My Poker Logic

[Jorge10]

Well in my previous post I described how I hit a downswing and went from a bankroll of 1000 to 300 and then decided to study hands and change my game and havent looked back since.

Well basically I ran my bankroll to 1000 playin pretty much how all the regular poker books adviced to play, very tight preflop, only taking flops with the best hands and betting the max with any A/A hand. Of course as soon as I ran bad I got run over.

When I was down to 300 I analyzed my hands and since I had no Pot Limit Omaha books at the time I decided to create my own style that went against most books. I decided that I would raise the same amount with any hand I liked and not just aces. I would also not pot it preflop because I wanted to create big pots, not heads up matches where someone could hit a miracle flop and break me. So I essentially started playing a loose aggressive style. I took a lot of flops and outplayed everyone after the flop even if they outplayed me somewhat preflop.

Ever since then I havent looked back and I have been doing nothing, but winning. However I hear a lot of people say you gotta play more aggressive preflop, you gotta play less hands, and all this other stuff from a friend of mine that plays poker among others. I wonder can someone win long term being loose aggressive. My decisions after the flop are usually flawless, I dont experience wild swings or anything. The most I ever lose in one day is 2 buy ins. The most I win in one day is 5 buy ins. I usually average 1.5 buy ins a day. I ran horrible for a week, I kept getting rivered at every spot and everything seemed to go wrong, at the end of the week I had lost, 0. I had broken even.

I am having doubts about my game because every book I read except maybe "How good is your Pot Limit Omaha?" pretty much says my style is insane and that I should play less hands. A friend tells me dont mess with success, but another is like wow you play a lot of hands, madness. Books also say is madness, which makes me wonder.

I want to be the best player I can be, but I tried playing tight aggressive for a week and I kept losing because I would commit a lot of money preflop with A/A and I could no longer make decisions after the flop because it was too big to fold. This completely eliminated my edge of outplaying people after the flop and of course I lost for that week.

Its just so hard to find the perfect way to play, im not even sure there is one? I hear people say this and that, but I just cant play like the books say and cant play how people say? Am I wrong for thinking this way? Should I just play how I always do? Can a loose aggressive player be a long time winner? This has also been on my mind a lot, so much that I wasted a week playing like the books and other people told me to, only to lose money. I of course got it all back plus interest using my style, but still, maybe I was unlucky that particular week?

[KenProspero]

Why change if it's working?

[Jorge10]

I dont know because I want to be the best player I can be, I dont know if the way I play can go far.

[KenProspero]

From your prior post, you seem to have a knack for self-analysis of hands. If it stops working, you can figure out why.

[bernie]

[ QUOTE ]
so much that I wasted a week playing like the books and other people told me to, only to lose money.

[/ QUOTE ]

Wow. A whole week.

Seems your basing this one week at a time. Way too shortterm. No matter how you play, you will have losing weeks/months. Given the sample, I doubt your decisions postflop were as flawless as you may think. Unless you can explain the concept behind every bet you put in on all streets and the theory behind it.

Eventually you will run into players who will gladly take advantage of your loose aggressive style.

b

[Jorge10]

I played 7000 hands that week, I play 1000-1200 hands a day. I have used my style against every type of player I have encountered in the 100-400 levels because thats all I can afford right now. Most of them are unable to do much because I dont commit myself to pots preflop, so I play everything post flop, I do specially well against maniacs. I have broken every maniac I run into they are the opponents I beat the easiest and make the most money from. Because they play as many pots as I do except they make worst decisions post flops and their raises really dont mean much to me as I dont ever tilt which is something I dont think I have mentioned. I have also run into tight players, I mostly steal pots from them and am able to read them pretty easily.

The only thing I think a lot about is people who might not play as many hands as me and play well after the flop, but I think most people try this approach. I mean it seems to be the most logical approach, but I am extremely tricky after the flop, I can get people to do a lot of things without them realizing they are really pushing the worse hand. Not only that but if you take this approach which is something I used to do before, you are as easy to read as a book. I mean its really obvious when solid players have something, its very easy to make laydowns against them. The truth is I have never encountered anyone that beat me consistently without miracles on the river, and those people eventually give it all back plus interest. Which makes me working on my game specially difficult because I dont really have the bankroll to play any higher and probably wont for a while, but I dont know, sometimes I wonder if I think too much about the game. Also what style of player you think would give me trouble? Who do you think could take advantage of my play?

[Dan Mezick]

Style is a huge issue. See my essays on this.

Poker Playing Style Part 1

Poker Playing Style Part 2

I believe you must develop a style unique to your temperament, risk tolerance and personality. This conserves energy and creates opportunities to play in "the zone".

Especially in tournaments.

Basically I think you play a base style that works and then you vary from there with intentional adjustments based on the situations.


You must develop your own style. This is impossible without intentionally introspecting about yourself and your relationship with your game.

Be careful, or you'll expand your consciousness.

See also:
Poker and Introspection

[jetsonsdogcanfly]

Pushing AAxx hands preflop is hard to do in the lower limit online games. These are much more postflop-oriented tables. Since you can rarely get even 1/10 of your stack in preflop at a lot of these tables, pushing only a few hands preflop makes you easy to beat postflop (by players with decent odds to call preflop).

If you are really winning at the rate you mentioned, it shouldn't be hard to build up a bankroll for higher limits.

keep being analytical, and you'll be fine.

[R_Ellender]

There's no ultimate strategy that can make you a significant long term winner against every table that you play PLO against. Your game should be based more on your opponents.

For instance, I play alot of NLHE ring games in my area.

On Mondays, most of the table is pretty tight, so I play loose-aggressive, making more bluffs and semi-bluffs than I normally would. After an hour or two, the table loosens up a little(because of all the action), so I value bet more while I bluff less. When they take notice of how many winning hands I've shown, I start bluffing again.

On Tuesdays, I play with a few calling stations, so I start off by playing tight aggressive. I'll still switch gears every now and then if I see a bluffing opportunity, but this is mainly to show the bluff and increase the return on later big value bets.

Thursdays, loose-aggressive, Fridays, tight-aggressive.

My strategy is always based on my opponents, and I think if you paid attention to why your loose aggressive style is successful in the games you play, you would be able to understand why that style wouldn't work in a game with completely different opponents.

[Jorge10]

[ QUOTE ]
I believe you must develop a style unique to your temperament, risk tolerance and personality. This conserves energy and creates opportunities to play in "the zone".


[/ QUOTE ]

I think ive experienced that, some of my plays as of late have been almost like I could see their cards. I dont know why I made them, I posted a hand in another board and they were like you are crazy to make that play, but I knew it was not only the correct play, but that it would work before it did I dont know if I can put it into words.


[ QUOTE ]
Pushing AAxx hands preflop is hard to do in the lower limit online games. These are much more postflop-oriented tables. Since you can rarely get even 1/10 of your stack in preflop at a lot of these tables, pushing only a few hands preflop makes you easy to beat postflop (by players with decent odds to call preflop).


[/ QUOTE ]

Thats the problem right there, you dont get enough of your stack in there to make potting it with aces profitable or even the correct play. All you do is basically say by the way guys I got aces, feel free to try and draw out on me.

[ QUOTE ]
If you are really winning at the rate you mentioned, it shouldn't be hard to build up a bankroll for higher limits.


[/ QUOTE ]

Sadly the 400 tables arent very good often, and the 200 tables are also terrible most of the time. The only good ones are the 100 tables. So im winning about 150 a day. So itll be a while before I can play in the 1000 level.

[ QUOTE ]
There's no ultimate strategy that can make you a significant long term winner against every table that you play PLO against. Your game should be based more on your opponents.


[/ QUOTE ]

Thats pretty much what I do, most of the 100 players are either people who dont know what they are doing or solid players, so my play style beats both of those, probably the reason behind me playing the way I do.