Heads up advice for dealing with loose/aggressive player |
|
Posted Sat Aug 20, 2005 2:09 am GMT by JustLiv
I have a home game everyday after school and we play for around 5 hours a day for a dollar buy in and 1000 chip count. I have no trouble with anybody else but it always come down to me and my friend who has to see every flop despite his hand and will bet like crazy. The thing is that he just started playing and I know im better then he is but he always makes a hand. 
Did you know that participating in a poker forum can help you improve your own game? Be it by sharing experiences or simply asking for help, participation in a forum helps you focus and keep 'on topic' which will help you improve your game. You can learn from other players feedback and from their experiences. Why the THP poker forums? We offer one of the best managed texas holdem poker forums available, and the community within is far more friendly than those typicaly found on other sites. We've made a 'lurkers edition' of the poker forum available here on Holdem Poker Online, but we encourage all visitors to register and join in on the conversations on TexasHoldem-Poker.com
Posted Sat Aug 20, 2005 2:19 am GMT by mikenike
woah... doller buy in and 5 hours a day... everyday... thats kind of crazy... do you not do homework and not eat supper...
well anyways... to play a loose player.. you have to take drastic action..
when youve got like a full house over his flush ... go all in... he will instantly follow you...
and ull get his chips...
just anlysis the situation before you bet.. try n read him out... look for tells... and ull start to see results..
Posted Sat Aug 20, 2005 2:27 am GMT by JustLiv
Haha yeah we play from the second we get home from school at 3 and he has beat me everytime, one time with a three of kind both of us had it but he had a higher kicker. What kind of tells should I be looking for? I think im understanding him alot more then he understands me like when he bets alot of his chips he has something big and if hes putting only around 30 into the pot hes trying to trap me but when he bets in the middle is where I get lost.
Posted Sat Aug 20, 2005 2:30 am GMT by mikenike
tells... look at his eyes... what he says... if he looks around....
just grind it out... and ull get him evantually... just keep on your game... hopefully hell catch somthing bad... put out a bad bluff and get punished...
Posted Sat Aug 20, 2005 2:39 am GMT by JustLiv
Which hands should I play in heads up? I know you don't play tight at all but how loose should I be playing?
Posted Sat Aug 20, 2005 3:20 am GMT by supafrey
It's gonna be hard fixing your problems if you don't admit that you may not be as good as you think
I suggest pressing the "search" function up top, and search for previous posts about playing with "calling stations" or "fish" or "new players".. You'll get a ton of decent advice, i promise. ^_^
Posted Sat Aug 20, 2005 9:13 pm GMT by JustLiv
Im not saying im good at all but I know im better then him. I think im still a beginner but ive been playing alot longer then he has.
Posted Sat Aug 20, 2005 9:25 pm GMT by bluef0x
We need more info if you want us to help you. What are the stack sizes when it's headsup? What are the blinds?
Don't try to look for tells, that's stupid. Every kid watches rounders and expects to know what every player has by twitches in their eyes... here's a clue: not even a pro knows.
Headsup by nature is more random I believe. You need to play your hands more aggressive, top pair (even with weak kicker) is like a two pair 10-handed... mid-pairs are usually good too heads-up. Take down the pots, don't let him draw out on you.
Posted Sat Aug 20, 2005 9:41 pm GMT by JustLiv
Alright well every time it always ends up me and him and only one time did we start even when it was just me and him that day. Other times ive gone headsup against him short stacked because of my super tight friend losing his chips to him before I can take him. We play with 1000 in chips 25,50,100. Blinds increase every hour starting at 5/10 and moves up to 10/20 20/40 50/100 etc. Now with me small stacked he usually muscles me out or bluffs when I have nothing to call him with. I guess my main problem is letting him draw out because I don't like using enough of my chips to make him second guess himself maybe? He likes to talk alot when he bets. He will usually say I bet now watch him fold(I usually do) but the thing is I never know if he really has something when he says this or he doesn't because I don't stay in and see. He always says the same thing. Another thing I'm going to start doing is raising from big blind small blind so I will be putting the pressure on him instead of him putting it on me. Is this a good idea?
Posted Sat Aug 20, 2005 10:03 pm GMT by bluef0x
Seems like your friend is a much better player than you. You are sooooooooooo weak-tight that anyone can bulldoze over you. Start playing back at him, get aggressive son.
Posted Sun Aug 21, 2005 12:08 am GMT by JustLiv
No hes not and no im not. Im probally not tight enough when heads up I usually will see every flop along with him no matter the hand. Its just he must be the luckiest player I've ever seen. All 4 times I went all in against him I had 3 of a kind of 7's first time he calls on the river he catches a straight. Second time I went all in with 3 of a kind of 3's he calls and has a higher kicker. Third time he beats my straight with a flush and I don't remember the what I had the fourth time but he had 4 of a kind. And I do play back at him.
Posted Sun Aug 21, 2005 12:17 am GMT by bluef0x
If you don't want advice, don't ask. You seem to be an expert and have your friend down pat, why are you posting here?
Oh, it's because you can't win. Maybe you should TAKE the advice. You can almost never be "too-tight" headsup... most hands will be free or give you the odds to call the BB. Just play more games and if you are better than it will show... losing 4 times is nothing. Flip a coin a hundred times, you will get streaks of 4 like crazy. From an "outsider's" point of view- it seems like your buddy is better than you. Either that or shuffle better pal.
Posted Sun Aug 21, 2005 12:18 am GMT by JustLiv
Yeah your right im sorry. I just can't see how he would be better then me when he just started like a week ago and ive been playing for like half a year. Im going to work on my heads up alot more. So I should still be aggressive when short stacked?
Posted Sun Aug 21, 2005 12:24 am GMT by bluef0x
He may not be "better" at poker... but his aggressive nature makes him better at heads up than you. If youre great at 10-handed you are tight-aggressive.. which isnt ideal for headsup, you really want to be loose because now your facing one opponent.
Loosen up and vary your strats... don't be afraid to push all-in, it's only a dollar anyways 
Posted Sun Aug 21, 2005 12:29 am GMT by JustLiv
Ok I will do that. Sorry I sort of snapped at you I just can't stand the fact that he is beating me. Yeah I am tight-aggressive and do very well when there is more people and can take him out easily but then my friends get knocked out and I lose :/
Posted Sun Aug 21, 2005 12:31 am GMT by bluef0x
No problem, I'm a dick and I'm sure I poked that out of you. Good luck in your poker future :D
Posted Mon Aug 22, 2005 10:04 pm GMT by JustLiv
Ok well I tried to be more aggressive today and it didnt work and I lost again. Almost every time I tried to bluff he had something or he would call and make someone on the river. Its pretty hard to make him fold. I think I was playing way to loose and I want to know if its even wise to fold a hand in heads up? What hands should I play? How should I play them? I really need to work on this cause I dominate my home game early on but when it comes down to me and another I lose my ass.
Posted Mon Aug 22, 2005 10:33 pm GMT by tame_deuces
Playing very aggressive players is hard to do head's up. They are hard to put on hands, the force you to make decisions for all or most of your chips and try to bulldoze you down. Being aggressive is 'the easy' way to play head's up. Basically it comes down to blind sizes how much you can afford to not be just as aggressive yourself. When the blinds gets to high compared to the two stacks in play, just shove your chips in there and cross your fingers.
Apart from that, all is not lost  Plays draws aggressively, if this guys beats you alot, the chance you get for completing straights or flushes till the river might be high enough to justify going all-in or coming over the top with huge raises. When you hit hands like top pair or better, check and raise him. If he is inexperienced, use the move that will scare any experienced poker player - simply call his preflop raise or call/check if you hold a very strong hand. Minbet into pots and try and induce raises when you hold something, it won't fool a good player, but a new one might fall for it.
Play pocket pairs very aggressively, even low ones., you are likely to be ahead. PPs of 7 and above are very strong hands head's up.
Remember, position may seem trifle, but it is vital head's up, esp with high blinds. I'd rather take T9s on the button than AT in the cutoff.
And remember, that you lose 6-7 head's up matches doesn't really mean all that much. In the end of tourney's, with high blinds, it often ends up in a coinflip (btw, an advice for later games -> if you don 't like that, there is nothing wrong with the last two players freezing the blinds, if they would like a more challenging match).
Posted Mon Aug 22, 2005 10:42 pm GMT by JustLiv
So what kind of hands should I keep preflop since he never raises from the blinds. Also a question since im new to using blinds how does it work like which one acts first which one raises?I know it goes small blind to the left of the dealer and then big blind after that but which one can check/raise? He says that you have to be small blind to check/raise and I argued with him for awhile about that. Is there any books that could help improve my game for NL short handed play/headsup?
Posted Mon Aug 22, 2005 11:30 pm GMT by tame_deuces
| JustLiv wrote: | | So what kind of hands should I keep preflop since he never raises from the blinds. Also a question since im new to using blinds how does it work like which one acts first which one raises?I know it goes small blind to the left of the dealer and then big blind after that but which one can check/raise? He says that you have to be small blind to check/raise and I argued with him for awhile about that. Is there any books that could help improve my game for NL short handed play/headsup? |
The dealer is small blind in head's up play, and is first to act in the first round of betting (must fold, call or raise the big blind), after that the big blind can check (if the dealer merely called) or fold/call/raise if the dealer raised. In the remaining three rounds of betting the dealer acts last.
If he never raises preflop _make sure you do when you hold good hands_, this is something you can take advantage of to no end. Raise 3-4 times the big blind if you hold what you think is a strong hand pre-flop. This means the pots will be raised when you are most likely to win the hand, and if he doesn't raise, they won't be raised when he is most likely to win the hand, plus you will get to see cheap flops when you hold weak hands.
As for what hands you should keep...any easy tip is you can raise with any ace, any two face cards and any pocket pair. I suggest reading up on this in other posts on the forum and in poker books, because there are few set rules for what cards to play head's up.
Posted Mon Aug 22, 2005 11:48 pm GMT by JustLiv
What books would you suggest?
Posted Tue Aug 23, 2005 12:39 pm GMT by tame_deuces
Someone else will hopefully have an answer to that, or it lies around in other threads. I don't have experience with alot of poker books except Sklanky's which doesn't really cover this field.
Posted Tue Aug 23, 2005 9:01 pm GMT by JustLiv
So there is no set strategy for heads up to play against an aggressive person other then what you guys have told me?
Posted Tue Aug 23, 2005 11:36 pm GMT by bluef0x
Do you want to play like a robot? Mix it up... any "set" strategy for playing live is probably bad. It works for online because you can multitable and players are complete donks... but live, I advise against a robot mentality.
Theres a headsup section in Harrington on Hold 'Em volume two, also a shorthanded section (if you have less than 8 friends that play- this will help you in the begining)
Posted Wed Aug 24, 2005 7:52 pm GMT by JustLiv
Well today I finally beat him. First time I called when he went all in with a jack ten king nine on the board and he flipped over two pair jacks and tens and i had ace 2 and a queen came on the river. Second time when he bought back in I beat him with queens. I did the three times the blind raise from the blinds when I had a decent hand and he always called no matter his hand one time with jack 4 offsuit and he reraised me 200 with jack ten off suit only once. Thanks for the help guys now lets see if I can beat him again tomorrow and win back my money lol.
Posted Wed Aug 24, 2005 8:40 pm GMT by bluef0x
It doesn't seem like you took our advice correctly.. by being more aggressive we mean do more raising, be the one to go all-in. Calling an all-in with nothing is BAD, you were LUCKY to catch that queen- he should have beat you.
Posted Wed Aug 24, 2005 8:45 pm GMT by JustLiv
Yeah I know but it was only 200 to me and i was up 1700+. I know still a bad call I knew I shouldn't have called after I did it. Its hard to be more aggressive then him because he bets so high its hard to reraise without going all in or having to the next hand because I lost. He can't really be bluffed so I don't raise or bet much but when I have a good hand I bet and he calls and I win. I was being alot more aggressive then I used to by putting him all in alot when I was up more is that good?
|
|
