Starting to learn...(sorta long)

[kingofswing]

Okay, so I just finished a two hour-ish session on Party NL25 tables and I think I'm starting to get the hang of being more aggressive. If you were to search the SSNL section for my posts, you'd find one about maybe folding set over set and another about folding a boat to a possible two card four of a kind. Now I was never actually going to fold either, but from those posts you might think I'm pretty weak. Well, that's probably a little bit true, but I am working on it. Today I ran a couple of biggish bluffs, and one got picked off (or rater the dude had two pair) and but a bunch more worked. Suddenly, even though my flopped two pair -- aces and ducks -- got rivered by a guy hitting a jack to make aces and jacks and a pair of jacks got rivered by a guy calling down with a flush draw and KQ (yup a Q), I was still able to turn a $20 dollar profit. Now some of that is thanks to doubling through with AA and KK, but nevermind.

The real important thing I think is my ability to pick spots to try to pick up pots on the turn/river with semi-bluffs. So after patting myself on the back, I've got a couple questions.

The real question I've got is I am seeming to learn that it's better to bluff your chips off than call your chips off when you know you are beat. So I think I'm getting the postflop aggression, but how do I loosen up preflop? My stats are around 17-18/3-4. It's really that 3-4 that I know should be higher. What's the best way to increase this?

Raise more unraised pots in late position with marginal holdings (like ATs, KQs,QJs, etc.)? Raise more liberally overall, even in EP?

And the second part is that what do you call preflop raises with? If a MP raises to 4xBB, right now I tend to call only with PP. I mean I raise big hands, but I shy away from calling with ATs, KQs, etc. should I be? If this guy raises 8% of flops, what should I be calling with to see a flop?

Thanks guys.

[ajmargarine]

[ QUOTE ]
What's the best way to increase this?

Raise more unraised pots in late position with marginal holdings (like ATs, KQs,QJs, etc.)? Raise more liberally overall, even in EP?

[/ QUOTE ]

I'll take a stab at part one here. I'm assuming you are talking full table? Stay tight in EP. But, always be looking to open unraised pots in the last 3 spots, especially CO. PFR all 3 hands you mentioned. PFR hands like KJ, JT, T9s, 98s, A9, A8, and Ax sometimes. From time to time, throw in Kxs, QT, J9, sc's, and any two.

It's a metagame thing. For one, alot of times you get called by a blind, flop comes, blind checks, you make a continuation bet and take it down. But also, sometimes you end up in showdown agst a legit hand and you scoop with something like J9s. People remember (some do temporarily anyway) that you raised with junk and now when you PFR with premiums, you may get more play.

[bweiser8311962]

The best bluff IMO starts preflop. When you raise preflop you say, 'I have a strong hand.' Even if you miss the flop, you need to lead out. This will win you a number of pots throughout a session. You will get played back at once in a while, and you have to determine how to proceed there. If you simply get called, you need to fire at the turn and fire at the river. Most people see being able to fire at all three intervals as really having a hand and will lay down their hands. Once you stop showing aggression, you lose control of the hand. I will call a river bet from a preflop raiser who checks the flop and turn with just about any part of the board.

I'll take a stab at part two. In general, be very reluctant to call a pfr. You need a better hand to call a raise than you do to raise yourself. The earlier the position of the raise, the more cautious you need to be about calling. General rule is think what you would raise with from that position, and if your hand is worse than most of those hands, fold, and if it is better, reraise or just call.

I agree with AJ on most of his late position raises, too, although he seems more aggressive than I would be (which is not necessarily a bad thing).

[bobhalford]

I am learning that position is very important in the NL cash game compared to limit. Your position relative to the pre-flop raiser is most important (compared to your proximity to the button). Ciaffone says, "...if you are in the big blind and a solid player opens with a raise, you are better placed than the people who called in late position. On the flop you can check and be last to act if the raiser bets as expected."

Ciaffone goes on to talk about (this is in Improve Your Poker)a situation where you are on the button and the player to your right raises on the flop. He says, "Your normally good position has fallen down like Baby Jessica. For example, suppose there are a couple of other callers and four of you take the flop. If the first two players check and the raiser bets, you have been put in the middle. You may have him beat and get ambushed by one of the other two players."

Hope that helps some.