Hi poker winners (and future poker winners)! I'm Frank Reese

[Frank]

Author of the book Poker Beginner to Poker Winner in 1,000 Hands.

I've been playing poker online and live for a little over three years. I was a break even to slight loser online and a significant loser in live play until I found a strategy that was once used very effectively for 20 big blind play. Since minimums were raised to thirty big blinds, it was abandoned. I modified it for 30BB play, then I tweaked it while I played it for hundreds of buy-ins, thousands of hands. It turned my win rate in the right direction and turned poker from a relatively cheap hobby to a successful part-time hobby business.

To help new beginners be successful, I wrote that book and published my website here.

Keep Calm and Re-Buy!

Frank

[seymourflops]

Hi!   I'm Seymour! *rolls eyes*

I've been playing poker since the days where you were just as likely to lose your money walking out of the card room as lose it at the table and the po-lice would just laugh if you reported you got robbed of your poker winnings. But I'm glad poker is more civilized and family friendly. Poker should be a family game, my mom and dad taught me to play and it was some of the best times I had as a kid. 

I don't play online, except for a little rainy day practice now and then.  But you can find me in playing in Louisiana, Lake Charles most of the year, N'awlins during Mardi Gras, or anywhere the tourists are there to drink and lose money. 

I'm OMC and proud of it.  When I finally raise you, I either have the nuts, or a hand that is just enough to beat yours or just nothing at all. 

[gt]

Hey Frank and Seymour.

Gregg here.

Slightly losing or winning player online.

Depends what day it is.

Never got into short stacking so I’m reeeeeeeeeeally curious to see how this plays out.

Just played 115 hands on two tables at 2NL full ring ACR after purchasing book.

Ended up +26.09 BB/100 and it was a little boring btw hands but the hands themselves were fun to play!

Will be giving this some serious effort going forward.

[Frank]

Welcome to the forum, gt!

I'm glad to hear that you're able to play 2NL.

I get the boring part and it feels like work sometimes. But if making money playing poker is your goal, I think it will be worth it.

Do you mind if I ask how you heard about the book?

[gt]

Hey Frank.

I found your article reviewing a card room in Texas, ended up buying the Plan.

Very interesting way to learn, especially micro stakes.

Big plus is that I prefer full ring,

Started 10NL last night for the thousand hand challenge.

More today.

Playing on ACR min buy in is 40BB so I’ve been cashing out at 60BB and opening slightly wider in LP depending on table dynamic.

Also applying more pressure dropping towards 30BB instead of 20BB.

Does that seem reasonable or would you suggest something else?

If it’s in the book or on website, haven’t found it yet.

Nice work, thanks!

[Frank]

Gregg, I think you are exactly on the right track. Funny you should say that, because I'm lately experimenting with a 40BB starting stack to create a default strategy for that starting size. James "Splitsuit" Sweeney calls that cap stacking, but there isn't much in the way of lessons about it. It does say that the advantage of 40 over 20 or 30 is that your bluffs have more credibility.

I haven't run trial after trial as I have with 30BB, but my suggestion would be to add QJo and T9s to your button and cutoff range, but not your range in the blinds. You might could add ATo, but if you do not get folds, and it flops a pair with either card, it can turn into a danger hand as I describe in the book. The important thing is to decide before you play which extra hand specifically you will play, not just think 'I'll play more hands." That way you stay disciplined.

But you wouldn't go wrong, just sticking to the default even at 40BB, especially for your first ten buy-ins. When you do the next ten buy-ins playing adjusted, you should check the players to your left to see if they give up their blinds or defend them.

Please let me know if you have any issues with anything on the website or with the winrate spreadsheets.

Keep calm and re-buy!

[seymourflops]

Hi Gregg and welcome to the forum!