Stealing versus Lags

[topspinner]

I need help in how to play Lags who never fold to your steal attempt. I was playing this guy who never folded and basically check raised everytime I bet. For example if you have an A5O, he checks you bet, he raises. Check, check on the turn. He bets the river. Do you fold?
He basically takes this line everytime, no matter what he has. If I raise back on the flop he rebets. I lost 5 out 6 hands to him, when he shows two pairs, with 36O and the such. The only time he lost he showed 27O. I have a hard time folding to someone like this, but more often than not lose money to them, because I can't get a read, as they play 27O, the same as AA. Any help would be appreciated.

[admiralfluff]

You should steal much less frequently against LAGs who won't fold and will play at the pot postflop. Drop hands with no SD value like 89s, J8o. Postflop depends on more specific reads, and the ones you provide are a little difficult to decipher. If he c/rs the flop with any 2, you should certainly plan on seeing a showdown with any pair, and almost always any A.

[stigmata]

If you just use hands with highcard strength and with showdown value (med-high pocket pairs, Ax), you will win over in the long run. You will want to be getting to showdown as cheap as possible, and get more bets in when you have something like middle pair or better.

He was just being a luckbox by the sound of it. Sometimes you just run dry and can't hit a flop for toffee. Other times you will be hitting top pair and he will be hitting bottom pair (more likely if you play good hands), and he will be the one paying off.

[mex78753]

Sounds like he was just hitting flops like crazy. Dont let it bother you. Keep raising hands with good showdown value like Ax, big kings, or pocket pairs. Dont raise with any type of connectors.

And if he's check raising you with any 2 you should call down with ace high. Dont 3 bet or raise without a hand post-flop.

[sweetjazz]

Make sure you continually update your observations on his strategy, as it's possible he may switch gears on you at some point. But with that said, if you know his strategy, you just have to figure out a counterstrategy to it...

* He's playing aggressive with any two cards. With a hand like J9s, you can either not steal with it or, if you do steal with it, you should have the following postflop plan: bet and 3-bet if you flop a pair (exception: flop comes AQ9, then just call down after being check raised on the flop, betting when checked to); check behind if the flop misses you or you flop a draw; take your free card and fold to the turn bet unimproved (exception: peel once more if you have a big draw, like an OESD and a flush draw, keeping in mind that your J and 9 outs might be good as well). The reason you don't bet the flop is that you don't have any fold equity (assuming your read is correct) and you generally can't showdown J high against a random hand once you have missed on the flop.

*OTOH, be more inclined to steal with Axo (provided you can get heads up with the LAG) and always go to showdown with it. Bet the flop (because you're still a favorite over a random hand even when the flop misses you) and 3-bet his check raise only when you hit the flop or the flop is paired (e.g. KK7) because your equity is higher on a paired board against a random hand.

* Whenever you have a strong made hand (e.g. TPTK), get a lot of bets in. Don't keep raising if the LAG's range is no longer a random hand, but I'd generally cap the flop and bet out from there with this kind of hand, calling down when raised. If you see the LAG is still being a monkey with turn raises after flops get capped, you can adjust but most people don't hate money that much.

* Accept that his strategy is very high variance and he will take money from you when he runs good. Your strategy is still better in the long term and you will clean him out given enough time.

* Finally, go back to the first sentence of this post. Often, in these situations you will hit a good run where you take a lot of money off the LAG. Pay careful attention to see if he shifts gears. If he's no longer checkraising flops with any 2, you have to adjust again. Hands that you might have 3-bet on the flop before might be called or folded given your opponent's change in strategy. When he stops check raising with his complete misses, then you shouldn't be paying off with your weaker hands anymore.

Reread the last chapter in Theory of Poker where Sklansky discusses ways to exploit opponents' tendancies.