Small Stakes Shorthanded NL Poker Forums

Notes: villian 3bets Q4s BVB
250 hands

15% 3bet, only 4.8% from BTN but sample size could be an issue as its 7% CO, 10%BB and 23% SB (lol), 3bets 6% BTN v CO.

Here I kind of want to flat, I know playing 3bet pots OOP is going to be tough but with AQ I can keep alot of his dominated hands in and get more value when hitting TP vs this reg where we know he 3bets weaker as bluffs. Contrasting views from other players on skype so see what DC says.

EDIT: for some reason DC wont convert Prima HH's !?

Prima, $0.50/$1 No Limit Hold'em Cash, 6 Players
Poker Tools Powered By Holdem Manager - The Ultimate Poker Software Suite.

SB: $61.66 (61.7 bb)
BB: $78.50 (78.5 bb)
UTG: $75.60 (75.6 bb)
MP: $87.69 (87.7 bb)
Hero (CO): $168.94 (168.9 bb)
BTN: $131.98 (132 bb)

Preflop: Hero is CO with Qs Ac
2 folds, Hero raises to $3, BTN raises to $10, 2 folds, Hero ?

Yeah I'd be tempted to peel OOP here as well. If we assume he has a polarized 3betting range in this spot, then calling with AQ is a decent option since we can dominate some of his hands. I also find that regs play fairly straight-forward past the flop in these situations where you call OOP. Your perceived range is strong, so I don't think most villains will just go barrel crazy here.

The other option is to turn your hand into a 4bet bluff if you are uncomfortable playing a 3b pot OOP against this villain. Folding wouldn't be the worst thing in the world, but it seems pretty weak.

i just think 4betting allows him to play perfectly against us, I think in this spot the EV of calling and playing a pot with Qxx or Axx and c/r some low flops is higher than just 4betting and letting him 5bet jam value range and fold bluffing range...?

this depends on your style / gameplan.
He just play "perfect" against us if WE dont adapt well enough.
You just have to make the right adjustments . (like opening less hands from the CO, 4betting more air etc)
If you are very aggressive in 4betting -> 4bet/calling here is better because you balance your 4betting range and maybe he´ll adjust by 5bet shoving too loose.
if you dont you shouldn´t 4bet AQ because this hand is too strong to "bluff" with.

Otherwise a call with AQ is good. You already mentioned the main advantages.
A little tip: be aware of your 3bet calling range OOP. If you just have AQ and TT there it´s not that difficult to play against you

btw: folding there is the worst thing in the world for me against this opponent.

I think 4betting > flatting though if you plan on just x/f'ing most flops that you miss.

I think 4betting > flatting though if you plan on just x/f'ing most flops that you miss.

This is absolutely correct, though we can x/c a lot of flops as we expect to have the best hand when we both miss.

This is absolutely correct, though we can x/c a lot of flops as we expect to have the best hand when we both miss.

What would your standard be here against an unknown? Would you be more likely to flat OOP against a villain who you have a good grasp of their postflop tendencies?

What would your standard be here against an unknown? Would you be more likely to flat OOP against a villain who you have a good grasp of their postflop tendencies?

Yea I'm more inclined to flat and check/call a lot of flops especially if I think villain is a one and done cbettor, and if I feel that villain's positional advantage isn't going to put me in a -EV situation. If villain is a more frequent 3 bettor and someone I feel is going to make my life hell if I flat OOP, I'll just go ahead and 4 bet with the intent of calling it off.

Yea I'm more inclined to flat and check/call a lot of flops especially if I think villain is a one and done cbettor, and if I feel that villain's positional advantage isn't going to put me in a -EV situation. If villain is a more frequent 3 bettor and someone I feel is going to make my life hell if I flat OOP, I'll just go ahead and 4 bet with the intent of calling it off.

Cool, makes sense.

Yea I'm more inclined to flat and check/call a lot of flops especially if I think villain is a one and done cbettor

Um.. almost any 3betting range has like 35-40% equity vs AQo so if we let villain see all 5 cards and he's IP we're going to be -EV even vs very wide 3 betting ranges. OOP float will the intention to bet river when turn goes x/x will rarely be +EV. I'm assuming villain has reasonable tendencies like betting turn with 8+ outter vs TP and calling with second pair+ on the river when we lead etc.

Reasons to flat are
1. Villain cbets too much so we can raise and make him fold.
2. We have amazing implied odds for hitting a pair. Villain barrels multiple streets on A/Q high boards or stack off light to a raise.
3. Villain passive postflop and gives up on too many boards.

Reasons to flat are
1. Villain cbets too much so we can raise and make him fold.
2. We have amazing implied odds for hitting a pair. Villain barrels multiple streets on A/Q high boards or stack off light to a raise.
3. Villain passive postflop and gives up on too many boards.

I like this. Here in this hand none of these apply, but Villain prob 3-bets a lot, so our best play is to 4-bet/fold pre, right?

I think blah was just saying that he thinks floating oop isn't good, he wasn't commenting on the preflop call. We get 2 to 1 on a call pre, so as long as we make money when we hit a pair, it's fine.