If you'd like inquire about poker coaching, including using any poker software tools then please email me at stephenfburt@Gmail.com - see http://24caliber.blogspot.co.nz/2014/09/coaching-introduction.html for more details.
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I put these objectives together for one of my team who has been struggling lately and wanted to keep a copy for my records; so I posted it on here..it is aimed at players looking to solidify their starting hand selections based on position (beginner/intermediate level) in the deep stack stages of a tournament (early). I'm in the process of re-writing it now to make it easier to read (I'm up to EP).
The numbers are just guidelines to aim towards, be sure to always improve and evolve your starting hand selection as your understanding of the game develops.
Key:
VPIP = Voluntary Put Money in Pot
PFR = Pre Flop Raise
Small Blind (SB) and Big Blind (BB) Objectives: Change VPIP to 15% and PFR to 9%
1) Call or complete multi-way pots from the small blind with "go big or big home" hands like:
Also consider your implied odds based on you and your opponents stack sizes. If you have a hand like 22 and are looking to hit another 2 on the flop for a set...this will happen around 1 in 8 times.
Seeing as it happens so rarely, when you do hit that 2 you want there to be a lot of chips available to win, you can achieve this either by having a lot of opponents in the hand or by them having a lot of chips.
If everyone else at the table folds, then I'd recommend raising with these hand ranges as against just the big blind's range of hands they have a lot more value
2) Bet or 3 Bet premium hands (like AQ, TT+) to protect your hand, value bet and to isolate opponents:
The purpose of isolating is to reduce the amount of opponents in a hand and effectively increase the strength of your hand.
For example if you play with TT against 3 other opponents, chances are you will not have the best hand on a flop like Q78 - there is a good chance at least one of the opponents will have a queen, a set or a 2 pair holding.
However if you are playing only against one opponent, then it is more likely your TT will still be the best hand on the flop and this will increase your chances of winning the pot.
The more opponents in the hand, the more I believe you should raise to protect your hand - a general rule of thumb is to bet 3x the big blind, with an addition big blind per player...so if there is a 4 players that are in the hand (lets say the BB is 100) and you have a hand like AK, then bet 8x the big blind (800), it seems like a lot at first - but it's required to achieve your objective and bet more if you have to! Winning pots is a lot more profitable than losing pots.
3) Fold (or check) the remaining 85% of hands:
The reason for playing only a strong range from the blinds is because although you have good pot odds preflop to call a player's raise; you are going to play the hand out of position on every street.
This is a very big disadvantage as you have to make decisions with limited information.
The deeper the stack sizes are relative to the blinds, the more this disadvantage is exaggerated (this theory can also be reversed, whereby the shorter the stack sizes are relative to the blinds, the less disadvantage there is for playing out of position has as there is less post-flop play)
You can use a poker Software tool like Flopzilla or Pokerstove to play around with what different %'s of hand ranges look like, here is a link to a tutorial I made on using Flopzilla if you are interested:
http://sticktotheplan2010.blogspot.co.nz/2013/12/using-flopzilla-tutorial-hand-analysis.html
Early Position (EP) Objective: Change VPIP to 12% and PFR to 12%
1)
In EP you are usually first into the pot.
The purpose of the objective stat is so that you are more likely to bet when entering the pot rather than call and fold out the remaining hands.
Entering a pot by raising places you as the aggressor in the pot; this means can represent a stronger range of hands and are more likely to have control of the action in the rest of the hand.
For example, if you raise KQ from Early Position and one player calls
Consider folding small pairs (88 and below) and marginal hands like AJ a high % of the time and as you will often face 3 bets (as there are a lot of players behind to act) and have to fold. In very deepstack play, set mining with small pairs from EP is reasonable....but ensure you are playing just to set mine and avoid getting attached to hands where you miss (e.g. 55 on 328 flop, if you were aiming to set mine, and have now missed the flop, then fold against another bet, even if your opponent has AJ, they have still have good equity against you for spiking an A or J and you could already be crushed against a bigger pair)
Middle Positive to Button
Objective: Change VPIP to 17% and PFR to 14%
The later your position, the higher your expected profit, and the button is the most profitably position at the table. From the button you should be playing the largest sample size of hands.
It is the most profitable position because you will always have position post flop (note that this is the opposite to the small blind and big blind, where you will always play out of position post flop, hence the tighter VPIP/PFR).
As you get closer to the button your VPIP and PFR can increase, and you can open / play a wider range of hands.
Use Pokerstove again to identify what a 17% range looks like (55+, A5s +)
These numbers also mean that when facing an UTG raises with 88 in mid position you should seriously consider folding, because there is a big chance you have the worst hand here (so you are set mining) and it is not a good spot to set mine as there is a big chance someone will squeeze behind with so players left to act or you might find tricky spots with e.g. a pair of 88 on a 724 board and find yourself stacking off against TT.
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Playing Under 20 Big Blinds
Objective: Under 20 Big blinds, Raise or fold (only call AA or KK)
Under 20 big blinds you rarely want to be calling because your stack size is just not big enough to allow you to give up on pots post flop.
If you have a hand like 77 on the cut off and it is folded to you with 15 big blinds, then open shoving is very likely a profitably option.
Or if you have 77 on the big blind and it is folded to the button who raises, then 3-bet shoving is most likely a profitable option (subject to your opponent's opening range).
However if you have a hand like 77 in early position with 15 big blinds, then shoving is a lot less likely a profitable option.
The key is position and understanding when you are most likely to have the strongest hand.
When facing situations under 20 big blinds, I want you to consider the following 3 factors:
1: Your stack size relative to the blinds and average stack of the tournament
2: Your hole card strength
3: Your position and the actions before you (your opponents range based on his image and position)
There are more items that can be added to this list but we can consider these in future sessions.
Three-Bet Pots:
Objective: Only play AA AK KK QQ in 3 bet pots when deepstack
When a player bets or you bet, and another player raises (i.e. 3-Bets), avoid playing hands that are not in the top 5% of your range: AA AK KK QQ (Note: this is for Deepstack!)
The reason for this is because most players 3 bet ranges are very tight and without information on the player (i.e. you have seen them 3 bet before with a light hand, and actually seen the hand at showdown! or have a large sample size of stats on the player showing a high 3-bet percentage) then it is just guess work whether they are 3 betting you light or not.
So I want you to assume that without any other information their 3-bet range is top 5%...which again if you plug into Pokerstove is 99, AQ+. (Note that if you put TT or AQ as your hand against that top 5% range, it does not fair very well at all, no shame in folding TT or JJ preflop against a three bet, especially if you have raised from an early position and are less likely to get 3 bet light)
This is only for deepstack play, later in the tournaments when the stack sizes are smaller relative to the blinds, you obviously might have to call a lot of 3 bet all in's light, subject to pot odds and their shoving ranges (I think you are capable of making good analyse in these spots)
----
So here is a summary of the objectives, the general idea is to play less hands out of position (i.e. from the blinds), raise hands that you want to play and avoid open limping.
Small blind
Objective: Change VPIP from SB to 15% and PFR to 9%Big blind
Objective: Change VPIP from BB to 13% and PFR to 9%
Early Position
Objective: Change VPIP from EP to 12% and PFR to 11%
Middle Positive to Button
Objective: Change VPIP from EP to 17% and PFR to 14%
Playing Under 20 Big Blinds
Objective: Under 20 Big blinds, Raise or fold (only call AA or KK)
Three-Bet Pots:
Objective: Only play AA AK KK QQ in 3 bet pots when deepstack
I've added one more objective:
Objective: Mark up 10 hand examples from this report (e.g. folding TT to a 3 bet in early position when deepstack, or 3 bet shoving 77 with 15 big blinds vs a button raise)
Try to avoid tricky poker and value bet when you feel there is a good chance you have the best hand (you will be amazed at how many people call your value bets, without the need for tricky play!)
---
I put these objectives together for one of my team who has been struggling lately and wanted to keep a copy for my records; so I posted it on here..it is aimed at players looking to solidify their starting hand selections based on position (beginner/intermediate level) in the deep stack stages of a tournament (early). I'm in the process of re-writing it now to make it easier to read (I'm up to EP).
The numbers are just guidelines to aim towards, be sure to always improve and evolve your starting hand selection as your understanding of the game develops.
Key:
VPIP = Voluntary Put Money in Pot
PFR = Pre Flop Raise
Small Blind (SB) and Big Blind (BB) Objectives: Change VPIP to 15% and PFR to 9%
1) Call or complete multi-way pots from the small blind with "go big or big home" hands like:
- Small pairs,
- Suited connectors (e.g. 89xx)
- Suited aces (e.g. A4xx).
Also consider your implied odds based on you and your opponents stack sizes. If you have a hand like 22 and are looking to hit another 2 on the flop for a set...this will happen around 1 in 8 times.
Seeing as it happens so rarely, when you do hit that 2 you want there to be a lot of chips available to win, you can achieve this either by having a lot of opponents in the hand or by them having a lot of chips.
If everyone else at the table folds, then I'd recommend raising with these hand ranges as against just the big blind's range of hands they have a lot more value
2) Bet or 3 Bet premium hands (like AQ, TT+) to protect your hand, value bet and to isolate opponents:
The purpose of isolating is to reduce the amount of opponents in a hand and effectively increase the strength of your hand.
For example if you play with TT against 3 other opponents, chances are you will not have the best hand on a flop like Q78 - there is a good chance at least one of the opponents will have a queen, a set or a 2 pair holding.
However if you are playing only against one opponent, then it is more likely your TT will still be the best hand on the flop and this will increase your chances of winning the pot.
The more opponents in the hand, the more I believe you should raise to protect your hand - a general rule of thumb is to bet 3x the big blind, with an addition big blind per player...so if there is a 4 players that are in the hand (lets say the BB is 100) and you have a hand like AK, then bet 8x the big blind (800), it seems like a lot at first - but it's required to achieve your objective and bet more if you have to! Winning pots is a lot more profitable than losing pots.
3) Fold (or check) the remaining 85% of hands:
The reason for playing only a strong range from the blinds is because although you have good pot odds preflop to call a player's raise; you are going to play the hand out of position on every street.
This is a very big disadvantage as you have to make decisions with limited information.
The deeper the stack sizes are relative to the blinds, the more this disadvantage is exaggerated (this theory can also be reversed, whereby the shorter the stack sizes are relative to the blinds, the less disadvantage there is for playing out of position has as there is less post-flop play)
You can use a poker Software tool like Flopzilla or Pokerstove to play around with what different %'s of hand ranges look like, here is a link to a tutorial I made on using Flopzilla if you are interested:
http://sticktotheplan2010.blogspot.co.nz/2013/12/using-flopzilla-tutorial-hand-analysis.html
Early Position (EP) Objective: Change VPIP to 12% and PFR to 12%
1)
In EP you are usually first into the pot.
The purpose of the objective stat is so that you are more likely to bet when entering the pot rather than call and fold out the remaining hands.
Entering a pot by raising places you as the aggressor in the pot; this means can represent a stronger range of hands and are more likely to have control of the action in the rest of the hand.
For example, if you raise KQ from Early Position and one player calls
Consider folding small pairs (88 and below) and marginal hands like AJ a high % of the time and as you will often face 3 bets (as there are a lot of players behind to act) and have to fold. In very deepstack play, set mining with small pairs from EP is reasonable....but ensure you are playing just to set mine and avoid getting attached to hands where you miss (e.g. 55 on 328 flop, if you were aiming to set mine, and have now missed the flop, then fold against another bet, even if your opponent has AJ, they have still have good equity against you for spiking an A or J and you could already be crushed against a bigger pair)
Middle Positive to Button
Objective: Change VPIP to 17% and PFR to 14%
The later your position, the higher your expected profit, and the button is the most profitably position at the table. From the button you should be playing the largest sample size of hands.
It is the most profitable position because you will always have position post flop (note that this is the opposite to the small blind and big blind, where you will always play out of position post flop, hence the tighter VPIP/PFR).
As you get closer to the button your VPIP and PFR can increase, and you can open / play a wider range of hands.
Use Pokerstove again to identify what a 17% range looks like (55+, A5s +)
These numbers also mean that when facing an UTG raises with 88 in mid position you should seriously consider folding, because there is a big chance you have the worst hand here (so you are set mining) and it is not a good spot to set mine as there is a big chance someone will squeeze behind with so players left to act or you might find tricky spots with e.g. a pair of 88 on a 724 board and find yourself stacking off against TT.
-----
Playing Under 20 Big Blinds
Objective: Under 20 Big blinds, Raise or fold (only call AA or KK)
Under 20 big blinds you rarely want to be calling because your stack size is just not big enough to allow you to give up on pots post flop.
If you have a hand like 77 on the cut off and it is folded to you with 15 big blinds, then open shoving is very likely a profitably option.
Or if you have 77 on the big blind and it is folded to the button who raises, then 3-bet shoving is most likely a profitable option (subject to your opponent's opening range).
However if you have a hand like 77 in early position with 15 big blinds, then shoving is a lot less likely a profitable option.
The key is position and understanding when you are most likely to have the strongest hand.
When facing situations under 20 big blinds, I want you to consider the following 3 factors:
1: Your stack size relative to the blinds and average stack of the tournament
2: Your hole card strength
3: Your position and the actions before you (your opponents range based on his image and position)
There are more items that can be added to this list but we can consider these in future sessions.
Three-Bet Pots:
Objective: Only play AA AK KK QQ in 3 bet pots when deepstack
When a player bets or you bet, and another player raises (i.e. 3-Bets), avoid playing hands that are not in the top 5% of your range: AA AK KK QQ (Note: this is for Deepstack!)
The reason for this is because most players 3 bet ranges are very tight and without information on the player (i.e. you have seen them 3 bet before with a light hand, and actually seen the hand at showdown! or have a large sample size of stats on the player showing a high 3-bet percentage) then it is just guess work whether they are 3 betting you light or not.
So I want you to assume that without any other information their 3-bet range is top 5%...which again if you plug into Pokerstove is 99, AQ+. (Note that if you put TT or AQ as your hand against that top 5% range, it does not fair very well at all, no shame in folding TT or JJ preflop against a three bet, especially if you have raised from an early position and are less likely to get 3 bet light)
This is only for deepstack play, later in the tournaments when the stack sizes are smaller relative to the blinds, you obviously might have to call a lot of 3 bet all in's light, subject to pot odds and their shoving ranges (I think you are capable of making good analyse in these spots)
----
So here is a summary of the objectives, the general idea is to play less hands out of position (i.e. from the blinds), raise hands that you want to play and avoid open limping.
Small blind
Objective: Change VPIP from SB to 15% and PFR to 9%Big blind
Objective: Change VPIP from BB to 13% and PFR to 9%
Early Position
Objective: Change VPIP from EP to 12% and PFR to 11%
Middle Positive to Button
Objective: Change VPIP from EP to 17% and PFR to 14%
Playing Under 20 Big Blinds
Objective: Under 20 Big blinds, Raise or fold (only call AA or KK)
Three-Bet Pots:
Objective: Only play AA AK KK QQ in 3 bet pots when deepstack
I've added one more objective:
Objective: Mark up 10 hand examples from this report (e.g. folding TT to a 3 bet in early position when deepstack, or 3 bet shoving 77 with 15 big blinds vs a button raise)
Try to avoid tricky poker and value bet when you feel there is a good chance you have the best hand (you will be amazed at how many people call your value bets, without the need for tricky play!)
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