Thanks for the good posts on 7 Stud

[jmr]

I've been reading the posts here for a couple of months and practicing. Started with 7 Stud on Party last week and it's gone pretty well so far. I haev ordered the 7 card stud for advanced players book by Sklansky.

My strategy to date has been to play very selectively with opening hands. I am only playing about 30% of the hands but am winning a very percentage of the hands that I play in. I've also began to aggressively play high pairs up front to chase away the players chasing straights and flushes. I haven't really played poker since college many years ago hope that the strategy is the same.

That said tonight on Party, I have lost
1. A fh to 4 of a kind.
2. 3 Kings to a flush
3. trip 5's (first 3 cards) to a straight
4. A straight to a flush

this in about 200 hands. I am reviewing the hand history to see if I just missed something with these. These were expensive hands as I was raising quite a bit as these hands should usually win in stud.

I'll begin to post some hands in hope of getting some feedback.

thanks

[TheShootah]

First thing, congrats, Stud is the tops! Second, 30% is quite high I think. You might be even better playing less. When you get 7CSFAP you may tighten up even more, and you will probably figure out what is going on. #1 had to be a tough beat, and losing with rolled up anything sucks, but you will learn to take them. The others will probably happen more than you think. One line that you said that worried me was "I was raising quite a bit because these hands usually win in Stud". You gotta think about what you are up against! Maybe that was just phrased wrong, but if you have trips but someone is showing 3 diamonds with 3 connectors, and is raising quite a bit, you may consider folding, even though trips do win more than they lose. That was just an example but I think you get it. You may already get it, but I am just saying. Do post! [img]/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img]

[bigredlemon]

rolled trips and straights are a vulnerable hand and should not be slowplayed if there's strong draws against you. If it's a loose table, you could be jamming every chance you get and still get enough callers to draw and beat you. Every beat you've listed I have all suffered today, so they are hardly unusual. I've lost rolled trips 12 times in a row before, so they are hardly the might hands that you think they are. You'll still do quite well with them in the long run so keep up playing solid. If you are worried about overplaying or overslowplaying a hand, feel free to post it here.

As for your 30% to fourth, I wouldn't worry about it. At tables that are super loose passive, I've gone as high as 50% to fourth and did just fine. At tight aggressive tables, you might have to go as low as 20%. At 200 hands, I wouldn't worry about the percentages and jus stick to quality hands.

[vintage_sara]

I guaranttee you 30 percent is way too high. I don't care how aggressive the game is. Try to get yourself down to 20 percent. Mine is usually below 20 percent but my showdown percentage is usually 75 percent plus.

This was the same for 20-40 stud as well as 5-10 stud. I tend to play tight for the most part but aggressive when i am in. I am a fan of aggressive play. However, some of the hands you stated you will be able to get away from as you gain experience. Sometimes, you just have to give your opponents a little credit if the action dictates it.

[Andy B]

In a very good game, I'll see fourth street around 25% of the time.

Raising with big pairs is usually correct, of course, but your tone suggests that you think that "chasing" straights and flushes is a bad thing. In a good, loose game, flush draws are some of the most profitable hands you can play. Straight draws frequently suck, though.

It's always tough to lose with a full house, but losing big pots with big hands is fairly commonplace in this game.

[jmr]

Vintage Sara,
I think you mentioned that you are Theironchef. If so, I spent quite a bit of time with you playing 5/10 last night. Before you ask, I was not the guy raising every chance he had.

In terms of your pct of hands making it to 4th street, I agree it was very low. For my learning, I will review all of the hands later this week.

I am obviously new to this, but I cannot believe that he played every hand as aggressively as he did.

Anyway, I think watching you play helped me understand how important it is to fold after your door card if it's not a good hand.