ITH Poker Forum

[jeffnc]

I've been playing a lot of $5/10 6-max limit online the past couple months. I went in with the attitude that I'd need to be a little more aggressive and a little looser in general than in a full game.

But what I've noticed is that this attitude is so pervasive, so entrenched, that a lot of my opponents are now calldown monkeys. There is much less fold equity than there used to be it seems. As strange as it sounds, it seems like I can make more money by tightening up and just playing when I've made a hand, because I get paid off so much. Basically the same concept as I used years ago when playing full table micro limit against bad players!

Granted back then we're talking about winning big pots that were 4- or 5- or 6-way after the flop. But still, no one is folding in these SH games any more.

It doesn't matter how tight my image is, they're still suspicious. I've been at tables where I haven't played against any of the players before. I'd get a run of bad cards, and my PT stats for the session might show something super tight like 17/14 for the first 100 hands. Even in this scenario, I get paid off on everything and my raises aren't respected.

What are your thoughts on general concepts of play for today's online SH limit games?

[Scott Harker]

Your observations are correct. Unfortunately, although there are still plenty of bad players to go around, the online games have gotten much more difficult to play.

And yes, players have learned that, on many occasions, it is correct to call down your opponent with nothing more than A-high. Thus, we have a new breed of players who call down and pay you off with just about anything.

But remember, one of the reasons they always suspect you're bluffing is that they are doing it quite a bit too. Betting on air is much more prevalent in the short-handed games than in ring games where it would be suicide most of the time.

Your counter-strategy to this is three-fold.

1. Tightening up from how you used to play these games is correct. David Frome (who's 3-DVD series on short-handed limit hold'em is a must-have, by the way) reminds us that short-handed poker is a game of pairs and bi cards. His style is a little looser than I would advise for the current $5/$10 and below games these days, but the true gem in his pre-flop strategy is aggression.

2. Aggression pre-flop and beyond is what builds big pots. Players are going to call you down constantly, and when you tighten up, you've playing generally better holdings that they are. Sure, players will call 3 bets cold with A5o, but you want them to! Don't forget that. The more bad plays they make (especially if they knew your cards), the more money you will make (see Sklansky's Fundamental Theorem of Poker for more on this). 3-bet much more pre-flop and you will be gaining more respect in the hand, thinning the field, and building bigger pots when you hold premium cards.

3. Calling down more hands is the third part in your counter-strategy to the changing games of the day. Just as they are calling you down with everything under the sun, so must you make some calls that might make you a little uncomfortable. No, your call-down range of hands should not be as wide as theirs (for the most part), but many times your 5-5 in the hole is enough to call down a player on a Q-high board who's been betting all the way. Most players in these games continuation bet too much if they raise or re-raise pre-flop. If you're out of position, check-raise the crap out of them, even with marginal holdings. Your aggression in the face of their own aggression might get them to slow down a little.

Two other key concepts to think about..

4. Don't play big pots out of position (unless you've got the goods).

5. Play the player. If you're using a HUD or similar software, or if you're just using good observational skills in general, you know who plays straight-up and who is gull of crap. Act accordingly. When the tight, semi-passive guy raises and keeps better, tend to fold your non-premium hands. When the LAG maniac 3-bets you pre-flop, cap it and expect to go all the way.

If you keep all this in mind, your results should speak for themselves.

Good luck at the tables!

77

[Willem]

1. Tightening up from how you used to play these games is correct. David Frome (who's 3-DVD series on short-handed limit hold'em is a must-have, by the way) reminds us that short-handed poker is a game of pairs and bi cards. His style is a little looser than I would advise for the current $5/$10 and below games these days, but the true gem in his pre-flop strategy is aggression.

Just out of curiosity, what do you consider to be optimal for short-handed LHE. (In terms if statistics like VP$IP and PFR%.) And what kind of hands do you suggest stealing with when you are on the button?

[Scott Harker]

That's a very difficult question because it depends on game selection. The average VP$P in a game can vary drastically.

As a general rule, I try to keep it around 27%-30% (but I'm a little looser than some)

As for a range of hands to steal with from the button, well, my range is huge. I pretty much go with my sense of the table, as well as the HUD numbers of the blinds. Some guys you can steal from all night long and they'll never fight back. Some will call you every time out of the big blind (as they are usually justified in doing, getting 3.5:1), and some will re-raise you every time.

I play the player in this situation a lot more than I play the math.