Had a confusing week, can someone interpret my stats?

[BiWinning]

Hi everyone,
I recently had a pretty confusing week of poker; I had one of my biggest winning streaks followed directly by one of my worst losing streaks ever. This was also my first week of using a HUD so I'm hoping it can provide some insightful information as to why this happened.
I've typically leaned towards the loose-agressive side and usually play 6 max. This is all for $10 NLHE. Here are some of my stats so far:

VPIP: 27
3bet: 3.6
WTSD%: 22.1
W$SD%: 50.7
Agg: 3.65
PFR: 14.8
Flop Agg%: 44.2
Flop Cbet%: 86.4
Flop Cbet % success: 43.4
My graph:

My losing streak began with a few bad beats and tilt may have been part of the problem. Going through some of my hand histories, it looks like many of the large pots I won were against fish with VPIPs of over 50% so I might have just been really lucky to run into them repeatedly during the middle of the week.

I would greatly appreciate any advice, let me know if there are any other stats I should post.

Thanks!

 

[micromachine]

The gap between your VPIP and PFR is fairly large, maybe you need to be cold calling less and 3-betting or folding more instead.

Posting stats by position would probs be more useful.

From the graph I can see that you were above EV during the upswing, then went below it during downswing. This has happened to me so many times, a few bad beats pisses you off inducing tilt, and you end up losing a few more buy-ins. So next time don't tilt...easier said then done for sure!

 

[LuckyChippy]

First, both the winning and losing is very likely all just variance, your graph will go up and down like this over much longer periods. Second, you're not lose aggressive. You're fairly loose passive as the gap between your VPIP and PFR is way way too big, you need to raise more hands and limp or call raises a lot less. You cbet way too much on the flop and don't get to showdown often enough. Mainly because you play too many hands but I suspect you cbet without much thought or further plan for the hand.

Post some hands in the Hand Analysis section for some more specific help and post some stats by position.

 

[BiWinning]

Thanks for the tips! Here are my position stats:

 

[LuckyChippy]

Stop limping, never ever limp and you're almost never making a mistake. Limping sucks because it limits wining the hand to making a good hand and that's hard to do.
You're not very positionally aware. I know you're raising more OTB but you're still limping hands in all positions.
Biggest piece of advice I can give you is to stop completing the SB (just calling). It's a terrible thing to do as you enter a pot with no initiative in the worst possible position acting first and from the looks of it very mediocre hands at best. It's a terrible situation to be in.
3bet seems gd, aggression seems gd but as I said before, cbet less on the flop and I suspect more on the turn, but always have a reason for every action you take.

 

[micromachine]

1) You are limping UTG - never do that!

2) Stop completing the small blind and call raises form the BB. You are playing WAY too many hands from the blinds, which is bad because you will be out-of-position for the whole hand.

3) Errrr, not sure how you can 3bet from EP lol. I guess you limped, someone raised then you reraised and that got counted as a 3bet? Seems weird.

4) You are somewhat positionally aware as you play more hands from CO and BTN, but the trouble is, I think, that you then take these mediocre hands too far and lose at SD because your W$SD is low in the seats. Open wide from the CO and BTN for sure, but remember that if you are called form the blinds for example, your range is going to be way behind theirs.

Hope that's useful

 

[micromachine]

Yeah don't limp from UTG but actually like LC said - don't limp AT ALL!

 

[BlueNowhere]

I'd 3-bet more from the button, I think 5% is way to nitty.

 

[Tino11]

I won't completely disagree with anything here, except for the advice about limping. 99% of the time, I would agree, but in the micro's, in the right place at the right time, with the right player, limping can be very profitable. You just have to look for situations and when you do start recognising them, you will understand what I mean.
As important as your stats are, you also need to be looking at your lines of betting and those of opponents. Check/call, call, check/fold is not going to be a profitable line. If you have opponents playing lines like this, then you need to find the ways to exploit them. You can see your own lines and that of opponents in HM2. Also, think more about ranges and how they fit into the betting lines of yourself and opponents. Its not all about positional play and cbetting/3betting more, although of course they are important, its how you percieve your opponents and how they percieve you.

 

[micromachine]

I won't completely disagree with anything here, except for the advice about limping. 99% of the time, I would agree, but in the micro's, in the right place at the right time, with the right player, limping can be very profitable. You just have to look for situations and when you do start recognising them, you will understand what I mean.

Are you suggesting that open-limping can be profitable?

If you limp UTG or MP, for example, at a 10nl 6max table, someone will punish you by raising like 90% of the time, and you will have to fold or play a weak hand OOP. How on earth is that profitable?

 

[Arjonius]

It's better not to open-limp at all than to do so as a regular part of your game. Limping behind is not the same thing, and should be considered separately.

 

[BlueNowhere]

1) You are limping UTG - never do that!

2) Stop completing the small blind and call raises form the BB. You are playing WAY too many hands from the blinds, which is bad because you will be out-of-position for the whole hand.

3) Errrr, not sure how you can 3bet from EP lol. I guess you limped, someone raised then you reraised and that got counted as a 3bet? Seems weird.

4) You are somewhat positionally aware as you play more hands from CO and BTN, but the trouble is, I think, that you then take these mediocre hands too far and lose at SD because your W$SD is low in the seats. Open wide from the CO and BTN for sure, but remember that if you are called form the blinds for example, your range is going to be way behind theirs.

Hope that's useful

This majorly. 4.5 EP 3-bet suggests a limp/raise from UTG 46 times lol.

 

[Big_Rudy]

Just to add my .02 Pretty-much agree with the general consensus. Don't limp first in, ever. Limping behind may be OK in some situations. Narrow your VPIP/PFR gap. Tighten-up blind play.

On that note, you mention that it is your first week with a HUD, but don't say how long you've actually been playing poker. The reason that I bring this up is that the LAG style of play can not only be difficult for a new player as you'll find yourself in some uncomfortable spots post-flop, but also because that style lends itself to a more "swingy" results graph. You may want to consider moving to a more TAG-type style at first and gradually move to LAG as you gain more experience. Doesn't have to be a drastic change, just tighten-up a bit from everywhere and shoot for Vpip/pfr somewhere around 20/18, give or take a couple of points in either direction.

What you'll esentially be doing is eliminating the weakest bit of hands from your range, those that are barely, if at all, profitable, and playing the remaining hands somewhat more aggressively.

 

[Tino11]

@ micromachine

Don't limp when first to put money in PF!

The only rare situation I would do it - maniac shoving 50% of his hands sitting to my left, I have a good hand that I want to play if possible, but not go all in with (ATs for example).

That is your comment from Nov of last year, so you will open limp if the conditions are right. Guess what, so will I, which is the 1% spot I refer to in my original comment.

 

[micromachine]

LOL! Well found!

Yeah I still would open-limp in the situation I mentioned in the post you dug-up, but it's an EXTREMELY rare situation. More like 0.0001% of hands than 1%.

Maybe you were also talking about spots like this in your original post, and if so then fair enough. But I certainly wouldn't describe this play as 'very profitable' like you did.

 

[MediaBLITZ]

Just a thought - output your stats from just hands range 2000 to 5000 - then output from 5000 on and compare and see what differences there might be. I know it's a really small sample size but...

It would be fairly normal and natural for you to start pushing for success after seeing your nice climb up to hand 5000 and thereby start playing a little differently (looser, tighter, increased limping to see more flops, etc).

I'm not so quick to jump to variance unless you are absolutely sure your game is so solid that you did not vary your approach.

Also, I am not anti-limping, but limping UTG is pure insanity. If you are doing that then it would be very easy for me to assume you increased limping (after seeing some success) thinking that would equate to opportunities to take down more pots.

Also, are you familiar with the term, "trouble hands"? Maybe those have crept in, again thinking that would equate to opportunities to take down more pots.

 

[BlueNowhere]

This majorly. 4.5 EP 3-bet suggests a limp/raise from UTG 46 times lol.

Mis-read thoses stats badly lol, thought I'd point it out before anyone else does. limp/raise 4 or 5 times.

 

[BiWinning]

I 3bet from EP sometimes, especially in full ring games sometimes if I have QQ+. I just limp in, expect someone to raise, and then reraise when it gets back to me. I guess this is the wrong thing to do?

Is it not profitable to limp with suited connectors and small pocket pairs? I thought with these kind of hands, you usually want to get in as cheaply as possible with more people in the pot.

I started playing online poker last September so I'm still pretty inexperienced. I did fairly well on Bovada before I cashed out last December, but it looks like the games there in general are a lot looser. Bovada's players/flop at the microstakes is about 40-60% typically while it seems like most of merge is in the 10-30% range.

Comparing my stats from the winning streak to the losing streak, it doesn't look like there are any major differences that I see immediately. Again, this makes me wonder if I just got lucky and ran into a lot of fish before.

I'll definitely try to play a bit tighter/stop limping and see how that works. I'll let you all know what happens

 

[BlueNowhere]

Yea it's a majorly wrong thing to do. You basically turn your hand face up by doing that and it's a hell of a way too kill value.

No, limping is hardly ever fine.A special set of cicumstances has to arise for me to want to limp in a pot.

 

[Big_Rudy]

Yea it's a majorly wrong thing to do. You basically turn your hand face up by doing that and it's a hell of a way too kill value.

No, limping is hardly ever fine.A special set of cicumstances has to arise for me to want to limp in a pot.

WTF. I'm going to agree w/ Blue? That CAN'T be good . Anyway, hate the EP limp. Don't do it. Hard time finding a place where I'm ever going to limp in 6-max. In FR, maybe, if the situation is right. Say I have SC in LP and there are already 3-4 limpers ahead of me, and we are fairly deepstacked, then yeah. Same applies if there is an EP raise and a couple of callers before it gets to me in LP. Make the call deepstacked w/ SC in LP.

 

[MediaBLITZ]

Is it not profitable to limp with suited connectors and small pocket pairs? I thought with these kind of hands, you usually want to get in as cheaply as possible with more people in the pot.

Okay, sure - but when you are in early position no one is really in the pot yet, are they? So you have to reserve this move for late position. Otherwise here is what happens - you limp with 87s UTG+1 and someone else raises 3 or 4x BB. You feel like you have to call since you have gone this far, or you actually fold - either way you are screwed. Gordon and Negreanu are very unclear on this.

Comparing my stats from the winning streak to the losing streak, it doesn't look like there are any major differences that I see immediately. Again, this makes me wonder if I just got lucky and ran into a lot of fish before.

Very, very possible.

I'll definitely try to play a bit tighter/stop limping and see how that works. I'll let you all know what happens

Be prepared to be bored.

 

[Emrald Onyxx]

Suggestion for Practice:

Try only playing from the SB, BB, or EP's if you can raise. It doesn't have to be a large raise, but only play the hand if you will raise with it. The idea is to tighten up where you should.

Also note that the cutoff is NOT the button, you are being abused by the button. I assume this is because you are limping too much there also.(26.4 vpip to 18.5 pfr) Be more attentive to what the button is really going to do.

Tighten up on these positions and you will see your overall VPIP drop to about 15% to 18% and will be playing more TAG.

 

[redvulture61]

I don't ever call or check i only raise/bet or fold unless check raising. Ok maybe not, on the occasion i will limp with middle pairs hoping to flop a set.

 

[BlueNowhere]

I don't ever call or check i only raise/bet or fold unless check raising. Ok maybe not, on the occasion i will limp with middle pairs hoping to flop a set.

You can call pre-flop with some hands that aren't PP.

 

[redvulture61]

You can call pre-flop with some hands that aren't PP.

When short stacked and calling an all in bet applying the gap concept yes i will call because you really have no option here. But i just think calling and checking is weak in most spots, most solid players will agree with me on this.

If you call with a non pocket pair and miss the flop, it makes it very hard to play "profitably" especially out of position when you didn't take the initiative preflop. Also, by not raising you are making it very easy for people to see a cheap flop, therefore giving up ev by not isolating other players.

The moral of the story is 97% of the time checking and calling is weak and passive although there a few exceptions. To OP can i recommend you don't play the LAG style as a beginner as it is the hardest style to play optimally. I also recommend you tighten up your range, rarely check or call and you will increase pfr and hopefully your profits. Last thing don't listen to bluenowhere advice about calling and checking being optimal play, as his game of heads up hyper turbos are a completely different game to 6 max or full ring cash games.