[wdcbooks]

This is something I have been meaning to post about for a while. I see the most powerful advantage of three betting is buying the presumption that you have the best hand. Even if you feel you are a small dog to your opponent's range you increase your chances to win with a raise.

I see a lot of analysis that that looks at the odds of one specific hand against another. Say AQo raises and AJs three bets. The AJ is a big dog if the hand is taken to the river. The equity is made up with the times neither hand hits.

Given two opponents of equal skill I would guess that the AJs would win more than half the time despite being a heavy underdog in the traditional sense. This is why raising rather than limping is so important. Much of the time no one hits their hand. Your profit comes from winning more of those confrontations than your opponent.

I am sorry this seems obvious. It is just something I think about when I am tempted to limp behind a player who likely has a hand similar in quality to my own. I want to be presumed to have the best hand going in as it becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy.