3-Betting in Poker and How To Combat It
I hate it when someone 3-bets me. And I get furious when someone keeps 3-betting me. When it happens though I try to remain cool and think about what range they are doing it with.
I use Hold'em Manager so I get statistics on how often my opponents 3bet.
Okay so I raise from the button and this guy (picture to your left) 3-bets me from the big blind.
I know he 3-bets 8% of his range. We can just assume that this 8% means the top of his range.
Also when I look at the 3-betting stat I want a pretty large sample so I know it is fairly accurate.
If someone's 3-betting sample is 10 then that's not enough. He could have picked up a big hand a few times and that then skews his 3-bet stats way too much. When you have over 500-1000 hands on someone you can be pretty sure that the accuracy is decent enough.
Back on topic... After I have this 8% stat I go to PokerStove and input it so I can see what range of hands he's doing this with (see picture below).
Alright, cool. Now we can see what approx. 8% means. Looks like he's 3-betting some pretty good hands.
First thing I start to think about is--when is a 4-bet profitable? For that I use StoxEV. I'll leave the screenshot out because it is so big. Basically what StoxEV does it calculate the Expected Value of a play after you've input the hands, possible actions etc.
Okay so I put in that we raise $3.5 with 87s ($0.5/1NL as an example) and BB re-raises to $12, we 4-bet to $26. Then I assumed that he will go allin with JJ+ and AK* and fold the rest. If he goes all-in, we have to fold.
Our 4-bet is marginally profitable in this spot. The EV is +1.61. Almost not worth it.
Now I start experimenting with the variables a bit.
Instead of having 87s I give myself A5s (this discounts some of his AK and AA because I have one ace). Now the play becomes +2.48 EV, a bit better.
Let's vary our pre-flop raise size and make it $3 instead of $3.5. His 3-bet then becomes $10.5 and our 4-bet can be $24. This didn't change our EV much, in fact it made it worse (+1.71 EV).
If we change our 4-bet to $22 then it becomes +2.41. So you see there isn't much room if someone is 3-betting 8% of his hands. You can 4-bet just to keep him off you, make him 3-bet less. In general I would take it easy and 4-bet occasionally against a player like this.
In the beginning I would most likely slowplay my big hands like QQ+, just call and see a flop, let him continuation bet and then raise or call depending on the situation. Once I've shown that I am capable of slowplaying I will increase the frequency of big hands in my 4-betting range.
Keep in mind though that if the opponent isn't paying attention and my strategy is working then there is no need to change anything. Once he adapts, I adapt.
* Note: sometimes players can't even fold TT to a 4-bet. In that case I would start 4-betting less often as a bluff and start 4-bet getting it in with JJ+, AK+.
Vs. Someone Who 3-Bets 12%
Let's look at someone who 3-bets 12% of hands (see below).
Can you see the difference? More offsuit broadways in there. KQo, KJo, ATo, those combinations add up.
Back to StoxEV, with all the same variables (except his 3-bet). We now get an EV of +6.22 on our 4-bet. That's better and now you can start 4-betting him more often.
If he has a brain he will start to adapt if you're 4-betting him so he notices. He might adapt in the following ways...
- 3-bet less
- Call your 4-bets
- Go all-in with a wider range
And you in turn have to adapt to how he is adapting. That's a topic for another time.
Don't Commit Yourself
Make sure you do not commit yourself when 4-betting. If someone re-raises absurdly big and you have to 4-bet more than 30% of your stack then just leave it. If you 4-bet more than 30% of your stack you are often commited to call a shove. That means bad news for you.
Don't Overdo it
The 4-bet is to be used sparingly. Do it so often so your opponents still think you have a very strong hand. That's a good general rule.
What About Calling 3-Bets?
That is another topic and deserves it's own article. If you call 3-bets you don't have the initiative which sucks. I would advise calling with strong hands which you can continue playing postflop. Kind of like my strategy of calling with QQ+ and playing post-flop as you deem fit.
What About Pocket Pairs?
If you're thinking about calling over 10% of your stack to hit a set, forget it. Look at that 8% range again and think about how many of those hands can give you action IF you hit a set.
Even a hand like JJ will think twice about stacking off if you hit a set because overcards can come, the board can look scary. He might just be afraid. And on it goes.
Summary
- Learn how often your opponent is 3-betting
- Think about if a 4-bet is profitable
- Don't commit yourself
- Don't 4-bet too often unless you have a specific strategy in mind
- Don't setmine with the lower pocket pairs
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