Learning No-Limit From Scratch ­- Getting Maximum Value

Playing weak players is where you make most of your money. They can be weak for a variety of reasons, the most predominant being that they call too much, too often, and too weakly. You can exploit these opponents by adjusting your strategy to magnify their errors.

I was playing $2-$5 at the Venetian about $800 deep; a foreign tourist was playing a wide preflop range, including lots of suited cards, and was also making very loose post-flop calling errors. He opened-called under the gun with about $700 in his stack, a player in between us mucked, and I looked down to Q J. I contemplated how best to play it.

While I loosen my starting hand requirements significantly against loose opponents and poor post-flop players, I had been card dead for a while and appeared tighter to the rest of the field than I was really playing. I wanted to isolate Mr. Foreign-Tourist and made it $30 to go. I felt the high bet sizing wouldn’t deter a call from Mr. Foreign Tourist, but would deter other opponents from calling or raising with marginal hands, considering my image. If it worked correctly, I’d have isolated a bad player with position, and built a heads-up pot that I could, more or less, control the flow of. Of course, there were risks to the play. I could get three-bet or called from behind, and Mr. Foreign-Tourist might make a hand. But, overall, I felt the play was a winner.

It worked like a charm. The field folded, and Mr. Foreign-tourist called. We took the J 9 4 flop heads-up with $67 in the pot. Mr. Foreign-Tourist glanced back at his hand several times as if to quantify the strength of his hand, then knuckled. Since I felt he wasn’t aware of tell-reads, I concluded his actions were genuine. Reading him for having some piece of the flop, I bet $50, a large sizing for the situation, but one I felt wouldn’t deter Mr. Foreign-Tourist from calling. He was cooperative and called. I felt my hand was best.

I liked the turn, the 6. I’d picked up a flush draw. Mr. Foreign-Tourist once again stared at the board while glancing back at his cards. He pondered for a moment and checked. I thought the 6 added interest to his holding. Maybe it two-paired him or maybe he’d also picked up a heart draw. An 8-7 holding was another possibility. In previous hands he had played a “fit or fold” style, betting when he thought he was good, checking/calling/folding when he was weak. That thought steered me to reading his hand as weak or a draw. Since he played a wide range of suited hands, I thought the heart draw was likely, and it didn’t have to be a bigger one than mine. Plus, I had a made hand. Feeling like I was going to be called, even if I bet big, I bet $150. He instantly called, making me think I didn’t bet enough.

The river came the 4. Since I put a lot of his range as being a heart draw, I didn’t think he would call with bottom pair on the turn and the 4 was on the flop, I felt it was a very safe card. Mr. Foreign-Tourist checked to me, and I thought about my bet sizing. I felt I had the best hand, but I wanted make a wager that would get called. If he had hearts only, I didn’t think I would get a call. But the fact he called on the flop indicated to me he had something. It might just be a straight draw he wouldn’t call with, but he also might have a nine or a jack he was too intimidated to bet. I felt that there were more nines than jacks in his calling range since he checked the flop, and he’d bet top pair on previous hands. I wanted to bet enough to maximize my gain, but not too much that he would fold a nine. I came up with $200 as my best guess estimate and slid it in.

He tanked. He obviously had a hand he was considering calling with, but I thought I may have lost the call. After deliberating a while he said “okay,” and called. I turned my hand over. He eyeballed my hand and turned over the K 9. “It’s a good thing a heart didn’t come” I muttered to myself. I hate calling for a chiprunner!

But I was very pleased with how I played my hand and the results. I won an $865 pot, heads-up, in a $2-$5 game with one pair of jacks, queen kicker. That’s unusual! In most one-pair poor kicker situations, you’re lucky to get a couple of small streets of value. Any more than that and you’re likely beat. But I adjusted my strategy and heavily value bet my pair to adapt to this particular “pay off light” opponent.

All poker decisions are a function of adjusting to your opponent(s). And if they’re calling too loosely, you need to widen your betting range and increase your betting size. On a different note, you should narrow your bluffing range against them also.

So when you’re playing loose opponents, add a little more to your bets. Make more of them with weaker hands. Also, narrow your range of bluffs.
And get ready to stack some chips! ♠

Roy Cooke played poker professionally for 16 years prior to becoming a successful Las Vegas Real Estate Broker/Salesman. Should you wish any information about Real Estate matters-including purchase, sale or mortgage his office number is 702-376-1515 or Roy’s e-mail is [email protected]. His website is www.RoyCooke.com. Roy’s blogs and poker tips are at www.RoyCookePokerlv.com. You can also find him on Facebook or Twitter @RealRoyCooke