Welcome, and Project #1

A brief note on my background: I have been playing poker for over 2 years and have read a variety of materials. I possess reasonable knowledge and skill with Texas Hold'Em, Omaha Hi/Lo, Pot Limit Omaha, Stud, Stud Hi/Lo, Razz, H.O.R.S.E., Badugi and 2-7's Single and Triple Draw. I recently began performing research on Texas Hold'Em and Omaha Hi/Lo using Wilson Software's Turbo software.

This blog will allow me to log progress on my research projects, using this simulation software and other methods when feasible. My goals with every project is to find workable solutions to common challenges, many of which haven't necessary seen a concrete solution.

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My first project focuses on low limit Texas Hold'Em, namely $3/$6 cash limit play, the limit most typically offered in cardrooms across America. Many argue that the rake cannot be beaten in a cardroom below the $4/$8 level. Some cling to their copy of Small Stakes Hold'Em and insist, as the book does, that such a game can be beaten when action is very loose.

Given the information we have available, both sides are totally correct. Using common solid strategies, a typical $3/$6 limit game, with a 10% $3 max rake with a $1-2 jackpot drop (and, if you're not stingy, a $1 toke for the dealer for each pot) and 4-5 players seeing each flop, cannot be beaten for more than half a big bet an hour, if at all. And, if the game is very loose, with more than 5 players seeing every flop, using the strategy outlined in Small Stakes Hold'Em can allow you to play very profitably.

However, most 3/6 limit games aren't that loose these days, and more often see 4-5 players per flop. Many of these players still play poorly, but more now than ever we see one or two reasonably solid, profitable players among them, against whom you're competing for the other fishes' money. In that scenario, it is very tough to turn a profit in the long run.

The goal is to explore current strategies for 3/6 Hold'Em, break down the profitability of these strategies and use my findings to fine tune and optimize these strategies to the cardroom conditions we see today. I intend to explore every facet of various preflop and postflop strategies, plus experiment with different strategies, to find leaks and hidden values. It is my belief that a deconstructed and reconstructed strategy for this game can turn a more significant profit, without looser conditions, than is believed possible today.