01-19-2002, 09:38 PM
I played a little in Las Vegas over the New Years holiday ($30-$60 HE at the Bellagio) and the experience got me thinking. Specifically about how a visiting player can beat up on the local professionals.
Here are my thoughts. (Note:this is an example of what S/M refer to a third level thinking, p. 231, HEFAP 21st Century Edition),
These apply mostly to the brown chip games, probably to the yellow chip games, and not very much to the low limit games.
The first thing to realize is the dynamic of the Bellagio brown chip game. The typical game is 3 to 4 Las Vegas professionals and 6 or 7 "tourists" of varying experience and skill. With only one place to play at these limits in Las Vegas, the LV professionals are compressed into the 2 or 3 brown chip tables at the Bellagio. They play against each other everyday and get their money mostly from the "tourists" not from each other.
This dynamic inlfuences the style of play adopted by the Las Vegas professional. For example:
I observed many times that once the pot became heads up between two of the Las Vegas professionals they reverted to straight forward play.
By straight forward play I mean, the LV professional with a made hand bet. If the other LV professional had a draw he check/called and when he made his hand he bet out. Once this occurred, the other LV professional folded.
By straight forward play, I also mean that betting scare cards on the turn, raising with position and a draw on the turn to extract an extra bet if you make your hand, steal raising on the river, semi-bluff betting a draw on the flop, turn, and river, and similar bread and butter, L.A. brown chip moves were never used once the pot became heads up between the LV professionals.
I also observed three times (over about 10 hours of play) a sort of tacit verbal collusion between the different LV professionals once the pot became heads up. (Note: I have played the Bellagio $30-$60 about a dozen times over 5 or 6 Las Vegas trips and observed similar behavior or slight variations from different combinations of LV professionals at the Bellagio).
For instance, the pot becomes heads up on the flop or turn and one LV professional bets. The other LV professional with a made hand, e.g. top pair with a mediocre kicker, considering a call will say something like, "your hand is that good huh?" The other LV professional responds, "I can't lose every hand," and the first LV professional mucks his hand.
Once the pot becomes heads up between two LV professionals they stop "playing" and are content to win their "fair share."
The second thing to realize is how the Las Vegas professsionals are beating the tourists. Their main tool is pre-flop hand selection and fit or fold play. They play fewer hands pre-flop and bet or check-raise made hands on the flop and check-call draws. Of course, they will bet and raise with super draws (a pair and the nut flush draw, a straight flush draw, a pair and an open ended straight draw, etc.) but they primarily play ABC.
Note: For an excellent article on this subject read Jim Brier's recent Cardplayer article on short-handed play http://www.cardplayer.com/?sec=afeature&art_id=12285
The Las Vegas professionals' bread and butter hands are getting paid when they have a big pair and someone flops an underpair, and playing
against dominated hands, e.g. AK vs. KQ, AK vs. AQ, AJ vs. J10 etc.
This differs substantially from L.A. at the same limits because you are playing against the same players day after day and the play is frequently short handed.
In L.A., the winning players get much more of their money from strategy and tactics tailored and targeted to specific players. Since the "opposition" in L.V. changes everyday, there is much less opportunity for this type of targeted play.
In L.A., the winning players are also getting much more of their money from short handed play (including defending or not chopping the blinds) where pre-flop hand selection is less important and ABC play is a recipe for financial disaster.
The third thing to realize is the problem faced by the Las Vegas professionals. They are constantly faced with making borderline decsions against players who they know nothing about.
Example: You are heads up on the flop, have Ace-big suited, and flop one face card which doesn't pair you and trash. You bet the flop and get called. A brick comes on the turn. Should you bet, check/call, or check/fold?
Unlike in L.A., where the winning players face people whose games they have booked, the Las Vegas professionals are constantly forced to make
tricky decisions against strangers.
Once you realize these three things, (1) that the Bellagio professionals are playing with each other everyday and making a living off the tourists, (2) that the Bellagio professionals generate most of their profit from getting paid off with their big pairs and from situations where the other player has a dominated hand and they both pair up on the flop, and (3) that the Bellagio professionals are forced to make borderline decisions against total strangers, you can construct a plan.
As a tourist visiting the Bellagio for the weekend, a skilled player can adopt a "disguise" and exploit the situation with specific plays when they are heads up in pots with the Bellagio professionals.
There are multiple winning strategies, I'll detail one in Part 2 of this post.
Here are my thoughts. (Note:this is an example of what S/M refer to a third level thinking, p. 231, HEFAP 21st Century Edition),
These apply mostly to the brown chip games, probably to the yellow chip games, and not very much to the low limit games.
The first thing to realize is the dynamic of the Bellagio brown chip game. The typical game is 3 to 4 Las Vegas professionals and 6 or 7 "tourists" of varying experience and skill. With only one place to play at these limits in Las Vegas, the LV professionals are compressed into the 2 or 3 brown chip tables at the Bellagio. They play against each other everyday and get their money mostly from the "tourists" not from each other.
This dynamic inlfuences the style of play adopted by the Las Vegas professional. For example:
I observed many times that once the pot became heads up between two of the Las Vegas professionals they reverted to straight forward play.
By straight forward play I mean, the LV professional with a made hand bet. If the other LV professional had a draw he check/called and when he made his hand he bet out. Once this occurred, the other LV professional folded.
By straight forward play, I also mean that betting scare cards on the turn, raising with position and a draw on the turn to extract an extra bet if you make your hand, steal raising on the river, semi-bluff betting a draw on the flop, turn, and river, and similar bread and butter, L.A. brown chip moves were never used once the pot became heads up between the LV professionals.
I also observed three times (over about 10 hours of play) a sort of tacit verbal collusion between the different LV professionals once the pot became heads up. (Note: I have played the Bellagio $30-$60 about a dozen times over 5 or 6 Las Vegas trips and observed similar behavior or slight variations from different combinations of LV professionals at the Bellagio).
For instance, the pot becomes heads up on the flop or turn and one LV professional bets. The other LV professional with a made hand, e.g. top pair with a mediocre kicker, considering a call will say something like, "your hand is that good huh?" The other LV professional responds, "I can't lose every hand," and the first LV professional mucks his hand.
Once the pot becomes heads up between two LV professionals they stop "playing" and are content to win their "fair share."
The second thing to realize is how the Las Vegas professsionals are beating the tourists. Their main tool is pre-flop hand selection and fit or fold play. They play fewer hands pre-flop and bet or check-raise made hands on the flop and check-call draws. Of course, they will bet and raise with super draws (a pair and the nut flush draw, a straight flush draw, a pair and an open ended straight draw, etc.) but they primarily play ABC.
Note: For an excellent article on this subject read Jim Brier's recent Cardplayer article on short-handed play http://www.cardplayer.com/?sec=afeature&art_id=12285
The Las Vegas professionals' bread and butter hands are getting paid when they have a big pair and someone flops an underpair, and playing
against dominated hands, e.g. AK vs. KQ, AK vs. AQ, AJ vs. J10 etc.
This differs substantially from L.A. at the same limits because you are playing against the same players day after day and the play is frequently short handed.
In L.A., the winning players get much more of their money from strategy and tactics tailored and targeted to specific players. Since the "opposition" in L.V. changes everyday, there is much less opportunity for this type of targeted play.
In L.A., the winning players are also getting much more of their money from short handed play (including defending or not chopping the blinds) where pre-flop hand selection is less important and ABC play is a recipe for financial disaster.
The third thing to realize is the problem faced by the Las Vegas professionals. They are constantly faced with making borderline decsions against players who they know nothing about.
Example: You are heads up on the flop, have Ace-big suited, and flop one face card which doesn't pair you and trash. You bet the flop and get called. A brick comes on the turn. Should you bet, check/call, or check/fold?
Unlike in L.A., where the winning players face people whose games they have booked, the Las Vegas professionals are constantly forced to make
tricky decisions against strangers.
Once you realize these three things, (1) that the Bellagio professionals are playing with each other everyday and making a living off the tourists, (2) that the Bellagio professionals generate most of their profit from getting paid off with their big pairs and from situations where the other player has a dominated hand and they both pair up on the flop, and (3) that the Bellagio professionals are forced to make borderline decisions against total strangers, you can construct a plan.
As a tourist visiting the Bellagio for the weekend, a skilled player can adopt a "disguise" and exploit the situation with specific plays when they are heads up in pots with the Bellagio professionals.
There are multiple winning strategies, I'll detail one in Part 2 of this post.