There are 3 main reasons why you want to 3 bet. Before you 3 bet you should have one of
6️⃣ them in mind:
For value
As a bluff
To set up a post-flop steal (or pre-flop
steal)
Value
We 3 bet for value because we6️⃣ believe our hand to be stronger than our
opponents hand, so we want to milk as much money out of6️⃣ our opponent as possible. The
best players to target with value 3 bets are those with a low fold-to-3 bet.6️⃣ This means
that they will call your 3-bet with a decent amount of worse hands. A common mistake is
to6️⃣ 3 bet a hand which may seem like a strong hand, but against the range that villain
continues with, is6️⃣ relatively weak.
In a 6-max game, especially at lower stakes, you
should only be 3-betting premium hands for value: 99+, AJss+.6️⃣ Please note that this
range will widen if you face a loose opponent. So if you're facing up against an
6️⃣ opponent who's going to call all of your 3-bets no matter what hand he is holding, then
you need to6️⃣ widen your 3bet range, 3bet more hands and raise it up more.
Generally you
want to 3 bet less often for6️⃣ value against early position opens. 3 betting vs early
opens looks very strong and you may end up isolating yourself6️⃣ against a range you don’t
do well against. Even with the top end of your value range, you may be6️⃣ getting folds
more often than you’d like, and flatting becomes a very viable option. Even hands as
strong as QQ6️⃣ and AKo, you can strongly consider flatting vs an UTG open-raise.
To
summarize you want to be value 3 betting against6️⃣ players with a 'low fold to 3 bet
(Ft3bet)' and a high 'Attempt to steal (ATS)'.
You want to be 36️⃣ betting a value range
of premium hands, and rarely/never bluffing. Flatting is often a good option against
early position opens.
Bluffs
You6️⃣ want to target players with a high Ft3bet and a high
ATS. If a player is not folding often enough6️⃣ to 3 bets then you will not have a
profitable 3 bet bluff. A high ATS means villain’s range will6️⃣ be wider in general and
he will find it harder to combat 3 bets.
Most often you will want to play6️⃣ 3 bet poker
as a bluff against positions where your opponent's range is going to be traditionally
wide, i.e -6️⃣ BU, CO, and SB opens. However, a better player might perceive your 3 bets
to be lighter against these positions6️⃣ and will play back more frequently. Against
better opponents you can make advanced plays such as 3 bet bluffing vs6️⃣ UTG or MP opens.
They won’t expect you to be bluffing here and may make some very tight folds.
The hands
6️⃣ you 3 bet bluff with should be those not quite strong enough to call, but still with
some potential. Hands6️⃣ like Q9s, T8s, Axs, Kxs. If a hand is strong enough to call, you
should not be 3 betting it,6️⃣ for the reasons given in the KQo example. If villain is the
type who will adjust by 4 betting light,6️⃣ you will also want to include some of the top
value hands in your 3 betting range. 3 betting the6️⃣ top end and bottom end of your range
is referred to as 3 betting a polarized range.
You will also want6️⃣ to 3 bet bluff
in-position more often than out-of-position, simply because you will have more You will
also want to6️⃣ 3 bet bluff in-position more often than out-of-position, simply because
you will have more fold equity in position.
To Set up6️⃣ a Steal
Perhaps villain is the
type that calls a lot of 3bets but plays fit-or-fold on the flop. You can6️⃣ 3 bet with
the intention of taking it down on the flop. You can 3 bet pre-flop with both bluffs
6️⃣ and value-hands, but it will possibly be easier and higher EV to do it with a
merged-value range. (You won’t6️⃣ lose EV by not flatting your medium value hands when
villain has a low Ft3bet)
In slightly more advanced games you6️⃣ can also 3 bet with the
intention of setting up a pre-flop steal. Perhaps you know villain is going to6️⃣ be 4bet
bluffing you a ton, so you can 3bet with the intention of 5 bet jamming as a bluff.
6️⃣ Good hands to choose are those that have the best equity if they do end up getting
called, eg pocket6️⃣ pairs like 88, or Axs type hands. The situations you can profitably
do this at the micro-stakes are somewhat rare,6️⃣ but they do exist.
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The preflop6️⃣ 3bet/4bet/5bet 'mind
game' battles:
This is an entire pre-flop game in itself. The objective is to adjust
the ranges you 3bet/4bet/5bet6️⃣ in an attempt to find an edge against your opponent’s own
3bet/4bet/5bet ranges.
The idea behind the 3bet/4bet/5bet game can be6️⃣ demonstrated
using a simple example:
Let’s suppose player A opens on the button. Player B who is in
the big-blind knows6️⃣ player A likes to open an extremely wide range from the Button.
Player B decides to 3 bet bluff.
player A6️⃣ likes to open an extremely wide range from
the Button. Player B decides to 3 bet bluff. Player A however,6️⃣ by now, knows that
player B knows that he is open-raising wide. Player A decides player B’s 3 betting
range6️⃣ is wide enough and light enough to put In a 4 bet bluff. Player B though, knows
that player A6️⃣ knows his 3 bet range might be light, and decides to 5 bet bluff assuming
player A’s 4 bet range6️⃣ is sufficiently light.
that player B that is open-raising wide.
Player A decides player B’s 3 betting range is wide enough6️⃣ and light enough to put In a
4 bet bluff. Player B though, that player A his 3 bet range6️⃣ might be light, and decides
to 5 bet bluff assuming player A’s 4 bet range is sufficiently light. Usually the
6️⃣ 3bet/4bet/5bet game ends here, because 100bb deep the stacks will often be all-in. Just
because player A and player B6️⃣ are assuming each other is light though, that doesn't
mean they are. Perhaps player B, knowing player A likes to6️⃣ 4 bet light, started 3
betting purely for value. Or, perhaps player A, knowing player B is capable of 56️⃣ bet
jamming light, started 4 betting purely for value. If either player had made such an
adjustment, they’d find themselves6️⃣ in a very profitable spot.
For the above situation
to take place, first the correct game dynamic needs to be established.6️⃣ At micro-stakes,
a dynamic conducive to 5 bet-bluff jamming is pretty rare. The majority of players
aren't 4 betting light6️⃣ enough for a 5 bet-bluff to be profitable. People do 3bet light
a decent amount however, so you should still6️⃣ be focusing on your 3 bet/4 bet ranges.
Usually you only want to 5 bet shove for value. This might6️⃣ sound “unbalanced”, but in
reality it isn't. You are just selecting the appropriate 5 bet frequency to exploit
your opponents,6️⃣ i.e 95% value 5% bluffs.
