Mr. Curious
10-12-2005, 02:33 PM
The Short Stack style of play can be devastating against the typical no limit player because of the mistakes it allows the typical player to make, but an adaptable player can use the Short Stack player to their advantage. In order to understand how you can use a Short Stack player to your advantage, you must first understand how and why they play the way they do. The Short Stack player plays an extremely tight game preflop and when they play a hand, they play it very aggressively. Their post-flop play is limited to one street (the flop) and on that street they are a borderline maniac.
The Short Stack player plays an extremely tight game preflop and when they play a hand, they play it very aggressively.
In early position, the Short Stack player plays only the premium hands: AA-TT, AKs, and AKo. In the middle positions, their hand range increases to include 99, AQs, and AQo. When they are in late position, they add 77, 88, AJ & AT (suited or off suit), and KQ (suited or off suit). Facing a raise, their hand range shrinks to AA, KK, QQ, & AK (suited or off suit). Facing a raise and a re-raise, they drop QQ. These hand ranges keep the Short Stack player from making the mistake that most beginners make: playing too many hands.
When the Short Stack player plays a hand preflop, they will raise. They are taught to raise any hand that they play to push their preflop equity edge as much as possible and to limit the number of players against them in a pot. By limiting the number of players, their hands are more likely to hold up post-flop and keep the pot small so that anyone drawing will do so unprofitably.
When they are raised, they tighten up even further. All of their actions are determined by their stack size and the cards they hold, in that order. This is critical information when playing against a Short Stack player. If the ratio of their stack is 5:1, they will push all-in with AA, KK, QQ, AKs, & AKo. If the ratio is 4:1, they will include JJ. A 3:1 ratio includes pushing with TT, 99, AQs, & AQo. If the ratio is 2:1, then they will push all-in no matter what they hold.
The Short Stack player’s post flop play is borderline maniac.
The Short Stack player will try to get all of their money into the pot as soon as they can. Their stack will be relatively close to the size of the pot and getting their money in there is their number one goal, regardless of the flop. This produces a couple of side effects which benefit the Short Stack player:
1. Post flop play is limited to the flop (at least where their money is concerned) and this limits the possible mistakes that the Short Stack player may make.
2. There are no implied odds because all of the money will be going into the pot on the flop. Anyone with a draw will have incorrect odds to chase (in most cases).
3. The Short Stack player represents the best possible hand and may get a better hand to fold.
The one drawback to this play is that there will be times when the Short Stack player is dominated post-flop; however, these times are rare and the money lost is more than made up for the rest of the time the strategy works.
---:::---
So now that we understand how they play, how do we beat them? We need to adapt ourselves to play against each Short Stack play and we have one huge advantage: Information.
The Short Stack player plays an extremely tight game preflop and plays that hand extremely aggressively.
1. Unless we have a premium hand, we stay out of their way. With the limited implied odds, speculative hands (suited connecters, small and mid pairs, etc.) go down in value and big pocket pairs go up. Big cards may or may not be valuable, depending on the Short Stack player’s position relative to the button.
For example: We are on the button and there is a Short Stack player UTG. They raise 4xBB (the standard raise) and it is folded to us. We look down and see 99. Against an unknown player, we may or may not play this hand, but against a Short Stack player it is an automatic fold because we know that we are either way behind or a coin flip. Since we know their hand range for the early positions (AA-TT, AKs, and AKo), we know that we are a coin flip against AKs or AKo, and dominated by AA-TT. There is no set value here because the Short Stack player’s stack will be too small relative to their raise for us to get the odds we need (we need 8:1 and their stack will be at best 5:1 in relation to their raise).
2. We can lay down hands that we might otherwise make a call with. Say that you are UTG with AQs and raise 4xBB. If a Short Stack player comes over the top, you know that you can safely fold because you know that you are an underdog. The Short Stack player’s re-raise range is AA, KK, QQ, AKs, and AKo. You are dominated against all of these hands and calling has a long term negative expectation.
3. Smooth calling preflop with a monster hand will give you the best chance to take a Short Stack’s money. This is due to how they play in reaction to being raised. Their hand range shrinks and so they will fold hands in the face of danger. If you smooth call instead, they will not know that they are a huge dog and push all-in on the flop in front of you!
4. If you re-raise a Short Stack’s preflop raise and their stack is very small, they will be pushing all-in preflop no matter what their cards are and anyone trapped between them and you will face a very difficult decision. They will either fold and leave dead money in the pot, or call the all-in, only to have you still to act after them.
The Short Stack player’s post flop play is borderline maniacal.
Be ready for the Short Stack player’s all-in.
1. You should expect the Short Stack player to push all-in at the first chance they get.
2. You know that their all-in does not always mean they have a monster.
3. You know their hand range based on their position and can make an educated guess as to whether or not the flop helped them.
4. Since you know that they are going all-in no matter what, your draw may be a profitable call depending on the board and what you think they have.
You can use their all-in to your advantage.
1. If they are behind you, you can use their all-in as a way to trap other opponents in the pot, much like you do in limit. You KNOW they are going all-in, so a check raise is guaranteed to work!
2. If they are in front of you, you can come over the top to help protect hands that you might otherwise not be able to. Calling their bet may give someone odds to draw, but if you come over the top, you can lower those odds back to being un-profitable.
3. If you flop a monster and they push in front of you, you can smooth call and give others what they think are drawing odds, even though they are drawing dead!
The other places where you will have the edge
The Short Stack player can no longer limit the implied odds.
The Short Stack player has the edge when they have a short stack, but after they have doubled up once or twice, your edge against them increases dramatically because you will have better post flop skills and will no longer be limited to just two streets.
The Short Stack player does not know how to make a lay down.
They have been trained to get their money in the pot as quickly as possible and with a medium or big stack, they will not be able to just push all-in (at least they will soon learn that they will get no action this way or else they will only be called only by someone holding the nuts). This means that you can take their entire stack with a speculative hand because they will continue to think that their hand is best and never lay it down.
---:::---
Understanding how a Short Stack player plays provides us with the information we need to effectively play against them. The little bit of extra time we take to consider what the play they are making means gives us a leg up on them and the rest of the table too!
The Short Stack player plays an extremely tight game preflop and when they play a hand, they play it very aggressively.
In early position, the Short Stack player plays only the premium hands: AA-TT, AKs, and AKo. In the middle positions, their hand range increases to include 99, AQs, and AQo. When they are in late position, they add 77, 88, AJ & AT (suited or off suit), and KQ (suited or off suit). Facing a raise, their hand range shrinks to AA, KK, QQ, & AK (suited or off suit). Facing a raise and a re-raise, they drop QQ. These hand ranges keep the Short Stack player from making the mistake that most beginners make: playing too many hands.
When the Short Stack player plays a hand preflop, they will raise. They are taught to raise any hand that they play to push their preflop equity edge as much as possible and to limit the number of players against them in a pot. By limiting the number of players, their hands are more likely to hold up post-flop and keep the pot small so that anyone drawing will do so unprofitably.
When they are raised, they tighten up even further. All of their actions are determined by their stack size and the cards they hold, in that order. This is critical information when playing against a Short Stack player. If the ratio of their stack is 5:1, they will push all-in with AA, KK, QQ, AKs, & AKo. If the ratio is 4:1, they will include JJ. A 3:1 ratio includes pushing with TT, 99, AQs, & AQo. If the ratio is 2:1, then they will push all-in no matter what they hold.
The Short Stack player’s post flop play is borderline maniac.
The Short Stack player will try to get all of their money into the pot as soon as they can. Their stack will be relatively close to the size of the pot and getting their money in there is their number one goal, regardless of the flop. This produces a couple of side effects which benefit the Short Stack player:
1. Post flop play is limited to the flop (at least where their money is concerned) and this limits the possible mistakes that the Short Stack player may make.
2. There are no implied odds because all of the money will be going into the pot on the flop. Anyone with a draw will have incorrect odds to chase (in most cases).
3. The Short Stack player represents the best possible hand and may get a better hand to fold.
The one drawback to this play is that there will be times when the Short Stack player is dominated post-flop; however, these times are rare and the money lost is more than made up for the rest of the time the strategy works.
---:::---
So now that we understand how they play, how do we beat them? We need to adapt ourselves to play against each Short Stack play and we have one huge advantage: Information.
The Short Stack player plays an extremely tight game preflop and plays that hand extremely aggressively.
1. Unless we have a premium hand, we stay out of their way. With the limited implied odds, speculative hands (suited connecters, small and mid pairs, etc.) go down in value and big pocket pairs go up. Big cards may or may not be valuable, depending on the Short Stack player’s position relative to the button.
For example: We are on the button and there is a Short Stack player UTG. They raise 4xBB (the standard raise) and it is folded to us. We look down and see 99. Against an unknown player, we may or may not play this hand, but against a Short Stack player it is an automatic fold because we know that we are either way behind or a coin flip. Since we know their hand range for the early positions (AA-TT, AKs, and AKo), we know that we are a coin flip against AKs or AKo, and dominated by AA-TT. There is no set value here because the Short Stack player’s stack will be too small relative to their raise for us to get the odds we need (we need 8:1 and their stack will be at best 5:1 in relation to their raise).
2. We can lay down hands that we might otherwise make a call with. Say that you are UTG with AQs and raise 4xBB. If a Short Stack player comes over the top, you know that you can safely fold because you know that you are an underdog. The Short Stack player’s re-raise range is AA, KK, QQ, AKs, and AKo. You are dominated against all of these hands and calling has a long term negative expectation.
3. Smooth calling preflop with a monster hand will give you the best chance to take a Short Stack’s money. This is due to how they play in reaction to being raised. Their hand range shrinks and so they will fold hands in the face of danger. If you smooth call instead, they will not know that they are a huge dog and push all-in on the flop in front of you!
4. If you re-raise a Short Stack’s preflop raise and their stack is very small, they will be pushing all-in preflop no matter what their cards are and anyone trapped between them and you will face a very difficult decision. They will either fold and leave dead money in the pot, or call the all-in, only to have you still to act after them.
The Short Stack player’s post flop play is borderline maniacal.
Be ready for the Short Stack player’s all-in.
1. You should expect the Short Stack player to push all-in at the first chance they get.
2. You know that their all-in does not always mean they have a monster.
3. You know their hand range based on their position and can make an educated guess as to whether or not the flop helped them.
4. Since you know that they are going all-in no matter what, your draw may be a profitable call depending on the board and what you think they have.
You can use their all-in to your advantage.
1. If they are behind you, you can use their all-in as a way to trap other opponents in the pot, much like you do in limit. You KNOW they are going all-in, so a check raise is guaranteed to work!
2. If they are in front of you, you can come over the top to help protect hands that you might otherwise not be able to. Calling their bet may give someone odds to draw, but if you come over the top, you can lower those odds back to being un-profitable.
3. If you flop a monster and they push in front of you, you can smooth call and give others what they think are drawing odds, even though they are drawing dead!
The other places where you will have the edge
The Short Stack player can no longer limit the implied odds.
The Short Stack player has the edge when they have a short stack, but after they have doubled up once or twice, your edge against them increases dramatically because you will have better post flop skills and will no longer be limited to just two streets.
The Short Stack player does not know how to make a lay down.
They have been trained to get their money in the pot as quickly as possible and with a medium or big stack, they will not be able to just push all-in (at least they will soon learn that they will get no action this way or else they will only be called only by someone holding the nuts). This means that you can take their entire stack with a speculative hand because they will continue to think that their hand is best and never lay it down.
---:::---
Understanding how a Short Stack player plays provides us with the information we need to effectively play against them. The little bit of extra time we take to consider what the play they are making means gives us a leg up on them and the rest of the table too!