Stairway to RailHeaven

OK guys, yesterday I told you about the framework I set up for my girlfriend to start on NL5. It was time now to get the feet wet. Unfortunately (but not competely unexpected) the first few sessions weren´t that good:

 

 

So we analyzed what went wrong and identified two major faults:

(1) Deviating from the SHC.
(2) Ignoring part 2) of the framework, namely having a good reason for anything we do.

Here are some examples to demonstrate what I mean:

Hand 1

Hero (UTG): $5.66
MP: $7.17
CO: $5.00
BTN: $5.37
SB: $4.88
BB: $15.36

Pre Flop: ($0.07) Hero is UTG with Q A
Hero raises to $0.15, 4 folds, BB raises to $0.47, Hero raises to $5.66 all in, BB calls $5.19

Flop: ($11.34) 9 7 6(2 players - 1 is all in)

Turn: ($11.34) 3(2 players - 1 is all in)

River: ($11.34) 3(2 players - 1 is all in)

Final Pot: $11.34
Hero shows Q A (a pair of Threes)
BB shows K A (a pair of Threes)
BB wins $10.59
(Rake: $0.75)

It´s pretty obvious that nothing good comes from shoving AQo over a 3bettor who 3bets a tight (!!) UTG-raiser. So, AQo in this case is a clear fold (=> look at SHC).

Hand 2

MP: $5.00
Hero (CO): $6.71
BTN: $6.08
SB: $5.09
BB: $6.03
UTG: $4.83

Pre Flop: ($0.07) Hero is CO with T 9
2 folds, Hero raises to $0.15, 2 folds, BB calls $0.10

Flop: ($0.32) T 3 4(2 players)
BB checks, Hero bets $0.20, BB raises to $0.65, Hero raises to $1.40, BB calls $0.75

Turn: ($3.12) 6(2 players)
BB checks, Hero bets $2.80, BB raises to $4.48 all in, Hero calls $1.68

River: ($12.08) A(2 players - 1 is all in)

Final Pot: $12.08
Hero shows T 9 (a pair of Tens)
BB shows T Q (a pair of Tens)
BB wins $11.28
(Rake: $0.80)

Two things are strikening in this hand:

a) Another deviation from the SHC, T9o is a fold from CO. The SHC should help to prevent us from habitually getting into marginal situations where we´re more likely to make mistakes than our opponent. This hand clearly demonstrates why.

b) After we get c/r by the BB we should re-evaluate the situation. The 3bet clearly can´t be explained according to the part 2) of the framework. Do we raise for value? Which worse hands likely call us? Do we raise as a bluff? Hardly, what better hands (than TP) should fold? Do we protect? Against what? So the 3bet is clearly a mistake. Same obviously goes for the turn. Firing another barrel (after Villain called the 3bet) and then calling off is simply suicide. My sweetie had to listen to some tough words from me.

Hand 3

UTG: $5.42
MP: $5.00
CO: $5.36
Hero (BTN): $6.21
SB: $5.80
BB: $3.31

Pre Flop: ($0.07) Hero is BTN with T T
UTG raises to $0.20, 2 folds, Hero calls $0.20, 2 folds

Flop: ($0.47) 5 2 7(2 players)
UTG bets $0.35, Hero raises to $0.90, UTG raises to $1.80, Hero raises to $6.01 all in, UTG calls $3.42 all in

Turn: ($10.91) 6(2 players - 2 are all in)

River: ($10.91) 5(2 players - 2 are all in)

Final Pot: $10.91
UTG shows Q Q (two pair, Queens and Fives)
Hero shows T T (two pair, Tens and Fives)
UTG wins $10.19
(Rake: $0.72)

Another one where we clearly can see the ignorance of part 2 of the framework. Not as obvious as in hand #2, but still existent. We call an UTG-raiser who cbets on a super-dry board. We raise our overpair in position. What´s the reason? For value? Which worse hands in Villains range (!) can call us? As a bluff? Hell, no. For protection? Could be an argument, to prevent us from giving Villain a freecard with his overcards. Still, if we think about it, we have position, so we give him ONE freecard, not two. But when we get min3bet, the hand is over. We still have an overpair, but our relative hand strength against the line of Villain just got flushed down the toilet. It´s a clear fold. The shove can´t be legitimately explained. Another bad play.

So, we took some effort to get that clear and reinforced part 2 of the framework, because it´s probably THE most essential instrument to crush the micros:

Always think about why you do what you do!

Again:

I bet ...
... ... for value (what worse hands will call?).
... ... as a bluff (what better hands will fold?).
... ... for protection (against what hands, how many outs?).

The results of our hand analysis, combined with the reinforcement of the above mentioned mantra (and some running good as well) were respectable:

 

 

=> Next post will be about another very bad session with a lot of work and tons of things to learn from, especially about aggression and playing marginal hands oop. :) Stay tuned.