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 have an unbalanced range
If you have an unbalanced range then your opponent will be able to narrow your hand range down easier, and consequently make the more optimal decision versus your play. So, for example, if you only check-raise flops when you hold an open ended straight draw or flush, then you'd have an unbalanced range. Your opponent will be able to narrow down your range well enough to make good decisions. Now if you added in sets to your check-raising range, and roughly 50% of the time you check-raised with a draw, and 50% of the time you check-raised with a set, it will make your opponent’s decision more difficult. But now let's say 25% of the time you check-raise in a given spot with top pair, 25% of the time you check-raised with two pair, 25% of the time you check-raised with a set, and 25% of the time you check-raised with a draw. Your opponent is going to have a lot of hands they'll have to consider before continuing.
In the example above, in a full ring cash game
In the example above, in a full ring cash game with 100 BB effective stacks, you open 88 for 3 BBs from early middle position (MP1), and the table folds to the small blind who calls. The big blind folds and you see the flop heads-up. The flop comes: Td9c4d. Your opponent checks, and you bet 2/3rds of the pot and your opponent check-raises. Let's take a look at how an unbalanced range to a more progressively balanced range affects equity, and should in turn affect your opponent’s decision if they understand your range.