Questions For Consistently Profitable Players

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3) Play aggressively. You would do well to play with the mindset, "when I enter a pot, I am not going to call someone else's raise unless it is for purposes of deception or to build a bigger pot (by encouraging others to call behind me). I want to enter a pot raising, or I am going to fold and wait until I can raise with confidence." With your big hands (big pocket pairs and AK) you want to keep raising if at all possible, as these hands play best against fewer opponents, and you would like to confront later opponents with multiple bets, to discourage them from entering the pot and to get the most value from your best hands, because you won't get them very frequently. Once you have entered the pot, you need to keep the pressure on your opponents as the hand progresses, unless/until you meet resistance, at which point you need to evaluate: are you still ahead, or are you behind? If you are ahead, you should keep raising and keep putting pressure on your opponents, as this pays dividends in both the current and future hands. If you feel you are behind, you need to determine if you can afford to continue with the hand

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really liked your comment very good.

i picked out three things. one i agree with totally, one i disagree with totally, and one i had a question about.

i agree totally that good players have a great ability to read whether they are behind or not and act accordingly. i did o.k. last weekend B&M but i think i left alot of $$$$$ on the table calling 3 bets on river when i pretty much knew i was beat (two guys raising and flush and straight possibility). you have to be able to give it up. but don't get weak either.

you said you want to come in raising (i think you said every hand). i like raising but there are alot of hands where you just want to call (depending on # of callers, your cards and the tight/aggressive etc. of game)... i think the come in raising almost every time you play is more shorthanded.... i know some guys are into "never cold call a raise" - either fold or reraise (i think that's in either harrington or miller).

lastly my question, you say raise AK to limit the field. i'd agree in game where the players are very good. but i don't mind that much against lousy players. yes, you will hit Ace pair and people will river a flush against you or hit two pairs. but i think these people will play alot of dominated horrible hands (K7, A6, Q9) and this is so profitable i find. i know the books are always talking about this, but i don't totally understand it. a pair of 10's or J's and i definitely think you want to cut down the field.

any thoughts at least on the last part (Raising AK to limit field).

[I.Rowboat]

I like raising AK as much for value as for field limiting purposes -- AK is a money maker, and I like to get as much value as I can with it. Sometimes, for deception, I might just call behind an earlier raiser, but usually I am re-raising to take the button or make someone with a small PP pay a stiffer price to see the flop.

I do feel AK off suit plays better against a smaller field. Ideally, you would like to face a single opponent with a smaller A or K. When you face multiple opponents and they are the sort that will play Ax or Kx for a single bet, you are just asking to get your hand cracked when an A or K falls. Think of it like this: against a single opponent with another A or K, they have three outs to beat your top pair. Each opponent with the same high pair on the flop picks up three additional out to beat your high pair, or a side card that may pair instead if an A or K doesn't flop. So I treat AK like the big hand that it is and raise to protect it. Of course, if the flop comes middle and coordinated (and not my suit), then I try to get away from it cheaply. This is another advantage of raising/re-raising with AK -- if you buy the button and miss, and the action is checked to you, you can take a free card.

Finally, let me just make a clarification to my point about entering pots with a raise: I agree that you don't want to do this every single time, because you don't want to be that consistent/predictable in ANYTHING you do. However, when I enter a pot from early position, it will be with a hand that is strong enough to raise with, and stand a reraise. And I will usually raise with it. This used to be a hole in my game, one that I have worked hard to fix; I'm now am a more consistent winner as a direct result of this single change(!!!) Paul Phillips has a great quote on his blog, "Loose limps sink chips," and I believe this is true. Now, if the pot has already been raised, I may just call (to increase pot size, or for deception), but if I am next to act, the overwhelming majority of the time I am either reraising or folding. If there are already several callers by the time the action reaches me, well, that's different. But I believe coldcalling a raise, especially when the raise came from EP, is a big hole in a lot of otherwise good players' games. When a good player raises from EP, it's usually because he has a very big hand. I would rather stay out of his way, unless there have already been at least one or two callers, at which point my non-premium hand may become playable.

FWIW, I play mid limits ($15-$30 to $30-$60), and the above style works well at those limits. Selective aggression takes the money down. At lower limits you may have to play differently, because you tend to get many more callers (and cold callers!), even for multiple bets.

rowboat, thanks for the response!! i liked your analysis. have to leave now, but i'll have a really good look at the response tomorrow.

as you alluded to, there's a big difference between 4-8 and 15-30 or something and then there can be internet vs. bricks'n'mortar vs. regions (or casinos).. can change your whole thinking