Poker Strategies
After receiving pocket cards, you are immediately faced with a choice: play your cards and either raise or call the blinds, or fold.
Practice Matters
If you are playing a competent short stacker,
If you are playing a competent short stacker, a general rule is that if you call about 45–48% of your opening range against a shove of 20 BBs, then you'll generally squeak out a small profit. So for example, if you open 20.4% of your range from late middle position, and a 20 BB short stacker shoves on you from the cut-off, then you should be calling 9%– 10.5% of your opening range. That would look something like this: You open: 22+, A3s+, A9o+, KTs+, KTo+, QTs+, JTs, QJo, T9s, JTo. Your calling range would roughly be: 66+, A9s+, KJs+, AJo+. This is assuming of course they are competent and they aren't just shoving big hands like 99+, AQs+, AQo+. In that case you're just going to call with an almost similar range with a few more hands added like AJs, KQs, 88. The bottom line is you want to keep your calling range slightly under 50% of your opening range, unless they are just shoving big hands only and not adjusting to your opening ranges by position.
4-Bet Bluffing
4-Bet Bluffing Like I've said earlier, the games are increasingly aggressive pre-flop and post flop. To some degree at certain higher stakes, the 3-betting and 4-betting has mellowed out a little, but micro and small stake players are still seeing effects of increased aggression. In order to properly combat this increased aggression, you need to have a solid 4-bet bluffing plan. 4-betting for value is pretty simple. You have a big hand against someone who you think will stack off with worse and you 4-bet. Finding profitable 4- betting spots is a little trickier, but possible to do if you are staying cognizant of the opportunities that present themselves.