How do you wean yourself out of being a "rock?"

I've been learning more and more about poker, and I came to the realization that I'm a "rock," that is, a player who plays very catiously, who usually only bets when he has a sure hand. But from what I've read and listened to (been learning stuff from the pro's), they seem to think the rocks are very easily defeated.

I do not want to be, so my question is simple - what things do you do to wean yourself away from the playstyle of a rock? I really hate betting lots of money on crap hands, but it seems you have to chose your battles wisely...

try betting on more draws. if people know you bet big on sure hands on a board like 7 4 9 most will expect top pair or 2 pair or over cards. If you hit your straight you should be able to take it dwon pretty quick as it will then be ovious and most players should muck their hands.

Limit hold 'em. You have A♥A♠, folded to you and you raise from middle position. The button calls, and the big blind calls.

The flop comes Q♣10♥3♥. The BB checks, and you bet. The button calls, and the BB checkraises.

What's your play and your plan for the rest of the hand?

Always bet and jam the pot if you can.

Was directed at Hovhannes

I'd like to try this also, FP. I have the same problem. I think I'm somewhere between weak-tight & rock-tight. It gets to the point that I think my opponents pick up on it and raise me everytime I'm in the blinds because they know I'll fold hands like T9s or 88.

So here goes:

I'd call the check-raise and hope for more hearts or straight cards or an Ace. If a heart, A, K, or J hits the turn, I call his bet or bet his check. If those cards don't come, I'd ride out the hand to see if he only has top pair. I'd hope he doesn't have 2 pair if the board doesn't pair for me.

If this were NLHE, I'd really think hard about folding the flop for fear he has a set of Q's or Tens or 2 pair. I'd probably call a raise less than the pot. Pot or more and I'd really go into the tank. Not sure if it's worth hoping to improve when I don't know how much it will cost me later.

having the same problem.

Try this experiment the next time you sit at your low-limit NLHE table: Pick a couple of trash hands (8-6 off, J-3), and play them like you would a high pocket pair....with limitations, of course. What this will force you to do is become more aggressive, as well as running bluffs/semi-bluffs more often. The hardest thing to get over, however, is firing that second and that third bullet on certain flops that totally missed you.

Even if you get caught bluffing, this can have a positive impact a few hands later, since your opponents have now seen that you're willing to bluff at pots with total snow - you won't get nearly as much credit for having a monster hand when you actually get one. A few chips/dollars lost on the occasional caught bluff will dwarf what you'll get paid off for when you get your monsters.

Yeah, I was thinking of trying this except I think I'd have to use the obligatory piece of black tape on my screen blocking my cards because I'm afraid my tight habits are too ingrained in me. LOL.

Good thing I posted this example! And yes, you do have the rock-syndrome.

If you don't raise at least once more in this hand, you're doing something wrong. It could be argued whether that raise should take place on the flop or the turn, but there should be a raise.

Look, you raised preflop. To your opponents, this says "Hey look, I have sum'm!" It could be AA. It could also be 9-9 or (depending on how aggressive they perceive you to be) KJo. You then bet the flop, but of course, any hand you raise with preflop will be bet on the flop in this situation. Next guy calls. Of course, he could be slowplaying a flopped set, but it's much more likely that he's simply peeling. Then the big blind checkraises. He's saying "I flopped something."

You have no reason to believe he's lying when he tells you that. The problem is that there are so many things he could have flopped that your hand crushes, that fear of the few hands (two pair, set) that actually has you in big trouble will cost you money. Your something is simply so good in this case, that his something is likely dwarfed.

In this case, I'd likely re-raise the flop. The guy behind you who called may feel obligated to put in another two bets on the flop, but may fold if he misses the turn. Get his money now. If the BB caps after you 3-bet, then I'd consider calling down. At no point in this hand is folding ever an option (barring a freakish turn of events that include the other two players raising and re-raising each other), of course, given that it's limit.

In no-limit, the situation is much more tricky, but in NL you'd also know more than you do now (specifically how much you raised preflop and how much you bet and much the BB raised). This will give you a better idea of what you're up against. But in limit, it's not even close.

Try stepping down a level or two. Your chips are your tools, and you can't win without getting them in the middle, and losing them sometimes. You won't be able to persue the best strategy if you consider 1 buy in "lots of money". You may find yourself losing more hands, but you'll also find your win rate when you do win will increase. When you're comfortable with playing more loosely, go back up to your normal level and play the same game, but don't play with more than 10% of your bankroll at the table at once.

Also, watch some of the High Stakes Poker videos on YouTube, and read some of the hand histories from the WSOP Updates thread. The pros there play all kinds of junk.

One good training tip you can do is play some freerolls and call or raise with hands you normally wouldn't. Doing this will sometimes relax that squeeky tight mindset you have now.

here are some videos on youtube that has helped me out

http://youtube.com/watch?v=sjZ-e9-nq...related&search=

Raise I suppose - I don't play Limit because I read that it's harder to bluff/etc. because you can only raise so much, so people aren't as afraid to raise/bet since you can't put your entire stack in.

I read this and played some limit last night - here's what happened (doh!)

Villain was very TAG and I put him on something like Kings or Queens

Party Poker 0.50/1 Hold'em (9 handed)

Preflop: Hero is UTG+1 with A, A.
1 fold, Hero raises, 6 folds, BB 3-bets, Hero calls.

Flop: (6.50 SB) 8, 7, 9 (2 players)
BB bets, Hero calls.

Turn: (4.25 BB) 6 (2 players)
BB bets, Hero raises, BB 3-bets, Hero caps, BB calls.

River: (12.25 BB) J (2 players)
BB bets, Hero raises, BB 3-bets, Hero calls.

Final Pot: 18.25 BB

BB shows [ Tc, Td ] a straight, seven to jack.
Hero doesn't show [ Ah, Ac ] a pair of aces.
BB wins $17.50 from the main pot with a straight, seven to jack.

Still got to pay attention to what's on the board when raising with your Aces!

Your turn cap makes my head hurt a little. Your river raise makes it hurt a lot.

Trouble is I didn't really read the board, just saw low cards and thought "cap it"!

For some reason I stop thinking when I play limit.

response to fpaullson's question:

i'm 3 betting hoping to get the button to fold out a straight draw as a flush draw is not folding. if BB caps im calling. i'm betting a non-heart turn if its checked and calling a CR from BB, or if he donk bets im just calling as 3-betting would really suck

Playing as a rock is a great way to play but you have to do it right. You have to mix it up alittle to do really well. Rocks are very easy to read but you can use it to your advantage. Use the rock poker image and steal a few pots. Show a few hands that are crap if its cheap. This will change your image alittle. Open up your playable hands to suited hands like 9t or 8t. I used to be a rock and did this. Now i play 3 to 4 hands every 10. Just take small steps. Dont discount being a rock if you tight aggressive its not a bad place to be. But you need to know how to open up your game when needed.

Do you play ring games or MTT's??

why would you not cap pre-flop, check call the flop.... and then cap the turn and 3bet the river (both of which are scare cards..)

you have to be the AGGRESSOR in the early stages of hands like that. aa makes its money mostly preflop and some on the flop. if the hand goes farther than that, you are likely behind (and are being stacked...)

realize that there isn't too much of a difference between the rocks and good TAG players.. and close the gap between their style and yours. dont give up your hands too easily (most rocks have below an 18% river seen rate on hands they've played)

Probably cos I'm crap at Limit... my thinking being I might be able to get some more big bets out of him is he doesn't know I have AA or something that's probably better than his holding.
You still have an 80% chance of winning with AA, board unknown, against 1 opponent - why not let him think he has the best hand if he has a high pair? Clearly my NL mentality coming into play, no need to tell me how wrong this is. And I didn't read the board basically, Aces going to my head. But it was a bit unfortunate he had Tens rather than Kings or Queens.