here are my sats after 5k hands since April 1. Advice on possible leaks anyone? How can I be more aggressive on that damn river, and is my fold to river bet % to high? Also, does anyone have advice on blind protection/stealing at the 1/2 level, does it differ from higher levels?

*the VI$P is 15.77

i agree with most of what ED said. some other commetns:

- have you read SSHE or Low-Limit HE? if not, i recommend both. take what you like from each of them.

- unlike ED, i like your SB VPIP. what are your standards? in loose-passive games (i.e., lots of people seeing the flop for a bet and lots of people staying in for several streets), my range is some thing like "any A, any K, any two suited, any two connected, any two broadway" to complete the SB. you have to be careful not to trap yourself against hands that dominate you, but that just becomes an issue of having good board and hand reading skills.

- for big blind defense, the range above is also good for calling a raise if SB just calls, too.

- if you catch a player open raising from LP a lot (meaning a wide range of hands) and your SB is a wussy who folds a lot, there are two techniques you can use to scare the shit out of the guy and make him fold. first, you can three bet and CB any flop (assuming he doesn't cap). the other is to call the bet and then bet out on any flop that doesn't have an A or K (and maybe Q). sometimes you have to fire two barrels to make them lay down overs, but you'll find the sweet spot soon enough. DO NOT try these techniques against calling stations.

- for the SB, when someone open raises in LP, you usually either want to fold or 3-bet from the SB if you want to play your hand. most half aware players will open raise from LP with a WIDE range of hands, so you can 3-bet with a wide range, too. the point is to avoid giving the BB great goods to call one bet with the same range of hands that i mentioned above for completing the SB. if the board comes low cards, then be the aggressor. if you hit your hand, CR. figure out other ways to be aggressive versus the LP raiser, and don't worry about the times that they actually have what you fear most (i.e.., a high PP). also, don't worry if they cap, but be take notes about what that means for each player who does it (usu. high PP or maniac trying to "take control of the hand"). don't assume that an LP raiser is tight until they show you the goods.

- what happens on the river when you raise with made hands like str8s or flushes? if you find that you're getting a lot of respect via folds, bluff the hell out of river scare cards until people start paying off your made hands and/or start looking you up.

- also, are you playing at weak-tight tables (e.g., with lots of bonus whores) or loose tables? if the former, ask MVP about his pfr reqs. he's learned some good UA techniques at the B2Bs.

- as usual, i recommend you go to stars .02/.04 and .05/.10 games (no rake) and play as much HU and 3-handed LHE as you can. start off as a maniac, and then figure out when and why you should slow down versus each opponent. this experience will REALLY improve your board and hand reading skills. you'll start to realize that even raising an AQ (HU powerhouse) is very vulnerable against a person who will defend with a wide range and CONSTANTLY test your unimproved hand via bets and raises. feel free to ask me more about this. i REALLY recommend it for learning how to open up your game, your aggression, and your blind defense.



take my suggestions with a grain of salt. use what you like, discard the rest (maybe revisit it later), and play the game that you feel comfortable playing.

Propping is not a good idea for a beginner. Always bouncing from table to table does not help you develope hand reading skilld and you don't get to take advantage of fishy tables. The varience can be overwhelming sometimes do to all th eHU and 3 handed games you'll be playing.