[CrisBrown]

Hi Will,

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Thank you very much for your post. Although it is rather direct, I think you are exactly right. I was more "wishing" for a certain thing than being realistic and that is obviously going to lead me down the wrong path.

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I'm sorry for my directness, as that can easily be abrasive, and thank you for taking it in the spirit in which it was intended. And yes, playing wishes rather than reads will definitely get you in trouble. This goes back to an thread last week about betting where the only hand you can beat is a total bluff. One of the marks of weaker players is that they readjust their reads to what they can beat ... betting a wish. Don't let yourself fall into this habit. [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]

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I also agree with your comment about playing my usual tight game at the lower levels but part of the reason I am playing at the lower level as well is because I am trying to work on my post-flop play and trying to gauge how to play against what I consider really bad players (I see a lot in the B&M tourney I play at too). Perhaps this is a bad strategy and instead I should be refining my game playing against better players but this is my current reasoning.

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Post-flop play against bad players ... well, that depends on which version of "bad" they are.

The first kind is Meek Mike. He's squeaky-tight post-flop, i.e.: he see a lot of flops, but he'll bail if he doesn't hit. A lot of the time a semi-bluff or bluff bet is a good idea. If he missed, as he usually will have, he's going to fold to the person who "hit" (i.e.: the person who bet).

However, there's a corrolary: if Meek Mike calls on the flop, he's hit something, every time. Now you have to abandon the bluffs and semi-bluffs, and only give action on a hand that can stand action all the way to the river. If you have a hand that's not likely to improve much, and is only marginally likely to be the best hand, it is usually better to try to show it down as cheaply as you can. If it's good, fine. If it's not, you haven't poured a whole lot into an ill-timed bluff.

The other common kind of bad post-flop player is Charlie Chaser. He'll call any kind of draw, often even gutshots and backdoors. He's the enternal optimist: "Well, it could get better!" Against this kind of player, you bluff and semi-bluff less, if at all, because he's not going to fold any hand that "looks possible." The corrolary here is that you can bet your made hands -- even marginal ones -- for value. If an obvious draw hits, you can get away from it without paying off his implied odds. Otherwise, you can usually take the pot with any improved (two pair or better) hand.

The problem with trying to "practice against bad players" is that you really don't need to. The basic adjustments for bad players are fairly easy and reliable. Read what kind of bad player(s) you're facing -- in this particular pot -- and make your adjustments accordingly.

Cris