how has eastbays tool helped out your game?

johnnybeef · #1 05-10-2005, 01:40 AM

well...how has it? p.s. eastbay, your reply will be totally ignored

xPuns1her · #2 05-10-2005, 01:41 AM

drugs are bad

johnnybeef · #3 05-10-2005, 01:42 AM

[ QUOTE ]
drugs are bad

[/ QUOTE ]

shhhh!!!...dont tell irie

Bigwig · #4 05-10-2005, 01:57 AM

It's helped me and I don't even own it.

I've been paying attention to the posts about it.

He needs to work out a couple of things before I buy it. At this point, I feel that I can calculate situations better on my own. But he's not far off from having an invaluable tool (if it isn't already).

Newt_Buggs · #5 05-10-2005, 02:43 AM

I finally broke down and bought it. I still think that $80 is overpriced since it really isn't that complicated of a program, but I suppose that poker players are willing to pay a very high premium since $80 is very little to a winning player.

so far its done exactly what its designed to do: help give a little bit better feel for when I should be pushing late game. I still don't find it increadibly helpful though since its very tough to get a strong enough read on your opponents in short SnGs to put them on a specific hand range which is needed for borderline plays that I couldn't intuitively figure out. Its still a nice piece of software though.

Apathy · #6 05-10-2005, 02:47 AM

Putting opponents on late game hand ranges in essential, if you can't so this you really need to practice. Seat selection at the high limits and experinence can really help you with this while multitabling.

david050173 · #7 05-10-2005, 03:02 AM

It would take more over 2 hours to write so I am willing to pay eastbay. It needs a little bit better UI which hopefully will happen in future versions.

I don't think you can just plug in your hand and situation into during a game and be a great player. The hard part is figuring out when to apply the math. Do you take advantage of every ev+ situation or do you by pass a couple of the marginal ones. Do you take an EV- situation becuase it is better than waiting to get all you chips in during a worse one? I am sure playing around with this for a while will help develop that feel.

ilya · #8 05-10-2005, 03:31 AM

Well, I don't have it yet...but I imagine that when I buy it, it'll make my life a lot easier because instead of fiddling around with dethgrind's webpage and like 4 calculator apps I'll just have his one program to do it all for me automatically.

Blarg · #9 05-10-2005, 05:59 AM

I like it, but it really is hard to put people on hand ranges in the 10 + 1's, where I almost never see the same guy twice, and where calling ranges change every level or two, and depend on the stack sizes of both the player and his opponents, and if the player does a lot of folding you don't really get a chance to see what he's raising or call with anyway, and players often seem to play just out of peevish reluctance to give up anything in the blind no matter how crappy, or make spite calls and spite raises, or just think really illogically, or even don't really know how to play at all...and, and, and....

It helps think about the game in general, though. And I'm sure after I get a vastly larger database, its use will seem more directly applicable to each game I'm playing rather than to SNG theory in general. Its beneficial effect will probably be amplified when I'm playing higher levels, too, where people are likely playing less on the basis of emotion and hope or simply playing randomly a lot less, and actually have an idea of a play style and plan that they're sticking to consistently. Putting a numbskull on calling ranges who doesn't really HAVE calling ranges is kind of an exercise in futility.

I'm still glad I bought it, though. Anything that gives me even a tiny bit more insight than I had before is very +EV in the long run. And eventually I'll probably be able to get better use out of it than I can now in the 10's, when people call with (*.*).

protoverus · #10 05-10-2005, 08:38 AM

All the above posts are correct, I think, to a least a small degree. But I'll have to say this...the program and accompanying lesson completely changed my UNDERSTANDING of the game. Now, it's certain that I suck(ed) more than most everyone who posts on this board so WHAT I learned might be old hat for most of you. However, the Blind Stealing 101 lesson took the blinders off my eyes and essentially took me from a breakeven/small winning player to someone who has all the standard 'winning numbers' at the $11's for ITM and ROI etc.

If you are trying to understand bubble play or trying to understand how to put newfound ICM knowledge into practical use, then Eastbay's program will help you TREMENDOUSLY. It did for me.

I agree with Blarg about the fact that it's hard to put $11'ers on calling ranges. However, I've also learned that there's quite a few situations that it doesn't matter and it's PUSH BABY! Those were situations I was oblivious to and scared to even consider before.

The concerns noted by others, while true, are small compared to the benefits I've received. I imagine that if you are already a good/great player there would be less benefit...

To sum up my $.02. It's a great tool for aiding your understanding of the game, especially blind stealing and bubble play and especially if you, like me, are close to putting your game together but need help to get over that hump.

I chuckle every time I see a post now that says, "..but my tight play leaves me shortstacked by level 4 and I get ground down..." Yeah, I USED to HATE those times, now I relish them.

be well