Weak tight PF - Help

[joker122]

Some recent posts on this forum and the "General" forum have got me kind of freaked. I fear that I am extremely weak tight PRE-FLOP. I rarely stray from gameplan so this will you give you very good insight to what I'm working with here.

-First of all, my VP$IP is 21% and my PFR% = ~4 (that's right, 4!).

-I play PP 2/4 exclusively

I will always raise, 3bet or cap with AA-JJ and AK, AQs. (I'll probably throw JJ away if it's been 3 bet to me and I respect the players who are raising).

Unless i'm attempting to steal or am HU or otherwise very shorthanded I don't raise PF with anything else.

Now, coldcalling. I will only cold call (assuming I don't suspect a steal) a raise with:
AQ, KQs, KQ, AJs, KJs and maybe a few others if I'm in LP. I will also call with a hand like JTs or 44 if I'm in LP and there have been many other coldcallers, plus some others in the BB (i.e. 2 suited). That makes about a .01 CC%.

I use to think I was a rock but now I think I'm giving up too much and playing weak tight. I was reading some posts and people will raise with hands I'd muck to a raise (99, AJo to name a few).

What do you think? Please be completely honest and if this means being harsh so be it.

[tablecop]

I play mainly party 2/4 and i don't find your raising standards terrible weak. The average PP 2/4er has fairly tight raising standards so i think your coldcalling standards are loose. I think your pre-flop raising percentage will be "improve" if you open-raise with anything playable within 4 of the button. wouldn't be surpised if your blind steal percentage was too low as well.

[Bob T.]

I would open raise with a lot more hands than it seems that you are raising with, and I would coldcall with fewer hands than you do.

One thing to consider, is that when you are acting immediately after the player that shows strength preflop, the main tactical weapon that you have postflop, is raising to isolate the preflop raiser. If you are going to do that anyway, you may as well do it preflop, before your opponents who are behind you, especially the big blind, can see the flop.

Good luck,
play well,

Bob T.

[joker122]

[ QUOTE ]
I would open raise with a lot more hands than it seems that you are raising with, and I would coldcall with fewer hands than you do.

[/ QUOTE ]

Can you give me some examples?

[Bob T.]

Can you give me some examples?

AQ, KQs, KQ, AJs, KJs, are all hands that I might not coldcall with, depending on my opponent.

Any hand that I am going to play, I will open raise in MP. This gives you three ways to win. You could win the blinds uncontested. You could win on the flop if your opponent misses, or you could develop the best hand. Similarly, any time you have a weak opponent, and you are going to be the second one into the pot, and you believe that there is a good chance of isolating that opponent, I think you can raise any playable hand second in.

Also, any hand that I am going to play on the button, the cutoff, or the cutoff-1 is a candidate for raising, depending on how I think the blinds and table will react.

I guess what I am really thinking, is that it doesn't matter so much what cards I hold, as it does how my opponents have been reacting to my raises, and whether I think that there is more value to raising, than there is to calling.

This might not be as specific as you wanted, but it is really as specific as I think, it is all about your opponents, and the situation that you find yourself in.

Good luck,
play well,

Bob T.

[sthief09]

[ QUOTE ]
Now, coldcalling. I will only cold call (assuming I don't suspect a steal) a raise with:
AQ, KQs, KQ, AJs, KJs and maybe a few others if I'm in LP.

[/ QUOTE ]

now I'm not saying this is right, but I will never ever ever cold-call a raise if there is no one between me and the raier. I either 3-bet or fold. cold-calling only gives the raiser the impression that he's a head and gives him an excuse to run you over. even with AJ when you got AQ.

if there are cold-callers then it's a whole different story, depending on the number of callers

[bunky9590]

Example, I'm in MP and folded to the person on my right and he open raises, I hold 9 /images/graemlins/heart.gif 9 /images/graemlins/diamond.gif. Three bet to isolate. You'll most likely get the button, and the initiative going into the flop. You really don't need to hit the flop to win, as long as he misses it.

[JARID]

Joker,

Hands like 99 and AJo do not play well in multi way pots, so from early position I will typically raise to attempt to thin the field. Likewise if I am to the immediate left of the raiser I will three bet with 99 to isolate. From LP with 99 you might just want to limp for set value. You should also add 1010 to your list of raising hands.

Depending on the players I would probably ditch cold calling two with KQo and AJo. Depending on the raiser I mix it up with AQ. What I mean is, if I know a player is capable of raising with a wide variety of holdings I will either three bet or flat call and fold to a raise from a really tight player.

Hope that helps-
~J