Poker Tracker Auto-Rate Rules and Player Types--Part Three
Since we're now out of the "priority" player types, I'm going to focus on two simple, but sometimes conflicting concepts. Sometimes, as you "look up" a player online, you see that he is classified by his VP$IP (tight, loose, etc.), and by his total aggression number (aggressive, passive, neutral). Sometimes, these player types give you conflicting information about how to effectively play them.
The first general piece of advice: If you're in doubt, play a player based on his post-flop aggression. Like golf, when a common mistake is when a player spends 75% of his time with his driver, the similar mistake in poker is when a player spends too much time worrying about his own or another player's pre-flop game. 75% of this game is played after the flop hits the table, so the way a player plays post-flop is of the utmost importance in determining his successes and failures.
Let's look at VP$IP first.
VP$IP is a great way to "look up" a player, and gives you your first clue about what hand a player is playing. It gives you your first "read" on a player. For example, if a player has a VP$IP of 14% and a PFR of 8% and he raises pre-flop, and the board comes all low cards, you can reasonably expect that he doesn't have a set, since by his VP$IP/PFR pair, you can tell that he's not raising with 77, 44, or 22. Of course, position, game texture, and table texture will cause you to modify your first impressions, but this is your first real chance to get a read on your opponent's hand, what we call Second-Level Thought.
Depending upon the rules you use, whether you use mine, the default rules that come with PT, or modify the rules to suit your own needs or the needs of the games you play, you can assign VP$IP levels to "tight" players, "loose" players, or anything you want. You can also use the color ranges in PokerAceHUD to create even more classes to give you an even more at-a-glance way to look at a player's pre-flop play.
It's somewhat ironic, but it has been said by many a smart poker mind that the easiest players to play against are the players rated as "Tight," because they're generally straightforward and value hands "by the book." Generally, these players are playing truly premium hands, and should be played against knowing and expecting to see a solid hand. These players aren't generally playing lower suited connectors unless it's for a change. They will play pairs, big Broadway cards, and based upon other stats like post-flop aggression, WtSD and W$SD, and others, you can tell how far they'll take these cards before they realize they've been beaten. You usually shouldn't try and play lousy hands against a tight player, because if they're in the hand, they likely have better cards than you.
When a player gets into that whole "semi-loose" area, when their VP$IP is in the 20's to the low-or-mid-30s, you start to see players who, if they play well post-flop can really get you into trouble. It's harder to put these players on a range of hands, but at the same time, we see again where aggression is key. If a player plays 87o passively, they're much easier to defeat than if they play the same hand aggressively. More will be discussed on that later, in part four. However, it's worth mentioning that since a player has lesser standards to enter a pot, they may be coming in in LP with AA, but they also may be coming in with 65s. Again, and you'll hear this again and again, monitor the other stats to assess the player, and adjust accordingly.
"Loose" players are an entirely different story. There are many kinds of "loose" players--those who play a 45/5 style, who generally like to play a lot of hands cheaply, will call raises, and will raise with their premium hands. These players are what we call "dead money" most of the time--players who toss chips into pots with garbage to see if they hit something--and those who play a 45/35 style. The latter are players who play J7s like it's AA, and who will gladly show you either one if you look them up too hard. It's quite hard to put these players on a hand, and the more aggressive they are, the harder it is to play them...
I'm going to make you wait for Part Four, because it's vastly more important, and requires a greater analysis of concepts. Just think of it this way: Which player is easier to play:
1) A player who calls frequently, with middle or bottom pair, with a draw, but who bets out with his straights, sets, flushes, and other made hands.
2) A player who calls rarely, and who plays gutshot straight draws the same way he plays a made flush, and who plays a flush draw the same way he plays top set--fast.
Think about that--Part Four will be out later this week.
The first general piece of advice: If you're in doubt, play a player based on his post-flop aggression. Like golf, when a common mistake is when a player spends 75% of his time with his driver, the similar mistake in poker is when a player spends too much time worrying about his own or another player's pre-flop game. 75% of this game is played after the flop hits the table, so the way a player plays post-flop is of the utmost importance in determining his successes and failures.
Let's look at VP$IP first.
VP$IP is a great way to "look up" a player, and gives you your first clue about what hand a player is playing. It gives you your first "read" on a player. For example, if a player has a VP$IP of 14% and a PFR of 8% and he raises pre-flop, and the board comes all low cards, you can reasonably expect that he doesn't have a set, since by his VP$IP/PFR pair, you can tell that he's not raising with 77, 44, or 22. Of course, position, game texture, and table texture will cause you to modify your first impressions, but this is your first real chance to get a read on your opponent's hand, what we call Second-Level Thought.
Depending upon the rules you use, whether you use mine, the default rules that come with PT, or modify the rules to suit your own needs or the needs of the games you play, you can assign VP$IP levels to "tight" players, "loose" players, or anything you want. You can also use the color ranges in PokerAceHUD to create even more classes to give you an even more at-a-glance way to look at a player's pre-flop play.
Playing Strategies Against VP$IP Types:
It's somewhat ironic, but it has been said by many a smart poker mind that the easiest players to play against are the players rated as "Tight," because they're generally straightforward and value hands "by the book." Generally, these players are playing truly premium hands, and should be played against knowing and expecting to see a solid hand. These players aren't generally playing lower suited connectors unless it's for a change. They will play pairs, big Broadway cards, and based upon other stats like post-flop aggression, WtSD and W$SD, and others, you can tell how far they'll take these cards before they realize they've been beaten. You usually shouldn't try and play lousy hands against a tight player, because if they're in the hand, they likely have better cards than you.
When a player gets into that whole "semi-loose" area, when their VP$IP is in the 20's to the low-or-mid-30s, you start to see players who, if they play well post-flop can really get you into trouble. It's harder to put these players on a range of hands, but at the same time, we see again where aggression is key. If a player plays 87o passively, they're much easier to defeat than if they play the same hand aggressively. More will be discussed on that later, in part four. However, it's worth mentioning that since a player has lesser standards to enter a pot, they may be coming in in LP with AA, but they also may be coming in with 65s. Again, and you'll hear this again and again, monitor the other stats to assess the player, and adjust accordingly.
"Loose" players are an entirely different story. There are many kinds of "loose" players--those who play a 45/5 style, who generally like to play a lot of hands cheaply, will call raises, and will raise with their premium hands. These players are what we call "dead money" most of the time--players who toss chips into pots with garbage to see if they hit something--and those who play a 45/35 style. The latter are players who play J7s like it's AA, and who will gladly show you either one if you look them up too hard. It's quite hard to put these players on a hand, and the more aggressive they are, the harder it is to play them...
Preview of Part Four
I'm going to make you wait for Part Four, because it's vastly more important, and requires a greater analysis of concepts. Just think of it this way: Which player is easier to play:
1) A player who calls frequently, with middle or bottom pair, with a draw, but who bets out with his straights, sets, flushes, and other made hands.
2) A player who calls rarely, and who plays gutshot straight draws the same way he plays a made flush, and who plays a flush draw the same way he plays top set--fast.
Think about that--Part Four will be out later this week.
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