7/27/2019 LHE Cold Calling (Part 2).doc

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7/27/2019 LHE Cold Calling (Part 2).doc

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*** FLOP *** [8c Th 6c]

patrikskjold: bets $200

PapaWarbucks: folds

PokerSnoopy: raises $200 to $400

patrikskjold: calls $200

Against a floater, I think this is a spot that a lot of people screw up by peeling on the flop. However, I think myAQ is a pretty easy muck on the flop both because of the legit possibility Patrik has AK, AA, KK, TT, or 88, andalso, because a flop that is T86 is one that is very likely to have somehow hit PokerSnoopys cold calling range(think hands such as JT, 77, 98, QJ, KT, etc), so theres a better than normal chance that if I call, she is going toraise. Likewise, Patrik is highly probable to 3-bet if she does raise (even with AK), so by peeling on the flop Im inessence throwing away $200 calling on the flop since Ill have to fold if it comes back three bets to me. Anyway,the rest of the hand:

*** TURN *** [8c Th 6c] [5h]

patrikskjold: checks

PokerSnoopy: bets $400

patrikskjold: calls $400

*** RIVER *** [8c Th 6c 5h] [2d]

patrikskjold: checks

PokerSnoopy: bets $400

patrikskjold: calls $400

*** SHOW DOWN ***

PokerSnoopy: shows [3s 4s] (a straight, Deuce to Six)

patrikskjold: mucks hand

PokerSnoopy collected $4395 from pot

*** SUMMARY ***

Seat 3: patrikskjold (small blind) mucked [Kh Ac]

A few things about this hand: Yes, PokerSnoopy looks really fishy here, and Im sure many people observe handslike these and go, wow, these games look amazing! But really, it isnt as simple as that, and despite theoutcome of the hand, Im willing to say that her postflop play was expert. If anything, Im most surprised byPatriks call on the river with AK. Put me in Patriks spot, and PokerSnoopy wins this pot without showdown therein lying some of the beauty of PokerSnoopys postflop play (Im guessing if the river is a 2c, he check folds).

7/27/2019 LHE Cold Calling (Part 2).doc

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The primary argument behind never open cold calling from most people is because it still forces you to hit theflop because you dont have initiative yet, where as if you 3-bet instead of cold call, youre set up to take the potdown if your opponent misses with a continuation bet or two. For most people, it comes easy to continuation beta flop or turn with nothing but overcards or a pair draw, but not many people are comfortable with raising on theflop with little or northing (hence why I would advise people who dont have strong understanding of boardtextures and their opponents hand ranges to simply 3-bet always instead of open cold-calling).

Floating, on the other hand, tries to regain initiative postflop and put your opponents to the test. It can workwhen opponents give you credit for something that matches the board (in this case with me, PokerSnoopyconvinces me shes got a ten or an 8 or a pocket pair or something), and is useful against two types ofopponents:

1. Opponents who are thinking enough and trying to put you on hand ranges. Your reason for cold callingis to minimize investment on non-bluff-friendly boards, and steal away enough pots on boards you thinkcan be stolen.

2. Opponents who are very bad players but are passive and predictable showdown monkeys. Against theseopponents, you are cold calling simply to try to get yourself involved in more pots against bad players,while playing fit-or-fold postflop. Youre basically giving away your hand range to anyone thinkingenough, but that doesnt matter against these opponents because theyre just playing their own hand.

So then, against these guys, youre cold calling with your hands youd like to play against them, butlack unimproved showdown power (T8s, 87s, mostly suited connectors etc). In high stakes LHE games

these opponents are very rare (most bad players in high stakes games err in aggressive ways), but inthe lower games they are more common.

To master the art of floating is a tough task, and doing so correctly often borders between genius and insanity.