Postflop IP as PFA

[GO BACK TO PRACTICAL HANDS AND DO ANALYSES]
 Against big cbet sizing on relatively dry boards
-we may choose to turn our bottom pair into a bluff (only against non-donkeys)

Cbet vs Check Back + Sizings
1) Position
-we have to consider the position on which the villain is playing from (and his range)
->the tighter the villain's flatting range = the less we cbet

Lowest cbet frequency: UTG vs UTG+1
Highest cbet frequency: UTG vs BB [we have the highest range advantage]
[however, it is also dependant on the board texture]
*The higher our equity advantage, the higher our cbet frequency*

-we can use PioSolver: but do not follow GTO blindly!

2) Board Texture and Position
-the more connected the board to villain's range, the less we have to cbet
-the more capped villain's range is, the more we can cbet and also the higher we can size it up
(eg. BU vs BB and flop is AK8)
-here villain is always 3betting TT+ where their range is capped
-> villain only have 3 combos of sets (88) and K8 and A8
-> hero has all the sets, and two pairs in this spot
-> therefore, villain should not be raising this flop at all! - if he does, then his calling range is usually very weak (bluffcatchers) then we can exploit him in later streets. We can also overfold when he raise as his range will usually be 2 pairs+

When to C-bet? (Think in terms of what kind of hands we have)
-[Pure Bluff] when there are lots of fold equity + little raw equity -> (on very dry boards)
[however, we cannot have a 100% pure bluff range when the flop is dry: we need to consider how that flop favours our opponent's range as well]
-> here if villain call once, we usually give up. Even if we hit our weak pair on the turn, it is most likely still behind our opponent's hands.

-[Semi bluff] when there are little fold equity + we have decent equity
[this consist of draws, overcards, backdoor draws]

-[Value cbet]- 3 streets of value? (we rarely check)- when we have 3streets just go bet/bet/bet

-[Protection cbet]- not many worse hands calling, but we often need to protect our hand from villain's calling range
[KTo on 422] vs BB -> BB's range is very wide and his calling range on the flop will be very wide
-> we want to protect our K-high hands (opponent usually have T9, 76s,T8s) where they have 6 outs against us so we want to fold them out.

-[Universal cbet]- mix of value c-bet, protection c-bet, bluff c-bet
(eg. K4s on J94)

When to Check?
-too little fold equity + board texture favours our opponent's range too hard
-very little equity when called
-pot control with medium strong hands (balance)
-> also where we have 2 streets of value
(eg. K5s on K82) CO vs SB-> we only have 2 streets + we do not need to protect our hand so we check the flop
-slowplaying with monsters vs aggro opponents
-playing vs aggro opponents in general (we can check more of our value hands to let them bet into us)

NEVER BALANCE VS A FISH!!!
-always go bet/bet/bet with our value hand
[we want to play our hand MAX EV]
[what might the fish have in this spot? how should we play our hand against that range?]

Bet Sizing
-if we have 3 streets of value vs unknown/fish- go for MAX VALUE
-always think about what part of villain's range we want to attack
(to fold out 6 outers, we bet small [33%])
(to fold out weak pairs, A highs- we bet big [66%])
(Semi-bluffing with good draws- always bet big [66%])- we want to represent a value hand incase our draw is busted
(Value betting on wet boards- always bet big [66%])
(To make them fold top pair/second pair- bet very big [100%-150%])
-the deeper we are, the bigger we want to bet (50 bb+)

Consider:
Potential bluff cards on turns and river
-backdoor equity
-reads/stats on villain
-ICM + future game

Facing Check/Raises [think in this logical order]
1) Which position is he raising from?
-> if someone is check/raising from the BB, it is more likely they have bluffs
-> eg. SB and BU flat will have broadway heavy hands- he will not have many 65s etc.
[BB check/raising range is weaker than SB check/raising range in general]

2) Player types
-> vs tight opponents (x/r flop <15%) - we can make big laydowns right away on the flop

3) How many good turncards for our hand/range?
-> if we can turn a lot of equity, we can call flop at a higher frequency

4) Sizing
-> is villain setting up for turn/river all-in?
-if that is the case, we can make big folds right away

5) Never overfold the flop
-> unless the board texture is very favourable for our opponent
eg. KK on 456 MP vs BB

6) Start overfolding the turn
-> a lot of players like to bluff the flop but do not follow through on the turn

*We always call 95% of our 2nd pair on the turn after checking back the flop*

If we have too many bluff catchers and having to call too many shit hands on the TURN or RIVER- we are probably calling too many weak hands on the FLOP/TURN!
-this is how you can find leaks on the turn and flop

vs a smaller stack [20bb or less]- we are almost always going broke with our draws (unless ICM)

Playing Turns

Bet Sizing, and Checking Back

-Who's range improved?
-> is it a good barrel card for our range?
-> does the turn weaken villain's range?
[eg. UTG+1 vs BB on [258][J]-> the turn weakens villain's range as he barely ever has a J (only J high FD which is 1 combo of each)- his range still consists of 44,33,5x,8x etc and his top pair becomes second pair etc.- so the J is good for our barrelling range as we have a lot of J in our flop betting range.]

-Do we still have 3 streets of value? OR do we have to pot control?

-Stack to pot ratio on the river-> we want to set up a proper ratio by the river (by betting big on the turn)

Checking Back

-Shutting down with bluffs on blank turn cards
[where villain's top pair remains top pair and second pair remains second pair]
-> however, there are certain boards that we can barrel on turn and river even if they're blanks.

-When turn card hits villain's range A LOT- we only have 2 streets of value
[AQ on [A54][J] MP vs SB]
->here we can check back to give villain the opportunity to bluff the river (broad way hands which are now gutshots)- [only vs good regs]
->vs a fish we always just bet/bet/bet as they're always calling with their top pairs

-Villain is a calling station/maniac
-> calling station will often call down with second or third pair so we need to shut down with our bluffs- even if we have a busted FD and we're supposed to bluff: just give it up!

-> when we have a value hand-> we always go very big- we do not follow GTO and just BOMB the river if we have many bluffs and they're calling all the time

-> vs some stations [VPIP, PFR: 40/10 etc]-> he calls a lot preflop and calls a lot on the flop therefore he will give up all his shit hands on the turn

-> it may make sense to barrel the turn vs these type of stations- their range usually consist of 65s 42s 53s- so when a turn comes that doesn't hit their range- we can keep barrelling! However, if they call the turn, we always shut down the river.
->> these hands consist of 42s where it may be very attractive to recreationals


Turn Barrelling
- Turn card weakens villain's range
- Turn card improve our perceived range
-> there are certain spots where we can overbluff a ton and some spots that we cannot bluff at all
-> we usually want to balance our value range by barrelling our draws (we need to have a lot of equity)
- Villain is not a maniac/calling station
- Use big turn bet instead of triple barrel [full pot]

-> Since we're IP, we might want to make it to a 2 street poker where we're checking 100% on the river- we know that if he call this bet his range is very strong
- Good blockers (eg. A5s 3way on [K26][5] MP vs BU/BB)
-> we cbet with backdoor FD
-> on turn, we block 55, K5s, 65s as well as AK
-> if we keep betting, good regs will fold as they do not expect us to have any bluff on that board

Playing vs Turn Leads
- very rarely pure bluffs
-> usually medium to strong value hands
- unless it is very small donks-> play very aggressively against that range
-> usually draws or small pairs

Facing Turn Check/Raises:
- Rather overfold, often very strong
[we should fold anything weaker than two pairs (top pairs and overpairs included)]
[if flush/straights board- we may even fold our two pairs and sets]
-> especially vs tight positions (EP/MP)-> their range is usually very strong
-> even on wet boards-> their raising range on the turn is usually very strong (as they're going to raise all their 2 pairs, sets on the turn)- [Flattrich Theorem]
- vs small sizings, we want to call almost always with our made hands

*On wet boards, if villain just calls the turn when a FD or SD is present, we can often assume that they do not have any sets, two pairs-> we can value bet the river thinner + bluff more*

*If we face a check/raise in a 3bet pot on the TURN-> we can assume that villain is trying to get it in against our overpair (as they're never bluffing usually)-> we can fold a big fraction of our overpair
[People do not try to make us fold an overpair so we need to fold more]*

Always think about what parts of villain's range we're attacking

-> If we have under pot size bet left-> going all-in may not be the best option as
 betting 1/3 may accomplish the same thing [if we're trying to get better draws to fold]

Think about how the turn/river hit our range/villain's range
-if we think the river may give villain 2 pairs-> we go for max value with our strongest value hands
-we either go for small sizing or very big in this case

*NEVER use 1/2 pot on the river- either 1/3, 2/3, full pot or overbet depending on villain's range and our perceived range*

Delayed Turn Cbets
-very effective on dry boards
-> perceived strong/showdown value heavy range
-> population underbluff after checking back on dry boards (especially on A high board)

-good hands often start betting on the turn

-> therefore if villain checks flop then checks the turn, we gained more information that his hand is often not as strong [check/call vs delayed cbet on the turn often very weak]

*When people check/back, it often signalize that they have showdown value, otherwise they'll bluff the flop*

For example, on the flop [AA6], if we bet the flop, villain is often calling with his Q high and K high hands... however, if we check/back the flop and bet on a blank turn, villain will fold his Q high and K high hands-> this is much better for us as we're getting more fold equity with our bluffs


Playing Rivers
- Do not feel committed
-> we still always give up the weakest parts of our range (GTO)
[we need to know what our range looks like on the river to let go of the weakest combos]
-> if our range only have very strong hands on the river vs his snap jams-> we might be overfolding vs his turn raise or his flop bet
-> if we do not have any bluff catchers by the river, we're probably too weak on previous streets
-> if we have too many bluff catchers, we're calling too wide on the river
- NO IMPULSE PLAYS-> always take time with every decision- regarding the ranges

WHEN FACING A TOUGH RIVER DECISION
-Always think in these orders:
[Practice these daily in order to get used to the process]

1) What player type is the villain?
-reg? fish? weak reg? unknown? tight/loose passive?
[we can often make decisions right away given the player types]

2) Where are we in our range?
-bottom? top?
-> we need to use Equilab to analyse our defending range vs his range

3) How does villain's range look like?
-is he over bluffing?
-should we be overfolding?
[if it is not possible for him to have bluffs at all, we should overfold]

4) Read/stats/info on villain

5) GTO but consider Population Tendency
[only if we answer no to all the questions above]
-we should always avoid marginal spots in soft fields
[we will always find better spots as the field is soft]

FORGET YOUR EGO-  SOMETIMES WE WILL GET BLUFFED

Eg. hero raise [HJ], BB calls

Flop: [963]

BB checks, hero bets 1/2

BB calls

Turn: [3]

BB checks, hero bets 1/3

BB calls

River: [5]

BB checks, hero bets 1/2

BB raises 3x 

Step 1)

[Player Type]: fish? reg? 

Here, if we know villain is a fish- we can always overfold our top pairs and over pairs (only if they're not maniacs) as they're not bluffing nearly enough for us to make the call +EV

- fish is never turning their middle pair into a bluff whereas a reg will be able to turn those hands into a check/raise bluff

[if we are still unable to make the decision, we move on to step 2]

Step 2)
[Where are we in Our Range?]

-when villain invest around pot sized bet into the pot, we need to calculate our optimal defending frequency- which is 1:1 or 50%

-> this means that coming to this river, we need to fold 50% of our hands that would bet this river. 

-we need to use Equilab to come up with the range we would bet on this river, and find 50% of those combos to fold.

This is our betting range on the river

It consists of all the over pairs, boats, straight and top pairs

We need to fold 50% of this range- therefore we pick the weakest 50% part of our range to fold

This is the range we're calling the river raise with

Here we choose to only continue with our strongest overpair [AA], our strongest top pair [A9s] and our boats and straights.

We can see here that our QQ is now in our folding range. Although it might seem like a strong hand on the river, facing a raise we need to take into account the GTO perspective on the game, especially vs a reg.

Giving Up and Barrelling

Giving up:

- when river card improves villain's range

eg. when top pairs turn to trips when we have over pairs

-> when flush draws, straight draws and 2 pairs complete for villain's range

- give up our semibluffs when runout is blank

-we always give up vs donkeys (both bad regs and fish) [station, etc]

*don't ever try to bluff someone off very strong top pair or two pair*

-even if there is a flush present and we have the nut flush blocker, most players cannot let go of their top pairs and two pairs-> we never try to make them fold those hands!

Barrelling (bluff) [only vs regs and players that can fold]

-good rivercard to bluff or value bet

[cards that hit our perceived range]

->we can start bluffing the bottom of our range (be aware of how many bluffs we can have)

-good blockers
-villain's range is capped-> especially when villain would x/r turn a lot with value

Barrelling (Value)

- where we have >50% vs villain's calling range [do it by plugging ranges into Equilab]
-vs check/check or check/call-> extremely thin valuebetting
-the wetter the board villain x/c flop and turn-> the more value hands we can discount

Facing Check/Raises
-generally OVERFOLD
-> where do we stand in our range?
-> the larger the raise size, the more we can fold
-often regs may turn the hands that they might call once into a bluff (bottom pair, underpair)
-> most people do not do this so we can overfold (only regs will do this)
-never bluff catch when blocking villain's bluffing range
-bluff catch only when blocking villain's value range
-> when calling down in bluff catcher mode [think in every streets on which hands they'll be playing this way]

*DO THE ANALYSES OFTEN*

Bet Sizing
-which part of villain's range do we want to attack?
-> if we want a call from weak hands (bottom pairs, high cards)
---use small sizings
---BUT, size it up abit- especially when bluffing
-> if we want to attack their strong hands - we bet big (overbet) [especially when bluffing]
--- the more bluffs we have. the bigger we want to bet

Blockerplays
- blocker bluff when we block villain's value hands and his top range