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Acceptable 3bet and calling ranges in Blinds vs Btn steals

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  1. #1
    Vinland's Avatar
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    Default Acceptable 3bet and calling ranges in Blinds vs Btn steals

    Ong,
    You had talked last week about 3betting pre vs btn steals with AXs type hands, I was wondering what you thought of the following ranges for both calling pre and 3betting pre vs BTN steals. Assuming BTN is average reg who steals 25-30% of range.

    Call range: ATo-AJo, 88-99, 9Ts, JTs, QJs, KQs, QJo, KQo
    3 bet range: TT+, AQo+, AXs, K6s-KJs - this is just under 10% and gives a polarized range with the K&A blockers you had talked about.
    Im assuming here that I'm in the BB, but if in the SB, I would probably call less, maybe remove the 88-99, or leave in if BB is nitty and folding often to steals.

    As a total, I would be calling or 3betting with 15% of my hands with some being semi-bluff 3bets and some for value, along with calls for balance and value
  2. #2
    I mean K6s is wide but if we're card dead and pick this up maybe it's ok to flex, taking advantage of a tight image, but we shouldn't be 3betting every time we have it. You do have to think about table dynamics, in particular most recent button vs blind spots. If you had AKo last time and 3bet him, getting him to fold, then next orbit pick up K6s and again he opens, this is a worse spot to 3bet than if we didn't 3bet him last time, because he's more likely to bite back. So don't get into rigid ranges for actions and consider both calling and 3betting most of that range depending on your perceived image and that of the villain on the button. We want bluffs to get through pre flop, so pick your spots where you think this is more likely to happen. We want our call and 3bet ranges to be balanced, so sometimes calling hands we normally 3bet, and sometimes 3betting hands we normally call, we should do this instead of having a rigid 3bet range and call range. Make a judgement call at the time which you think is best. Calling a bb open with K9s for example is absolutely fine.

    And while K6s has a blocker, it doesn't flop many straight draws that connect with a reasonable 3bet range. It's nice to reduce the risk of villain having a king, but we also want to increase the chance of us making a playable hand. I'd prefer JTs than K6s frankly, the extra post flop equity probably worth more than the blocker.

    I'm talking here bb vs bu. sb, I play ludicrously tight, as tight as utg. It depends on the button and big blind but I'm not 3betting the button nearly as often on the sb as I am from the bb, not unless button is crazy and I want to isolate him.
    Quote Originally Posted by wufwugy View Post
    ongies gonna ong
  3. #3
    Vinland's Avatar
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    I know what you mean, I do try to vary actions a bit against regs who might be paying attention (Pre and post flop). I wouldnt do the same action every time with everything.
    I'll slim the range down a bit and remove some low KXs.
    Next I might pick your brain for stealing ranges and how to act against 3bets pre. All the regs 3bet to steals quite often, and its hard for me to put them on ranges, other than "its not very strong for 3betting". I dont 4 bet very often other than with premium PPs or AK
  4. #4
    Dealing with 3bets bu vs bb is tricky but we have position so we can quite happily call a wide range and put the big blind in some tough post flop spots. And while we should call a wider range, we should definitely 4bet wider too. Don't go crazy but throw in a loose 4bet every now and then just to keep bb on his toes. Our 4bet bluffs should definitely be suited and connected, and ideally have a blocker. 89s isn't a terrible hand to 4bet bluff though so it really depends on frequency and opportunity. If we're picking up a lot of premiums, we don't need to make loose 4bets so use your judgement. But don't sit there waiting for KK+.
    Quote Originally Posted by wufwugy View Post
    ongies gonna ong
  5. #5
    BTN should be opening 50-100% wider than you suggest, and your BB defense should be enormously wider against a reasonable raise size, even in a high rake game.

    From the BB, you should aim for 3bing about 1/3rd of your opponent's range and your calling range (while very size dependent), should if nothing else usually be somewhat wider than their range.

    Even if you're not playing a strictly linear strat, you still shouldn't be super polar out of position. I would have a range of hands that 3bs 100% of time, a range of hands below that that raises 50% of the time, and a range below that that mostly calls with a small mix of 3bs.

    In position (with no one left to act) you are able to have a more polar strat where you (for example) have a nutted range you raise 100%, then a range of hands you flat 100%, then a range of hands (often at the bottom or even below your opponent's range) that are pretty purely for bluffing.

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