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Deceitful_Frank
Rock Star
Silver Level
Hello again good people, I would just like to start a thread outlining my basic basic pre-flop strategy. Been playing for cash now a couple months and feel I am now beating the rake (breaking even) I've gained some good pointers from this forum and would like to give something back, I reckon I am in a position now to offer a little advice to a complete novice!
Ok I play 9 handed cash microstakes and generally buy in for around 50-75 big blinds. I feel this is plenty to make the most of the hands that I play without risking too much cash to possibly thoughtless stupidy (I tend to leave the table when I've made a dolllar or two or see threat from another big stack, always seeking easier weaker prey) It gives me the leway to set-mine with low pocket pairs though these are at present the only speculative hands I concern myself with. I have tried suited and gap-suited connectors but I feel I lack the discipline to fold that middle pair when I have SORT-OF hit the flop, in short I get carried a long and leak chips whenever I play them so untill I figure out a winning strategy I will be folding them for now.
I have a strict fold/raise policy with drawing hands preflop as I like to either be in control of the betting or cutting my losses and waiting for the next hand. The exception being pocket pairs where I will occasonally call a raise or a re-raise and atleast see the flop with a made hand. I always open with a 4 big blind raise, no more, no less, whether I am under the gun with rockets, in mid position with JTs or stealing the blinds with a tail wagging K9. Obviously this has its drawbacks. Sometimes I dont get value out of monster hole cards or my raise doesnt cut through the limpers but on the whole it works. Plus I feel I gain by being pretty much unreadable... I hope!
To me, that 6 big blind raise just screams "I am weak and don't want any action and the minimum raise at the cut-off says "I want you to call!" I think good poker is not giving your enemies any more info than is necessary.
Apart from AA and KK which I want to take all the way pre-flop regardless, I divide my starting hands in to three groups, late, mid to late and any position hands. They are as follows.
Late only:
88 K9s T9s A8s Q9s J9s AJ A5s and 77
Mid and late, all of the above plus:
ATs QJs KTs QTs JTs 99 AQ A9s KQ
Any position, all above plus:
QQ AKs JJ AQs KQs AJs KJs TT AK
I will also call mid pairs in ealy position and low pairs in late, calling raises to set-mine if stack sizes permit.
For stealing blinds from the cut-off, the button and occasionally the SB I use the following as a general guide:
Any 2 cards both 9 and up, any ace or any suited King, any suited queen with a 6 or higher. Any suited jack with a 7 or higher, suited 8 with atleast a 9 and any unsuited king with a 7 or higher.
I also play late position only hands from a late-medium positon if no-one has yet shown interest and for that matter, with no callers I loosen up when playing from the hijack.
Lastly when playing from the BB and all action has folded around to the SB, if he merely calls to fill his blind I will exploit his show of weakness and bad position by raising him (you guessed it, 4 big blinds) regardless of what I am holding.
All this results in a VPIP of around 22%, a blind stealing attempt frequency of 40% and pre-flop raise of about 18%.
What do you guys think of my strategy? I consider myself to be a fairly aggressive player but do I need to tighten up. I have not mentioned post-flop play as I doubt I will have room but I know it needs improving. Do you guys see any obvious improvements or areas where I may be going wrong, maybe the fixed raise or hand selection?
Look forward to your thoughts and replies.
Frank.
EDIT: One last thing as I know you guys will doubt the reason in playing from a chart. All of the above is a general guide. I adapt a little to the present situaton depending of how it "feels" and if the table becomes short handed, or with short stacks. If I stuck to it religiously I would be a fair bit tighter but I think that looser and versatile if far better than tight, weak predictable poker? Ok, over to you!
Ok I play 9 handed cash microstakes and generally buy in for around 50-75 big blinds. I feel this is plenty to make the most of the hands that I play without risking too much cash to possibly thoughtless stupidy (I tend to leave the table when I've made a dolllar or two or see threat from another big stack, always seeking easier weaker prey) It gives me the leway to set-mine with low pocket pairs though these are at present the only speculative hands I concern myself with. I have tried suited and gap-suited connectors but I feel I lack the discipline to fold that middle pair when I have SORT-OF hit the flop, in short I get carried a long and leak chips whenever I play them so untill I figure out a winning strategy I will be folding them for now.
I have a strict fold/raise policy with drawing hands preflop as I like to either be in control of the betting or cutting my losses and waiting for the next hand. The exception being pocket pairs where I will occasonally call a raise or a re-raise and atleast see the flop with a made hand. I always open with a 4 big blind raise, no more, no less, whether I am under the gun with rockets, in mid position with JTs or stealing the blinds with a tail wagging K9. Obviously this has its drawbacks. Sometimes I dont get value out of monster hole cards or my raise doesnt cut through the limpers but on the whole it works. Plus I feel I gain by being pretty much unreadable... I hope!
To me, that 6 big blind raise just screams "I am weak and don't want any action and the minimum raise at the cut-off says "I want you to call!" I think good poker is not giving your enemies any more info than is necessary.
Apart from AA and KK which I want to take all the way pre-flop regardless, I divide my starting hands in to three groups, late, mid to late and any position hands. They are as follows.
Late only:
88 K9s T9s A8s Q9s J9s AJ A5s and 77
Mid and late, all of the above plus:
ATs QJs KTs QTs JTs 99 AQ A9s KQ
Any position, all above plus:
QQ AKs JJ AQs KQs AJs KJs TT AK
I will also call mid pairs in ealy position and low pairs in late, calling raises to set-mine if stack sizes permit.
For stealing blinds from the cut-off, the button and occasionally the SB I use the following as a general guide:
Any 2 cards both 9 and up, any ace or any suited King, any suited queen with a 6 or higher. Any suited jack with a 7 or higher, suited 8 with atleast a 9 and any unsuited king with a 7 or higher.
I also play late position only hands from a late-medium positon if no-one has yet shown interest and for that matter, with no callers I loosen up when playing from the hijack.
Lastly when playing from the BB and all action has folded around to the SB, if he merely calls to fill his blind I will exploit his show of weakness and bad position by raising him (you guessed it, 4 big blinds) regardless of what I am holding.
All this results in a VPIP of around 22%, a blind stealing attempt frequency of 40% and pre-flop raise of about 18%.
What do you guys think of my strategy? I consider myself to be a fairly aggressive player but do I need to tighten up. I have not mentioned post-flop play as I doubt I will have room but I know it needs improving. Do you guys see any obvious improvements or areas where I may be going wrong, maybe the fixed raise or hand selection?
Look forward to your thoughts and replies.
Frank.
EDIT: One last thing as I know you guys will doubt the reason in playing from a chart. All of the above is a general guide. I adapt a little to the present situaton depending of how it "feels" and if the table becomes short handed, or with short stacks. If I stuck to it religiously I would be a fair bit tighter but I think that looser and versatile if far better than tight, weak predictable poker? Ok, over to you!
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