rowhousepd
Rock Star
Silver Level
I've come across these terms "merging" and "balancing" a bunch lately, and I'm not quite sure I understand the actual difference between the two, though I think they are closely related. Here are two definitions (of many out there) from pokerstrategy.com:
Merging
Balancing
Arrg. I sort of get this, but I'm not really seeing how having a merged range isn't the same as having a balanced range, and vice-versa. What am I missing? Thanks!
Merging
The term merging refers to the process of adjusting your range in a way that prevents it from appearing polarized. This means that the range of the player has to contain more than only two opposing hand strengths. By merging your range, you make it impossible for your opponents to put you on an accurate range in the long term. This in turn will inevitably force them into mistakes.
Balancing
For advanced poker players, who are often up against other advanced players, it is important to balance their range. Balancing your range is a process where you manipulate the frequency with which different hands occur in the range. The goal here is to stay unpredictable for your opponents. This means that there may not be any hands in the range that occur much more frequently than others.
Arrg. I sort of get this, but I'm not really seeing how having a merged range isn't the same as having a balanced range, and vice-versa. What am I missing? Thanks!