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How to exploit opponents when you read them, Mark, 23. Sep 2002 06:25
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I played hold'em this weekend for the first time after watching Mike's Tell videos and I still can't believe how easy most low-limit players are to read.

I was playing 5-10 (lowest limit available) and my table was very tight for low-limit. During a one particularly bad 2 hour stretch there were probably 15-20 chopped blinds. I did not get my fair share of cards and played very few hands. Even though I realized everyone else was tight ( they were all getting poor cards) i did not get cards i could play.

Question 1 How could I have capitalized on this? I did loosen up a little, but would/will not play 4+gapped cards and low connectors.

Also, I probably stole 8-10 pots by reading that no one had a hand. There would be five people calling my late position raise with nothing and I knew it (thanks Mike). I routinely got called on the turn too. i didn't even need to look at the board with some players, they were soo obvious.

Question 2 Should I have checked more on the turn to induce bluffing on the flop with the weaker players? When heads up?

In one hand i had 2 top pair on the flop. Bet the flop got usual callers. Turn card was a 2. bet out, got raised by an OBVIOUS bluff. Just called. I wanted him to bet, raise the river. I bet, he called the river. he paired the turn and river to make a bigger 2 pair. He raised on the turn with a pair of 2's.

Question 3 Was just calling the turn correct? Should I have 3 bet to see if he would 4 bet? I don't think pushing out a bluffer is profitable, but with cards (1) to come, should I have? Keeping him around must be more profitable in the long run.

There were 2 experienced players I couldn't read but they were to my immediate right. A 40/50 year-old woman, constantly stared at the board when in a hand, with good cards or bad. She was selective with her starting cards and probably raised 50% of the hands she played pre-flop, 80% on the flop.

Question 4 What tells should I look for from a player like that? I know she had years of experience playing poker but did not look for tells.

I'm in a hand, heads up on the river. I have a straight, but the river card 3 suits the board. An older man is about to bet but my move to my chips stops him, and he checks.

Question 5 Is this a betting situation or am I to be check-raised?

Question 6 What if I told you in an earlier hand where I made a boat, and was playing with my chips, the same guy (Question 5) saw me playing with my chips and instantly bet (on the river) thinking I was trying to prevent his bet. I clearly saw his eyes on my hand, his expression change, and a bet. I raised and he folded. He was pissed but didn't really tilt.

All comments are welcome. I know this is a long post so you can respond to specific questions if you want.

Thanks all

Mark


I only made 1.5 big bets per hour cause I did have 3 bad beats, got less than my fair share of cards, and still make mistakes.
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Re: How to exploit opponents when you read them, Mark, 23. Sep 2002 09:19
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Question 6 refered to the same situation in question 5
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Re: How to exploit opponents when you read them, Roy Cooke, 24. Sep 2002 13:01
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Hi Mark

Reponces to Questions:

1. You could have capitalized on this by robbing blinds with marginal hands. I think low connectors would suffice as a hand to do this with if the propensity to steal was high. By not doing so I think you gave up potential equity.

2. You should check if your opponents were of the texture of players with the propensity to bluff. Often, players that play too tight also give away too many free cards. This is not the texture of player that is good to induce bluffs from, as all you end up doing is giving then a free card.

3. If I knew my opponent was bluffing I would induce a bluff on the river and try to get a call from a check-raise on the river. More scenarios gain you a bet that way, assuming you read the hand correctly.

4. Experianced players are much harder to get tells on that inexperianced players. With some people you cannot get any tells on them and that is just a fact of life you are going to have to deal with.If I have no tells on people I would try to get them on my left so I can play pots selectively with players I have tells on.

5. He is probably either bluffing and can't call or check-raising. In neither case should you bet!

6. This question adds more information to question 5. You are giving up a tell and judging your opponents reation. Since he reads you for faking it the first time...he should read you as not faking it the second time.

If you make 1.5 bets an hour over the course of your life you need to start making some plans on what you are going to do with all the money :-)

Roy Cooke

on 23. Sep 2002 06:25 Mark wrote:
> I played hold'em this weekend for the first time after watching Mike's Tell
> videos and I still can't believe how easy most low-limit players are to read.
>
> I was playing 5-10 (lowest limit available) and my table was very tight for
> low-limit. During a one particularly bad 2 hour stretch there were probably
> 15-20 chopped blinds. I did not get my fair share of cards and played very few
> hands. Even though I realized everyone else was tight ( they were all getting
> poor cards) i did not get cards i could play.
>
> Question 1 How could I have capitalized on this? I did loosen up a little,
> but would/will not play 4+gapped cards and low connectors.
>
> Also, I probably stole 8-10 pots by reading that no one had a hand. There
> would be five people calling my late position raise with nothing and I knew it
> (thanks Mike). I routinely got called on the turn too. i didn't even need to
> look at the board with some players, they were soo obvious.
>
> Question 2 Should I have checked more on the turn to induce bluffing on the
> flop with the weaker players? When heads up?
>
> In one hand i had 2 top pair on the flop. Bet the flop got usual callers.
> Turn card was a 2. bet out, got raised by an OBVIOUS bluff. Just called. I
> wanted him to bet, raise the river. I bet, he called the river. he paired the
> turn and river to make a bigger 2 pair. He raised on the turn with a pair of
> 2's.
>
> Question 3 Was just calling the turn correct? Should I have 3 bet to see if
> he would 4 bet? I don't think pushing out a bluffer is profitable, but with
> cards (1) to come, should I have? Keeping him around must be more profitable in
> the long run.
>
> There were 2 experienced players I couldn't read but they were to my immediate
> right. A 40/50 year-old woman, constantly stared at the board when in a hand,
> with good cards or bad. She was selective with her starting cards and probably
> raised 50% of the hands she played pre-flop, 80% on the flop.
>
> Question 4 What tells should I look for from a player like that? I know she
> had years of experience playing poker but did not look for tells.
>
> I'm in a hand, heads up on the river. I have a straight, but the river card 3
> suits the board. An older man is about to bet but my move to my chips stops
> him, and he checks.
>
> Question 5 Is this a betting situation or am I to be check-raised?
>
> Question 6 What if I told you in an earlier hand where I made a boat, and was
> playing with my chips, the same guy (Question 5) saw me playing with my chips
> and instantly bet (on the river) thinking I was trying to prevent his bet. I
> clearly saw his eyes on my hand, his expression change, and a bet. I raised
> and he folded. He was pissed but didn't really tilt.
>
> All comments are welcome. I know this is a long post so you can respond to
> specific questions if you want.
>
> Thanks all
>
> Mark
>
>
> I only made 1.5 big bets per hour cause I did have 3 bad beats, got less than
> my fair share of cards, and still make mistakes.
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Re: How to exploit opponents when you read them, Mark, 25. Sep 2002 05:21
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Thanks for the help Roy

I know 1.5 BB and hour is a good return, but I made a few mistakes during this session that cost me. I "owned" the table for a while but didnt' really capitalize on my image. Maybe next time!

Mark

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Re: How to exploit opponents when you read them, Manley, 27. Sep 2002 22:47
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on 24. Sep 2002 13:01 Roy Cooke wrote:
> 4. Experianced players are much harder to get tells on that inexperianced players.
> With some people you cannot get any tells on them and that is just a fact of life you
> are going to have to deal with.If I have no tells on people I would try to get them
> on my left so I can play pots selectively with players I have tells on.


Wouldn't you want the players that you have no tells on sitting in front of you so you can play selectively with them based on what their actions are (and there is no guessing about it since they play before you)? And then still play selectively with the other players sitting behind you since you do have tells on them?

This way you act based on info from the entire table (what the players without tells do and what the players with tells are telling you). Please feel free to jump in and let me know what you think about my logic.

Best Regards,
Manley
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Re: How to exploit opponents when you read them, Mark, 28. Sep 2002 06:01
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That sounds much more logical. I wonder what Roy's reasoning was.

Mark
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Re: How to exploit opponents when you read them, Roy Cooke, 28. Sep 2002 11:36
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Hi Manley

I like player immediately to my left that I have obvious tells on. It does set up check-raise situaitons and if i can alsways know if they are playing or raising it is a big edge.

Thyat said, i want to play as many hands as possible with players I have tells on and play more aggressively against them to remove other players from the hand and get better value from the tells. That plays better if I have position on my opponents!

Roy Cooke

27. Sep 2002 22:47 Manley wrote:
> on 24. Sep 2002 13:01 Roy Cooke wrote:
> > 4. Experianced players are much harder to get tells on that inexperianced players.
> > With some people you cannot get any tells on them and that is just a fact of life you
>
> > are going to have to deal with.If I have no tells on people I would try to get them
> > on my left so I can play pots selectively with players I have tells on.
>
>
> Wouldn't you want the players that you have no tells on sitting in front of you so you
> can play selectively with them based on what their actions are (and there is no guessing
> about it since they play before you)? And then still play selectively with the other
> players sitting behind you since you do have tells on them?
>
> This way you act based on info from the entire table (what the players without tells do
> and what the players with tells are telling you). Please feel free to jump in and let me
> know what you think about my logic.
>
> Best Regards,
> Manley
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