0.0.1 Counter Strategy
Here is an example of counter strategy - not playing the percentages and likely hand ranges
like everyone teaches but instead playing player psychology. A tight Russian player raises
from early. There is a middle caller who’s also a regular. I look down at
I am in the small blind so I think about calling. I recognize the first aggressor is normally tight so I don’t position reraise. I just call to see the flop and hope for a monster.
Naturally I am ahead of both players with the nuts. I know that tight Russian #1 might have
a pair of aces. Other player has unknown since he was calling. I am sure if first
aggressor has aces that he will lay them down to protect his stack if he thinks he'’s
behind.
There is a flush draw so I want to protect my hand. But more importantly, I want to trick them
into thinking I am bluffing. There are two spades and the most likely play is reraise with two
spades. Now, here is the psychology. The tendency is to protect an overpair. The tendency of
all these pros is to assume the player has flush draw with an all-in. And the most important
tendency is: someone goes all-in on a draw only and not a made hand. They always assume
someone is bluffing if they go all in. If you had a made hand you would not want
to push people off the pot. That makes them blind to the possibility that they are
beaten.
I am in the small blind to I am first to act.
I lead into the pot 60%.
That bet leads to a pot-sized reraise from the first aggressor. The middle player also calls
which is confusing but OK.
Without much time, I reraise both of them all-in. That also looks suspicious, I am acting in
the way they expect but not in the way they think.
The tight Russian calls without thinking. The other pro thinks about it for a moment and calls
as well.
That was the entire hand, the rest is unimportant. Whether or not I win this hand, the point is I
got two professional players to commit their stacks on the wrong impression. They turn over
their hands. They made a wrong decision and were the ones behind, but were made to think
they were ahead.
Tight Russian has
so at least he was drawing to win. But he's a 30% at best. This is how you can triple up against "good" players. It's not about ranges in any one hand, it's about out thinking them. They do the same action over and over and over. They aren't even thinking anymore.
Tight Russian is drawing dead. Hapless pro is drawing to the full house. Board runs
out:
| I tripled up | ||||||
♢
