential knowledge in every other poker format.
* 2) How to determine reasonable hand ranges given any information about opponents. This is the “poker” and “feel” element unique to STTs that non-STT players usually lack and it is crucial for an introductory STT text to cover it.
* 3) The sensitivity of the results to changes in a players hand, his opponents’ hand ranges, and the chip stacks at the table, as well as the limitations of ICM equity modeling and cases requiring special treatment. This is usually what separates the winning high-limit players from the break-even mid-limit players, at least it does today… maybe not two years ago, and might be beyond the intended scope of this book.
* 4) How to alter all parameters except the exact hands dealt to players in real time. This is what separates the good high-limit players from the absolute best (and usually highest-limit) players, and would be well beyond the scope of an introductory text.

All of Step 1 is in there somewhere. It’s not central to most of the section, but it’s in there. Step 2 is also included, although usually much more qualitative and mushy. Also, it is not demonstrated how critically-important this step is. I doubt Collin needed to get Step 3 to think he knew enough to write an SNG book. He probably gets it himself, but it’s not covered except for a few isolated examples that should be pretty obvious to decent players. Anyone who knows anything about Step 4 won’t share. I’ll leave it at that.

So OK, I think I can reconstruct good high-blind SNG play from the information presented, but so what? I already know how to it. It’s my opinion that a decent poker player new to SNGs would learn something somewhere near proper strategy from reading the Part 3, but would be utterly helpless as to explain why any of lol donkament-looking plays are correct. He would also be utterly helpless against changing game conditions; perhaps changes that have taken place since the book’s author last played SNGs seriously. Without a Crystal Pepsi-clear understanding of the methodology behind these plays, a player will be completely lost.

The implicit collusion and micro-stack sections are decent, although I think it all makes much more sense as a variation on the same calculation we should have already done forty times by the time we get to these sections. The examples really aren't that elucidating, as I think most players could guess the correct play without really knowing or caring why.

The heads-up section, all the preflop stuff should be really simple using our methodology. The instruction needs to focus on a discussion of hand ranges, unexploitable play, and profitable variations from unexploitable play. I don’t like many of his post-flop lines. Hand 3-55 is an example of what I think is a really bad logical flaw that shows up in a lot of the example hands.

10K Post: Random Poker Thoughts

noreply@blogger.com (bonycamel) — Wed, 23 Apr 2008 07:45:00 +0000

I have posted a lot here, gotten a lot of help from a lot of posters, and Ive never made a milestone post so I wanted to do something this time. Unfortunately I couldn't think of anything worth doing a whole post on that hasn't been done so I just sort of ended up typing random paragraphs about a bunch of different things. Ive tried to organize them into something intelligible, hopefully I succeeded. Not that much of this will be that helpful to a lot of you since this is a SNG forum, but I know a lot of you either have switched to cash, are currently switching, or are thinking about it/will one day relatively soon, and this forum is pretty much my internet home so it's going here whether you like it or not.

Thank You's and such

Pasterbater- Obv. I owe him a ****-ton. He taught me to play cash games, but more importantly how to think about poker in a way that allowed me to make myself better.

Irieguy- besides just making this forum more fun to read, he picked me to be one of the reporter's for the ultimate SNG at his house in vegas, where I met a lot of really sick players and good people, paster being one.

Bones- also makes the forum fun to read, and he hated Phil Gordon, whose book cost me my first bankroll. **** Gordon.

Bobbofitos- Probably won't read this as it's in a donkament forum, but living with him in Vegas last year was like having one long "AHA" moment for 30 days. Such a good player and poker theorist, and he explains his thoughts more coherently than just about anyone Ive ever talked to.

Wiggs73- Doesnt post much anymore, but he taught me a lot about SNGs, and staked me once when I was busto. Ive also learned a lot talking Cash with him on AIM after we both switched. \

Everyone else I talk to on AIM about poker, + those who lived w/ me last summer in LV+ anyone else I forgot. This forum has taken me from 1-tabling $5 sngs to making bank at upper MSNL, so in return I give you some confused ramblings that may or may not be coherent enough to help anyone.

Switching from SNGs to Cash

There probably isnt a whole lot I can offer most people on this for two reasons: I was never that great at SNGs and I had Pasterbator teaching me when I switched. That said, there a couple of things I will say on the subject. If you have no experience playing cash games, then stick to the basics. It sounds simple and boring (it's both) but it's also important. I see way too many posts in the SNG>>>Cash thread along the lines of "trying out some cash games for the first time, should i 3-barrel/cold-4bet/check-raise bluff this river. No, you shouldn't because most of these things are unnecessary at low stakes anyway, and you definitely don't have the experience to recognize the rare spots where they might be OK.

Game and Seat Selection

Game selection is probably the most important thing that nobody does at cash games. In SNGs you guys just register for 25 tables and wait for them to fill up. At cash games, you are making money directly from the fish (i.e. not from mistakes that the fish makes against other players as in SNGs), so if you are not on a table with a few fish, you aren't going to be making as much money as you should. I like to look for people sitting with stacks between 40-80bbs. Virtually every player who is even decent will reload before getting this low, and shortstackers leave the table at 40bbs, so all of these stacks are horrible players. Same thing goes for seat selection. Being OOP vs a good player should not be your main concern. I would rather have CTS on my left and a huge fish on my right than the other way around (slight exaggeration). The only exception to this is when stacks get really deep (200+bbs), then you should either tighten up drastically with a good aggro player on your left or just leave and find another table. Having position on the fish is huge, you have the best chance of taking their money when you are directly to their left, and most fish leave after they get stacked so give yourself every advantage you can.

Megatabling

I don't do it except during double VPP promos, and i think it's generally a bad idea. Spend some time playing very few table and make yourself explain everything that you do, and you will be able to correct a lot of mistakes on your own. Learning how to formulate these thought processes will also lead you to recognizing when a non-standard play might be best. I play 4 table sessions at least 4-5 times a month for this reason, and generally play 6-8 the rest of the time. I personally can't see how anyone playing more than that is playing their A-game, but Im sure some can.

Be a nit in EP

Seriously, this is important! You aren't going to have the kind of edge you need to play a hand like 76s, QTo, etc vs most players when they have position on you. Even if they are terrible, as long as they are remotel aggressive you are hurting yourself playing ****ty hands OOP vs them. I would rather open 52o on the BT than 76s UTG. You make your money in position, so play more pots in position and less out of it.

Value betting

This is probably the main difference between someone marginally beating the games and someone killing them. If there was a way for you to look at how much value you missed every month it would make you cry. The reason a lot of people struggle at low stakes is because no one ever folds. You can't bluff them, and you can't make TP or better every hand, so how do you win? STOP WAITING FOR TOP PAIR! If someone is calling you down w/ 3rd/4th pair every time, for ****'s sake don't bluff them, and start treating 2nd pair like it's top pair. This goes for flopped 2nd pair as well, but even more for a flopped overpair or TP that turns into 2nd pair by the river. If they've already called 2 bets on a 9 high board, the K on the river changes nothing, keep betting. Your absolute hand strength rarely matters. All that matters is whether you have the best hand often enough and whether they can feasibly call with worse often enough. An overcard doesnt have to be a scarecard if the action is such that it rarely hits there hand. It might make them less likely to call, but it can also make them bluff-catch more b/c overs are good cards to bluff. Do not assume, ever, that someone can't call with worse just because you wouldn't. Who cares if they fold every time? Ive never been given a bonus for showing down the best hand vs. winning w/o a showdown. At the very least they now have less information about you than if you check behind. Stop checking turns for pot control with TPTK against bad players. Just stop it. Why do you want to control the pot with the best hand? The days of not putting money in with 1 pair are gone, it's time to catch up. Check 2nd pair decent kicker for pot control, bet top pair every time you can. If you're making a thin value-bet, dont bet 1/3 of the pot. Besides being obvious, it takes away a lot of the value in betting. You might say "but they will call more often." Probably, but they wont call twice as often as they call 2/3 pot in most cases (which makes 2/3 pot bettter).

Bet sizing

Ill keep this brief, but it is definitely important. Im going to focus on the turn and river here. If you're playing well, you have a plan for the river before you do anything on the turn. If your plan is to bluff-shove certain rivers, you should size your turn bet so that you have very close to full-pot behind for the river, even if that means your turn bet is only 1/2 pot. The reason you are planning to bluff-shove the river is b/c you think you have more FE there (I hope), so maximize it. If you are planning to value-shove on the river, leave yourself a decent bit less than pot behind so it's easier for them to call. Although i really only touched on a couple situations, the general idea can be applied on all streets in all situations. Size your bets in a way that fits your plan for the hand, whether that plan is to put in 30bbs or 100 or 200.

Folding

Learn to fold! Just because someone is bad doesnt make TPTK the nuts (ya i know what i said earlier just shut up and listen!). If im in a pot with a fish, Im betting the hell out TP all the way of course, because TP IS the nuts when they are just calling. If they raise me at any point, it loses it's nuts status and I have to re-evaluate what kinds of hands they are likely to be raising. If a 50/5/0.25 min-raises your river bet, you can fold top pair pretty quickly. Part of value-betting enough is betting a lot of hands for value that you have to fold to a raise, and if you don't make those folds you're better off never value-betting in the first place. Just keep in mind that not all fish are created equal, and some of them will raise trash post-flop while some will call all the way with bottom pair and only raise the nuts. You make a lot of money in the long run by folding in the right spots.

3-betting

Everyone loves to 3-bet, and for good reason (its fun obv). But almost everyone is doing it completely wrong. I posted a hand in the **** thread the other day where i 3-bet A7o OTB vs a CO raise. This isn't standard and i had my reasons for doing it, but when someone questioned the 3-bet it got me thinking about the fact that if I had posted the hand and given myself 98s or QJs, no one would have said anything, when both of those 3-bets would have been worse than A7o IMO. When I'm 3-betting, I'm doing it with hands that are almost good enough for me to flat-call with but not quite, and obv also with hands that are too strong for me to flat-call. I think you show a much bigger profit by flatting hands like 98s and JTs in position than by 3-betting them to win a few bbs pre-flop. Out of the blinds I will 3-bet a lot of suited broadway cards vs someone who calls 3-bets really light and bluffs a lot/stacks off light post-flop. But I'm not turning them into a bluff, Im turning them into AK (stacking off when i flop a pair or big draw). The most absurdly horrible thing that I see from regs on a regular basis is squeezing SCs/gappers and off-suit connectors when a TAG opens and a fish calls in between. WHY?!?!!? These hands play so well in position in multiway pots, and the fish plays so badly post-flop! Why in the ****ing **** do you want to risk 16-18bbs to win 8bbs pre-flop when you can make so much more by flatting. Basically, if a hand makes a big profit post-flop by flatting, stop 3-betting it all the ****ing time. The air in your 3-betting range should consist of hands that are almost good enough to flat with, thus you aren't taking all the value away by 3-betting it and you can still win a decent pot b/c its better than having 32o or w/e.

Shot Taking/Fish Chasing

This is an important part of developing as a player, and I have always done quite a bit of it. Please understand that I am not talking about putting your whole roll on a 25/50 table. Say you're a 50NL player w/ a $1500 BR, and you see someone you know is a fish sitting at .5/1 or even 1/2. Don't be scared to sit at that table. When taking a shot i generally sit out or leave most if not all of my other tables to make sure I am giving my full concentration to that table. Note that you shouldnt do this every time you see someone who might not be a great reg sitting. Make sure it is someone bad enough to make the reward worth the risk. There are a few things to keep in mind when sitting at a table that is 2-4X your normal stakes.

A) You only need to cover the fish. If he has 60bbs, buy in for 60bbs. There is a good chance he is the only player there you have a significant edge against, anyway.

B) Make sure you have position on the fish- otherwise the $EV you gain isn't going to be worth the risk

C) Tighten up- there is no shame in this. You're playing over your bankroll so there is no reason to take unnecessary risks. You're there to stack the fish, not to flip coins with regs for >10% of your BR.

D) The regs are not playing back at you as much as you think- Seriously. They just aren't and you're being paranoid the majority of the time. Honestly though, assume that they are for a second. WTF are you gonna do about it? If you had the skill and the BR to combat their aggression you would be a regular in these stakes already, so don't waste your money trying. In all honesty, if the regs are spewing it's probably a good thing for you since you're playing tight like I told you to and will eventually have a big hand you can felt comfortably vs them, if the fish doesn't pay you first.

E) Leave when the fish leaves- if you want to wait for your BB fine but seriously if you're left w/ a table full of regs at 4X your normal stakes just fold everything but big hands, take your free FPPs and get out.

F) Leave when you get stacked- if you lose a stack for >10% of your BR, chances are you're gonna be slightly tilted, so let's not make it 20%. Even if you're not tilted, this isnt the best way to make your money back and you can still get coolered again. Just leave.

Life as a Pro

This profession makes it very easy to end up hating life. Even lots of ppl who are killing much bigger games than I play are miserable. There are obviously multiple reasons for this but a few common things that would make most people much happier are listed below.

A) It is bad (horrible) to keep 95% of your net worth in a poker account. If you have to do this to play the stakes you need to play to make a living, you shouldn't be playing poker for a living. There are exceptions to this, but mostly college students who don't need that much money to live so they can still function daily and be a pro while using most of their net worth as a BR.
B) Along the same lines as A, you don't need 100 buyins in your account to play cash. Take out half of it and put it in an INTEREST BEARING account. You can always put it back online if you need it, but to have it just sitting in your stars account is burning money.

C) You have to have balance. Find some sort of hobby, read books, go out with your friends regularly. If you are playing/browsing 2p2/studying poker 24/7 you are missing the forest for the trees. Online poker as a job lets you work on your own time, make great money, and do something you (hopefully) enjoy when you are working. If you don't have a life outside of the internet, you're doing it wrong.

D) Most people starting out as an online poker pro are young. We are lucky, We have time on our side if we choose to take advantage of it. We can watch the interest on our investments compound over and over again for a long time. Invest. Constantly hoarde your money away when you have a decent amount laying around that you dont need. Max out IRA's every year, when you start making substantial extra money look for good ways to invest it. You won't even miss that money now, and it will huge for you when you're older. This isn't to say you shouldn't spend any money, I spend a good bit on traveling and such and I greatly enjoy it. I have nice things. But Im investing as much as Im spending pretty much every month, because the quickest way to end up hating life is to spend every dime you make from poker and then go on a long downswing and end up broke, when you could have had enough put away for your life to not change a bit.

E) Realize and accept how much variance there is in poker, cause there's a ****ing lot of it. You can run bad for 100K hands or more, and it sucks bad. Of course it's rare to do so but CTS has said before that he has 100K samples w/ a negative ptbb. Downswings happen, bad beats happen, coolers happen. They happen every day to everybody. You arent special, and they don't happen more to you than they do to everyone else. This is why you shouldnt play poker professionally if you are depending on your results each week/month to live on, you have to have case money to make it through the rough patches.

I'll wrap it up pretty quickly cause this is already longer than any post should be. Life is about being happy, not about being rich (although is never hurts). One thing I feel lucky to have learned at a very young age is that time is far more valuable than money will ever be. Life is extremely short, and every year goes by faster than the one before. My goal for my poker career when I first started out was to 12-table HSNL all day and make a billion dollars every month and buy everything on the planet. Now, my goal is to put away enough money to have a passive income as fast as possible, and to play as much as I can without ever sacrificing anything from my personal life for poker. The extra time I get to do things I enjoy, namely spending time with my wife, friends, and family, is a far better reward for me than the money is.

Poker 180-mtt finish the second

noreply@blogger.com (bonycamel) — Wed, 16 Apr 2008 00:55:00 +0000

PokerStars Tournament #84695581, No Limit Hold'em
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180 players
Total Prize Pool: $720.00
Tournament started - 2008/04/14 - 07:25:22 (ET)

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A $144.00 award has been credited to your Real Money account.

You earned 154.48 tournament leader points in this tournament.
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How to improve your poker game?

noreply@blogger.com (bonycamel) — Thu, 10 Apr 2008 08:19:00 +0000

I want to constantly improve as a player. I want to win big tournaments, and sit at big tables with confidence. I am committed to learning, and playing well at the tables I sit at.

I play large-field tournaments and single/2-table Full-Ring (at nl100 now, and transitioning to nl200, where I've played in the past). I also play the odd SNG, and also satellites into more expensive tourneys (which I often cash out - I find these fields much softer than, say, the 10/180s). I'm not a pro, so I also play as a hobby rather than a job. I am a more experienced tourney player (2 years+) than NL FR player (6 months+).

Here's the ways I try and improve:

1) I play FR shortstack at least one session a week. This keeps me sharp on what good shortstack play is, and makes it much easier to spot good and bad SS players, and play back at them more appropriately.

2) I try and play an 8+ table session once every 2 weeks. This gives me an insight into how multitablers think and act, and helps in playing back at them. This is a recent addition to my pokerlife.

3) I read a lot. 2+2 is useful. I acquire books at a fair rate too, and tend to skim new books for stuff I need to read more deeply, and note stuff that I'll need to revisit in future. NLTAP is probably the book I use most at the moment. I also read and reread chapters and articles I find useful until they are fully internalised. I'll often reread the same article 10-20 times over a few weeks, to make sure I've thoroughly understood it (it's too easy to read poker books and remember the simple bits, and forget the exceptions/unusuals).

4) I have been moving up aggressively, particularly in tournament stakes. Having said that, I think I'll be making nl200 my home for a long time, as it meshes so well with the way I play. I will however be taking shots at higher levels from this safe ground. I'm aiming to use this as a base to finance getting into the big tourneys ($215-$1100 buyins), where 1 good run can maybe change your life.

Small-Stakes Multi-Table Online Poker Tournaments

noreply@blogger.com (bonycamel) — Mon, 07 Apr 2008 08:42:00 +0000

Every major online site runs some of these tournaments each day. In the case of the major sites, there may be dozens of such events every day. Entry fees range from $1 to $30. (Larger entry fees than this go in a separate category, as they will start to attract the pros.) The number of players could be as high as several thousand. Your buy-in will get you $1,000 to $1,500 in tournament chips, and the blinds will start in the $5/$10 or $10/$20 area. The blinds will increase rapidly, however, as the rounds will typically be very short: perhaps 5, 10, or 12 minutes each, allowing only 8-to-12 hands per round.

These tournaments obviously involve much more luck than the slower live events. The combination of the large number of inexperienced players, short rounds, and rapidly-increasing blind structure means that you're compelled to play quickly and aggressively just to stay ahead of the blinds. However, there's still plenty of scope for strategy, and a skilled player can do much better than average. Here are a few tips.

1. Don't plan on being able to use your powers of observation very much. Players will constantly be moving all their chips in and getting knocked out, so tables don't stay together long enough to get solid information on the other players. Most of your hands will need to be evaluated in a vacuum.

2. Don't plan on running any bluffs. Players are extremely aggressive; they're looking to double up quickly, and they don't need much to call. You'll see plenty of all-in showdowns where a pair of fours butts up against an ace-six offsuit. The bottom line: Your shrewd, well-considered bluff to steal the pot will probably be answered by a big reraise followed by an all-in! Don't bother. Just make sure you have a hand when you get a lot of chips in the pot. (Interestingly, although bluffs don't work in these games, you'll still see plenty of bluffs tried.)

3. Betting patterns are very different from normal poker. At least in the early stages of these tournaments, there's very little actual value betting. Slow-playing, trapping, and all-in bets predominate. A solid value bet, for instance, is almost always paid off, sometimes with a big reraise.

4. Crowded pots. Before the flop, the pot may be crowded with five to seven limpers. A significant raise after several players have limped in won't thin the field; it will only function as a pot-sweetner.

5. Optimal strategy. With so many players playing so aggressively, a conservative strategy ought to pay big dividends, since strong hands rate to get paid very well. If the blinds were increasing slowly, and the rounds were longer, this would certainly be true. But with short rounds and sharp blind increases, a strictly conservative approach won't yield results fast enough to keep your stack from shrinking as the blinds come charging. While you should be generally conservative, you have to mix in two other ideas:

A. In late position, try to see some cheap flops with suited-connectors or small pairs, in the hope of flopping a monster that could let you double up. The large number of players in each pot makes your implied odds huge when you hit a set, straight, or a flush.

B. Push your good hands (top pairs, trips) to the maximum, again with the hope of doubling up. You're much more likely to be called all-in than in a normal tournament. Remember that even your weaker top pair hands, like nines and eights, go up in value while high unpaired cards go down in value.

Poker-FullRing:Playing the Blinds Verse Limpers

noreply@blogger.com (bonycamel) — Thu, 03 Apr 2008 01:20:00 +0000

What follows is a situational, small-ball tactic that I call Stealing Limps Out of the Blinds, or SLOB. It's not exactly a MT2R original. It's a known idea in the poker community, but one that I haven't seen shared in a nice theory post.

It is directed at Stars games from 50NL to 200NL and for players with a TAG/sLAG image. These games are full of weak-tight and weak-loose play.

One can easily be a winner with never using this tactic.

That does not mean SLOB is not important. It can dramatically increase one's winrate in fullring. For instance, I have run net positive out of the small blind over my last 50k hands at full stack fullring. That's right, even with the dead money posts, I have overcome them to run positive.

So, enough preamble, and on to the meat.

You are sitting in one of the blinds and the entire table limps and/or folds to you. Two things matter:
1) Your cards
2) Who has limped

DO NOT USE SLOB against tricky/aggressive postflop players.

You want to see limpers that are very weak-tight and/or predictable postflop...
you want guys that are 14/5/1.1 or 40/4/0.8 or whatever.
You also like to see a low WTSD number, a high fold to c-bet, and a high fold on flop.

Only use SLOB if all the limpers fit into these categories. The good news is that it will often be the case that all limpers do match the categories as the more aggressive/tricky post-flop players are rarely the type to limp preflop too much (*there are exceptions).

Now, you get to your cards.
With a normal raising hand, raise. LDO.

Now, here comes the counter-intuitive part for many.
With hands that play well postflop in multi-way pots and/or OOP, just limp/check.
Hands such as 44, 76s, A4s, etc should be limped/checked.

With hands that don't play well, unleash the dragon and raise with garbage planning on a c-bet 90% of the time.
T7s--raise
K5o--unleash the dragon
J7o--raise all day
92o--ok, you can fold, but it's not that ridonk to raise that, too.

WHAT???!!!

Raise garbage and play a hand OOP against hands that already entered the pot???!!!!

YOU BET!

Yes, you are OOP, but there are two considerations working to overcome that:

1) Your opponents already declared they don't feel like they have enough to win the pot by limping. Seriously, construct some hand ranges on what your opponents are limping, but not raising. For most, it's not pretty. Who cares if it's more than what you have? They don't know that. They have to sometimes give you credit for something as you'll be raising your typical range from the small blind as well. Plus, most aren't even paying attention. Even the Hudbots will see your 'normal' stats and not realize how 'wide' your range is in the situation. Basically, your opponents have added some 'dead money' to the pot for the taking.

2) Your opponents play predictable/hit-to-win poker postflop. If they are ballsy enough to call your preflop raise. Most will wimper like a little school child if they miss the flop. They are looking at their cards and hoping to hit something verse the obvious big hand you hold raising from the small blind. I c-bet in these spots roughly 90% of the time. It doesn't even matter what two cards you hold. It only matters if they hit the flop well. The opponents put you on at least top pair. Obviously, this is why you don't use the tactic verse aggressive/tricky postflop players. You don't want to face bluffs and re-bluffs for many chips.

SLOB is a small ball tactic. You pick up the limps. You pick up the limps and preflop call. You aren't looking to play for stacks unless your garbage hits something (these cases are beautiful, but beware when your garbage is showndown and the table sees it ).

I repeat, don't use it with good postflop hands in multiway pots like 44, 76s, A4s, etc. You don't want to turn a hand that can win a stack into K5o playing small ball.

wsop is beginning, pokerstars' package is awesome

noreply@blogger.com (bonycamel) — Tue, 01 Apr 2008 03:01:00 +0000

Last weekend, I played some satellite to wsop. I stopped at SNG step 4, what pity!
Pokerstars' $12500 package not only includes $10000 buyin fee and $2500 spending cash, but also includes:

The following benefits from PokerStars are available to (1) Cash qualifier entrants to the Event that agree to sign our Terms & Conditions and wear PokerStars branded hat and t-shirt/fleece exclusively throughout the entire duration of the Event and (2) entrants to the Event that have qualified via a non-cash Qualifier (the "Sponsored Option"):

Receive the benefit of either: (i) 8 nights accommodation at the Palms Hotel, Las Vegas from July 2nd 2008 at PokerStars' expense provided that a player collects the 2008 *WSOP Player Bag from the PokerStars main representative office at the Palms Hotel, Las Vegas prior to the commencement of the Event. If a player fails to do so the player will be deemed to have rejected the Sponsored Option and, as such, will be fully liable for their own accommodation costs. Or (at the entrant's option) (ii) US$1,000 in cash provided that the player first collects the 2008 *WSOP Player Bag from the PokerStars main representative office at the Palms Hotel, Las Vegas prior to the commencement of the Event and the cash will be deposited in the player's PokerStars' account within 5 businbess days of such collection.
PokerStars will cover the cost of the accommodation of any player that chooses option (i) above (i.e. to receive accommodation at the Palms Hotel, Las Vegas) and is still in the Event on July 10th 2008, until 15th July 2008.
A free shuttle bus service every morning from July 3rd to July 13th from the Palms Hotel to the Rio Hotel & Casino, Las Vegas.
2008 *WSOP PokerStars Player Bag containing approved clothing to be worn at the Event
Cash bonus incentive for Event TV Table appearances as follows:

Days	Bronze	Silver	Gold	Platinum	Supernova & Elite
Day 1 (4)	$5,000.00	$6,000.00	$7,000.00	$8,000.00	$9,000.00
Day 2 (2)	$6,000.00	$7,000.00	$8,000.00	$9,000.00	$10,000.00
Day 3	$6,000.00	$7,000.00	$8,000.00	$9,000.00	$10,000.00
Day 4	$10,000.00	$11,000.00	$12,000.00	$13,000.00	$14,000.00
Day 5	$12,000.00	$14,000.00	$16,000.00	$18,000.00	$20,000.00
Day 6	$15,000.00	$17,000.00	$19,000.00	$21,000.00	$23,000.00
Day 7	$20,000.00	$25,000.00	$30,000.00	$35,000.00	$50,000.00

For the purposes of this term 6, the PokerStars branded hat and t-shirt/fleece worn by an entrant must be from the 2008 *WSOP Player Bag provided by PokerStars to the entrant for this purpose.

The cash payment will be made directly to the player’s PokerStars account. Payment to player’s PokerStars account will be made within 2 weeks of the Event. If we are not able to verify a player’s Event TV Table appearance, we will credit the player’s PokerStars account within 2 weeks of the Event being aired on TV.

Final Table Bonus Incentive – An entrant to the Event, that chose the Sponsored option and that reaches the Event’s final table will be entitled to the following bonuses subject to the player entering into an endorsement agreement with PokerStars on PokerStars' standard terms and conditions including an obligation on the player to assist PokerStars and act as a PokerStars spokesman during the Event and for one calendar year thereafter, including, but not limited to, meeting with press and participating in other events conducted by PokerStars:

1st place: US$1,000,000
2nd place: US$400,000
3rd place: US$300,000
4th-5th place: US$200,000
6th-9th place: US$100,000

Pokerstars 180's mtt guide -- poker tournaments

noreply@blogger.com (bonycamel) — Fri, 28 Mar 2008 03:19:00 +0000

Alright been trying to figure out a way to write this well,with enough helpful information for anyone who's looking to either add in 180s to their MTT daily routine or switch to them from SNGs or cash games.

Alright here are just same basic reasons why you should play 180:

A Volume, you can't beat the frequency these tourneys run during the peak hours you can get 2-3 at the 10 and 20 level while 5-6 at the 4 level

B Time commitment, I would guesstimate the time till the end of a 180 to be an avg around 3 hours 20min which is 2-3 times shorter than your avg tourney with 15min blind levels.

C Payouts, They pay 10% but it is very top heavy 10-18th get double the buyin while 1st gets 54 times the buyin.

D Preparation, The good thing about the 180s field size being capped at such a low number is you get to be invovled many endgame situations. That means when you start getting to the FT of 5fig+ for first tourneys you won't be such a beginner at that stage.

E. The players, You get such a wide range of players that you get much stronger as a player against the spectrum of fish as well as mtt experts. This will help a player learn how to adjust to table conditions as often you are moving tables and needed to readjust and reconnect with the flow of the table

F. Cost, you can't really beat 180s for their low buyins which are great for anyone trying to build up a roll and with the 3 different levels as well as the increasingly popular 50/90s you can grind out a nice roll very quickly to move on to bigger tourneys

Alright now for some strategy tips I will try to hit most of the important moves and ideas behind each move you make. I would recommend that if you don't have pokertracker and pahud to go and get them since some advice I give you you need that for the information. Also, one thing I like to do is every time the blind levels change to try to figure out where you want to be stack wise etc by the next level. So I will break this down by blind levels for 180s.

Level 1 10/20
Now, everyone stars with 75bbs don't be shy with your strong hands a big mistake I see people make is open raising 5-6x with 10s or AQo etc hands that are most likely to be best PF but are rarely hands you are very confident post flop with. I would advise making some over limps with SCs small pairs etc, this is the only stage where it's not a big mistake to be passing PF. Most likely the players you will be playing many pots against are the fish and weaker players since many of the better players are prob multitabling and thus folding a lot of marginal hands. So seize this great time to take chips off those who will give them up easily. I am not afraid of big pots on any hand because remember it's a 180 and another one prob is 1/3rd of the way registered.

Stack goal 2000

Level 2 15/30
Alright now you should be noticing whose been limping half the hands and prob dwindled theirs tack down to 800 and those at 1450 who haven't played a hand yet. Use that knowledge when playing hands notice what type of opp you are against and adjust. Pay attention to stack sizes too when you are against 1 of those weak players bleeding chips as you should be trying to do they prob have less chips so be keen on that when you are getting to the turn and the pot has eclipsed their stack.

Stack goal 3000

Level 3 25/50
Alright now like 1/4th of the field is gone and it's going to get tougher but hopefully you were able to win lots of small pots by raising the weak limpers and c-betting or got lucky to stack someone. Players aren't as deep anymore and expect a few of the tight players to open up a little more at this level. There still will be plenty of spots to take a flop vs one of the weak players who hopefully doubled up like you so you can be 60bb deep with him and hopefully win a monster pot. Be warry a lot of PF 3bets start to commit people. Also notice the stack sizes to your left

Stack goal 3500

Level 4 50/100

Alright this is when it starts to switch to less postflop play and more raise/shoving so adjust your PF opening range to hands that do better with short stacks AIPF. Again I echo look at stack sizes when you raise 3x which should be your standard open with no limpers ask yourself what do you do if player X shoves or if he raises half his stack etc. Ask yourself those questions before you raise. It may help you make a better decision if it's worth it to try to steal from that position. Also, around this level you prob will be down to half the field in a 4 and 10 and prob 100 left in a 20.

Stack goal 4000 and a 5min break to focus on other tourneys

Level 5 75/150
2nd hour now things are def starting to kick in gear hopefully you are slightly above avg stack right now as it gives you more breathing room as for next 15min you will battle those nits who've folded their way down to 600 chips. The only postflop play you should be apart off is when you raise and someone calls you. Most of your pots for now on you should be the aggressor makes it much more effective. Also, don't be afraid to shove your stack in there if a squeeze appears or someone won't leave your BB alone. Don't shy from races at this stage they are necessary in tourneys even in these middle stages

Stack goal 4500

Level 6 100/200
This is actually my favorite level in a 180 due to the fact most of the other regulars like to wait till antees kick in to start stealing and restealing a lot, so while they are waiting 15 more min I start to really have fun. The fields have thinned by now and the avg player left is much stronger but still plenty of soft spots by now you should have a good idea of each player at your table and with pt and pahud using that info and extrapolating your plans before going into a hand. As effective stakcs keep getting shorter the distance a hand goes until all the money gets in obv gets shorter most pots are taken down on the flop if you even see one.

Stack goal 5500

Level 7 100/200/25
Ante time a decent sized ante for an online tourney being 1/8th a bb so most pots are going to be 525 before cards are dealt. there will be plenty of sub 10bb stacks right now and you need to be careful when you open 3x you are getting odds against most players who are under 10bb to call their shove unless they have been really tight. I personally don't like to steal that much at this level as most players expect you too and they also will be stealing as well. So I would suggest restealing more from those multitabling regulars who open in LP when folded to them. Depending on how deep you are shoving and a 3bet are fine. It's also time to start defending your BB more. As most of you should know if it's folded to you in the SB you should be raising/shoving almost any 2 depending on effective stacks. That is the position I feel like I keep my stack afloat the most either restealing from a LP opener or stealing from the BB to get those coveted antes.

Stack goal 6000

Level 8 200/400/25

Alright this is the inflection point/level of a 180 everyone is forced into short stack mode as rarely will 2 people with more than 20bbs collide. There are prob 40-50 left so avg stack is under a M of 7 and also about half the stacks at the table will prob be under 10bbs. Knowing that you should often be shoving when first in even if you have 16bb stack if those to the left of you are under 10. Also remember to go by effective stacks not just yours or theirs. Restealing is harder at this blind level as very few people are deep enough to raise/fold. So expect your shoves to get called more as people are getting more desperate to double even if they have to take the worst of it.

Stack goal 8000

Break #2 getting very close to the money now start to figure out whose playing to win and whose playing to cash

Level 9 300/600/50
Alright now the field is getting short ITM bubble is approaching and the avg stack is around 15bbs but there probably is a gigantic stack hopefully yours so as with the previous level about half your table is under 10bbs make note of those who are short and why they got short. You should be stealing less from the guys whose short because he was aggressive and got caught stealing and/or make a resteal and got called. While stealing from the guy whose short who has been folding a lot even when folded to him in LP and is def waiting for solid hands to continue with only. Remember at this stage at a 9 handed table theres 1350 in the pot so try to take that down whenever you can where ever you are.

Stack goal 10000

Level 10 400/800/50
As the skill level of the avg 180 player is increasing like it is lately the bubble has been bursting later and later and I've noticed a lot lately this is the level where we get down to 20 people a lot. Remember when this happens your table is now 6-7 handed therefore your opening ranges even from UTG should be much wider. Also, notice that often what you are doing others at the table are trying to do as well so try to knock them down to where they aren't a formidable foe and you can easily call their shoves getting over 2 to 1 therefore they can't push as lightly since they know they have 0 FE. I always try to punish those I fear by attacking them and their stack because the shorter they are the easier/cheaper it is for me to take a shot to knock them out. Hopefully by the end of this level you are top 3 in chips and now down to final 2 tables and ITM.

stack goal 15000

Level 11 600/1200 75
Alright this is a bigger jump than most players realize now the game has truly become pushbotting when effective stacks under 10bb and there are very few flops seen where both players aren't all in. Since often with this level you are just ITM and prob playing 7-8 handed still don't be too aggro and give away chips now that people are in the money they are going to loosen up and go for first more likely than earlier. So tighten up while they loosen up.

Stack goal 20000

Level 12 800/1600/75
Alright this is often the blind level for Ft bubble your table will be 5 handed now with some decent sized stacks prob a few 25k stacks prob a 40k stack and a few 10k stacks. You should be opening any chance you can get unless getting restolen from a lot. You are trying to win these remember 54x the buyin for 1st place so every chance to pickup chips count.

stack goal 30000

Alright if you've made it this far hopefully you got some firepower to start working your way to the top. You have 5 min to get your gameplan for FT ready

Level 13 1000/2000/100
Notice at this level the blinds are large but the ante is just 1/10th a SB also be wary live and online of the antein relation to the BB it should effect how often you are opening. By now you are at the FT remember this is a constant bubble so abuse the middle stacks at all chances. You are there to win they are there to fight for 2nd. Remember you are most likely the best player at the table you have more weapons than anyone else.

Stack goal 50000

Level 14 1500/300/150
Alright this level I am going to use to give you some ways how to play a shortstack which often endgame you will end up having due to either a bad beat or a call getting proper odds. You should be restealing PF with 11-15bbs with decent hands depending on opener, when 7-10 stop and go is your most deadly weapon. Also when 20bbs you can do whats called a go and go where you raise about 30-40% of your stack PF OOP and stick the rest in on any flop.

Stack goal 75000

Level 15 2000/4000/200
Alright some tourneys are done by this level while others are still 2-3 handed this is where the most crucial point of your ROI comes from. The difference between a 1st and a 2nd is 18x the buyin so you are playing for more than some people realize in the spectrum of the buyin. Be aggressive 90% of the time neither of you have a real hand make him go on his heels whenever you can. Don't get too discouraged if you get this far and don't win because getting here is a goal in it's self and now that you've done it a few times your shorthanded and endgame will be much more solid as I alluded to earlier in the post for when you get to fts of tourneys with 10k+ for first.

Alright some other things about 180s what can be expected from them. They 180s do give good TLB scores I don't have the link off hand for a calculator it's a favorite on my other comp but I'll edit that in later. Off the top of my head a 4/180 gives 218, a 10 gives 255, and a 20 gives 309.

ROI numbers are asked a lot of what a good player should be making when I responded to that question 3 months ago my answer was quite different that what it is now because the avg player has improved but they still have many leaks and ways for you to abuse. I'd expect the top 2-3% of players could expect to make about 130% ROI in the 4/180s over a decent sample size. 110% for the 10/180s is what prob the top players could make though I'm sure if a mtt expert got into them they could easily hit 150-200 but thankfully they don't waste their time playing so low. As for 20s I'd say a good number of players are making 100% ROI. Now for a proper sample size I would say 250 at any level but obv the more the better judge even though some of your games may be from a time when they are softer.

Also, don't just rely in PAHUD if you notice something odd either a line or a betting pattern tell make a note of it so you will have it in the future. Part of the small fields of 180s is you see the same players often so they are prob taking notes on you so you should be doing the same.

Any other questions more specific comments you have about 180s ask and I will have a mod edit them into the original post. Remember this is a beginners guide to 180s this is just breaking the ice there is much more in depth thought at times during each hand but that is too complex to put into words most of the time.

NL poker--Why Randomizing Your Raise Size is Often Ineffect

noreply@blogger.com (bonycamel) — Thu, 27 Mar 2008 08:44:00 +0000

In “No Limit Hold’em: Theory and Practice,” under the chapter titled “Sizing your Pre-flop Raises” (p. 111) David Sklansky and Ed Miller advise against automatically making uniform or “table standard” pre-flop raises, suggesting that by doing so the player gives up too many advantages that come with being able to vary his or her bet size. They then provide the counter argument for this point, which is that varying your pre-flop bet size may provide too much information about your hand to your opponents, allowing them to play much more accurately and reducing your expected rate of return. Sklansky and Miller then suggest that you need only occasionally randomize your play in order to overcome this disadvantage, and while their advice does seem sound it is extremely rare for players to randomize their bet sizes in the majority of hold’em games.

There are two types of environments in poker. There are information saturated environments, wherein players interact with one another frequently and a lot of information may be exchanged between players. In this sort of an environment there may be quite a bit of value in playing in such a way as to manipulate an opponent’s perception of your play, as you can leverage those perceptions for gains in future hands. Secondly, there are information sparse environments, wherein players interact with one another rarely. In these sorts of environments there is often very little value in attempting to change your opponent’s perceptions of your play, as you will have little to no opportunity to leverage those perceptions for future gains. Note that an environment is never simply information saturated or information sparse, but can be either strongly or weakly so as well as somewhere in between.

Most no-limit games are very information sparse environments, largely because very few hands are shown down. For example, a player who plays 15% of his or her hands and sees a showdown 25% of the time he or she sees a flop will take as few as or less than 3 hands to showdown for every 100 hands he or she plays. Many poker games, particularly at the low and mid stakes levels also operate in a “revolving door” atmosphere, where many opponents will sit for short periods and then are never or very rarely seen again, giving you little opportunity to leverage information you gain about them and giving them little opportunity to attempt to leverage information they gain about you. This may additionally mean that there is little incentive for your opponents to pay attention to and remember the particulars of your play, and much of the information you might provide them with will simply be ignored.

What this means is that there is often little or no value in randomizing your bet size with different holdings to try and convince your opposition that you are raising with a somewhat balanced range. This is because your opponent’s perception of what you are doing is not based off what you are doing in actuality, but what he or she believes you are doing. In information sparse environments your opponents will seldom treat you as an individual, as your opponents will receive very little information about how you, as an individual, play. Instead, your opponent’s assumptions on what your actions are likely to represent will be based on what your opponent believes players who he or she perceives as being similar to you are likely to do, on average.

Note that being unable to effectively alter how your opponents perceive your actions does not mean that you should never vary your bet size, as different sized raises may have drastically different rates of return based on how your opponents will interpret and react to those raise sizes. This only means that it is usually ineffective to randomize your bet size in an attempt to alter how your opponent’s will perceive your actions. Most opponents, for example, will treat your range as being one thing when you raise a large amount and another thing when you raise a smaller amount. There will be little or no correlation between what you are actually raising with at each raise size and what your opponent's will perceive your raise size as representing, which will be based on what the community does as a whole. When very little communication occurs between players, it is often best to simply play your hand for the highest immediate rate of return based on what you believe your opponents are likely to do, and so in these environments very little manipulation or balanced play on your part is necessary, or even possible, as it is extremely difficult to inform your opponents to be aware that you are randomizing or balancing your play.

As an example, it may be suboptimal to make small, pot-building raises with small pocket pairs, or larger field-clearing raises with overpairs if your opponents will often correctly perceive these actions as representing the hand you hold. Randomizing what sorts of hands you make particular raise sizes with will have no impact on what your opponents perceive your raise sizes as representing if they are not aware that your range is randomized. Of course, if your opponents will play no differently against one raise size than another then varying your raise size in such a fashion may yield the highest expected rate of return. It is also worth mentioning that these concepts apply not only to pre-flop raise sizes, but to every bet you make.

Finally, however, it is important to be able to identify information saturated environments where quite a bit of communication does occur between players and where it may be quite advantageous to randomize your bet sizes. Common examples of information saturated environments in no-limit include heads up games and extremely short-handed games which you expect to stay short-handed, or when playing against opponents on a regular basis whom are attentive. In these environments not only can you communicate to your opponents that your range of hands is somewhat randomized when you make a particular action, and therefore have him or her interpret your actions differently, but you will also have many opportunities to leverage those perceptions in the future. How much you bet on earlier streets in no-limit can make an enormous difference in the size of the pot you play on later streets, and so there is quite a bit to be gained by being able to adjust your raise size according to your immediate needs if (and only if) your opponents will actually react in a manner which is advantageous to you.

Pre-flop No Limit Texas Holdem Starting Hand Rankings - Groups 0 to 2

noreply@blogger.com (bonycamel) — Thu, 27 Mar 2008 02:56:00 +0000

One of the most difficult and yet crucial decisions you will make when playing no limit Texas holdem will be whether to even play your hand. This decision should not be made haphazardly. Hitting your card on the flop only to end up with the second best hand can be very costly. Playing mediocre cards can cost you if you are not able to let them go later in the hand. So, first of all, you should only be looking to play the best hands possible. David Sklansky and Mason Malmuth, co-authors of Hold’em Poker and Advanced Holdem Poker, were the first to apply rankings to the starting 2-card hands, and place them in groupings with advice on how to play those groups. This is a great starting point to help with your decision on which hands to play. We absolutely recommend that you read Advanced Holdem Poker, and keep it as a reference that you can refer back to you.

There is group of folks at the School of Computer Science at Carnegie Mellon that developed a Texas holdem computer simulation and tested Sklansky’s hand rankings. They created multiple table environments, ranging from extremely tight to loose and crazy, and let them play millions of hands. They’ve suggested some alterations to Sklansky’s hand rankings and groupings.

However, both rankings and grouping are based on the game of limit poker. I believe there are further adjustments to these starting hands for the game of no limit poker. This is because of the implied odds of hitting certain hands, particularly hitting trips or better when holding a pocket pair and hitting flushes (the nut flush in particular). The cost of playing these hands is very cheap compared to the potential pot and payout. For example, at the tables I play, I can see a flop for $.50 when the average pot size can be $20. This means that you can play more hands in more positions, but you must still be cognizant of the fact that all your chips could be at stake on any one hand, and you must still play very disciplined after the flop to let go of weaker hands.

So here is a summary of the playable hands:

Group 0: AA KK

I’ve pulled out these two particular powerhouses and put them in their own group. These two hands are by far the strongest hands possible, and have the best odds of beating any other hand. These are hands you should feel comfortable going ALL-IN on pre-flop, however that usually isn’t the best way to play them since the other players will be likely to fold, leaving you with just the blinds ($.75 at the tables I play).

I also recommend that you do not slow-play these two hands, in whatever position, in hopes of keeping more players in. There seems to be a lot of debate on this particular subject, but I can only speak to my own experience, and clearly raising with these two hands is a must in my strategy. I personally prefer winning a smaller pot with reduced risk than potentially losing a larger pot by accepting more risk. Not to mention, if I lose AA to a junk hand, I could go on tilt which would adversely affect the rest of my play.

The amount of the raise depends on my position, the number of players already in (assuming no raises yet), and the general table environment (loose, tight). Ideally, I like to play these hands against 2-3 opponents. So based on all that information, I’ll try to make a raise that is likely callable by 2-3 opponents. In practice, that ends up being a raise of $2.50 - $5.00, possibly more in late position if there are already several callers and I know the table to be loose. If the pot is raised prior to my turn, I will look to re-raise the pot by a margin larger than what it was raised. If the pot is then re-raised back to me, depending on how much money I have or my opponent has, I will possibly go all-in.

However, the situation does arise where my KK may be up against AA. Yes, this happens more often than you would think (when you play multiple tables online, you come across every situation routinely). Up to this point, I have not yet successfully laid down my KK against AA pre-flop, I’ve lost that particular scenario a handful of times. However, I’ve also never laid down my KK against QQ, JJ, or TT pre-flop that have been played similarly. So, overall, I think you stick with your KK unless you really think you know a player has AA – ie. – a tight, conservative player goes all-in for $50 preflop, it probably isn’t worth the call.

Group 1: QQ JJ AKs

These are the next three strongest hands (in order). I will also raise with these hands, call raises with these hands, and maybe re-raise once. I will also consider folding them pre-flop if I sense I am beat – ie. – player raises $2.00, I re-raise another $2.00, if I am then re-raised huge, like $15 or all-in, I’ll possibly let my QQ go, and probably let my JJ, AKs go, depending on the opponent and what I know about his play.

The situation above, folding QQ pre-flop, is obviously rare. But I have, on two occasions, folded QQ to a better pocket pair pre-flop (AA, KK).

Sometimes, it becomes obvious your opponent has AA or KK, they are normally tight, conservative players but are re-raising or going all-in pre-flop – they appear to have no sense of fear of losing the hand. In that scenario, you should consider folding your hand, AA vs. QQ or JJ, you are a 82% to 18% underdog, AA vs AKs, you are even worse at 88% to 12% underdog. Sklansky also rates these top five hands in this same order.

Group 2: TT AK AQs AJs KQs

The Carnegie Mellon group ranks AK above KQs in overall power, this is a slight change to Sklansky’s rankings. I further moved AK above AQs and AJs, I believe AK plays stronger than these suited hands in the no limit arena. And, clearly, AK is a dominating hand over AQs, AJs, and KQs heads up.

Again, I raise with all the Group 2 hands, usually between $1.50 - $3.00 depending on the action, my position, and the table environment. My raises tend to be a little less when I am in early position. I am very sensitive to re-raises with these hands. Depending on the player and the size of the re-raise, I will usually call, sometimes fold, and rarely re-raise.

These are the top ten starting hands and I look to raise with each and every one of them from all positions.