Wednesday, May 16, 2007

Hawaii Weather



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EasyE left a very useful comment on my post about attempts to make PokerAce HUD work faster when multitabling on Full Tilt (edited to insert updated link):

I have this same problem. With me, running PAHUD with Full Tilt was virtually unusable. But I have found the following helps greatly:

- surprisingly it is much quicker when I set "Flicker Free Drawing" to on. When I have this unchecked, it seems that the screen is forever redrawing, and this takes up a lot of resources. I know it's supposed to work better with this set to off, but on my PC it is SIGNIFICANTLY faster with this set on.
- running a freeware app called "Process Tamer", which you can get at http://tinyurl.com/mdhnp . You mentioned setting priorities for applications in the Windows Task Manager. Well this app let's you set rules and additional settings so that this is automatically taken care of each time FT and PAHUD are run. I've found that my system works well when I set an explicit rule so that Full Tilt is "Forced Realtime" and Poker Tracker is "Forced Below Normal". I actually don't change the settings for PAHUD.

Running it this way makes FT, PT and PAHUD very usable.

Give these a try, you might find it helps.

I tested his suggestions out, and I discovered that I really like Process Tamer. It seems to do the job very well! I didn't open more than four tables at a time tonight, but PokerAce ran much smoother. I also tried adjusting explicit rules for PokerAce, and it seems like "Forced Realtime" worked better than leaving it as the default. Thanks again to easyE.

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I ran a big bluff a few days ago with AK in a 10/20 game, and I wanted to hear what some of you think.

UTG raises $55
VILLAIN calls $55
MP calls $55
HERO raises $250 from LP with Ah Kd (Standard raise here. I want to get money into the pot and thin the field)
UTG folds
VILLAIN calls $195 (OK, so now I know he cold called twice preflop. I put him on a mid pocket pair)
MP folds.
** Dealing Flop ** [ Js, 7h, 2c ]
VILLAIN checks.
HERO bets $400 (Obvious continuation bet that I will make every time in this spot)
VILLAIN calls $400 (Seems consistent with my suspicion that he might have a pocket pair. Maybe 88-TT. Or even 77 for a set, but I'm willing to accept that if he hit it. I also start to think he may have a Jack, but it seems unlikely given the action)
** Dealing Turn ** [ 8d ]
VILLAIN checks.
HERO is all-In for $1,358. (The pot size had grown over $1,400. I trusted my read that he had a pocket pair or a Jack. He couldn't call with many of the hands I put him on, especially since I'm representing AA or KK. Even if he called, I would still have six outs to make a better pair with an Ace or King on the river.)

Thoughts? I'll post the results in the comments soon.

10 comments:

AnguilA said...

I think it's important to stick to your reads, so if you had him on a mid pocket pair, as long as he didn't hit the 8, you'd be making the correct play.
Based on his preflop actions I would put him on JJ-77, and the problem with that is that there are 3 cards that would have you drawing dead.
As long as the play is made based on the read of the other player I think it's correct although some people might think "here's another one overplaying Big Slick".

Fuel55 said...

Personally I would never make this kind of play. There are three cards that give a mid-pair a set on the board which would scare the piss out of me. The problem with his check on the turn is that you don't know if he has a monster or has given up - true gambling to throw your stack in here. I'll assume you know that this player can fold one pair when the action has evolved this way?

Gnome said...

My opponent insta-called and flipped over JJ for a flopped set.
I was surprised to see JJ since he never raised, but it makes sense from a set-mining perspective.
So I don't think my read was very wrong, and I believe I knew my opponent well enough that I felt like he would lay down anything short of a set.
But I feel like a donk, and I believe I made a poor play in retrospect.
Set mining is very profitable, especially against people like me whose biggest leak is that they overplay too frequently.

Wes said...

I would like the turn bet if it wasn't an 8 and if you had some timing tell like if he instacalled the flop bet (aka I have a hand that can't withstand much but I can't raise). Now his folding range is going to be 99-TT and maybe some weak jacks like JQ or JT, but is he going to be folding here 40% of the time? I don't think so.

Wes said...

And the guy is not set mining with JJ there. Sometimes you can play a hand with a big pair without 3betting preflop, especially if you know that UTG is very tight.

Hammer Player a.k.a Hoyazo said...

Yeah that's a tough hand, Gnome. Normally I don't like dropping huge bets on the turn when I have nothing and when my opponent has already shown some strength preflop as well as calling a good-sized bet on the flop. Now, I also don't like to fold my AK on the turn when I believe the other guy has less than top pair, but I like to think I would have found some kind of happy medium that was lesser than just moving in all for $1350 with nothing. The fold equity is obviously as good as it's going to get for you with the allin bet on the turn, but again it's the fact that he cold called twice preflop as well as called the flop bet, combined with my nothing holding, that would -- I hope -- get me to choose something other than pushing allin here.

alan said...

Didn't get to reading the hand, so I can't comment on that. I got too distracted by the hilarious Hawaii Weather video. That was awesome.

Pseudo_Doctor said...

Im a huge believer in going with your read and if thats what u put him on that its a good play. I would make the same play given the right situation and player.

SubZero said...

It's a tough situation, as your reasoning is sound in what he will laydown, but unfortunately there is no margin for error in your allin play. You correctly argue that he is likely to have a mid pair given that he calls a pf r with position on the original raiser, so you can probably assign 66-TT to his range, or maybe a few strong SCs from 87s-JTs. Then you come in from late position with a much bigger raise, and he calls again. As he is now going to be out of position for the rest of the time, and cannot (player dependent of course) profitably call with a SC hoping to flop 2 pair or better, you must give him credit for at least a mid PP, bumping his range up to 88-QQ. Obviously when the flop comes, both high cards fall within his preflop ranges, as does the turn card.
The warning bells are usually quite distinct after any player cold calls 2 very strong bets, although this doesn't often stop me from deluding myself I can make them laydown....

StudioGlyphic said...

Process Tamer sounds like something I need... not for poker, but some other rogue programs.