PLO Professor Episode 6: All 4 cards playable and River Betting!

[@trevorcoleman9125]

Honestly love these videos so much. Easily my favorite poker content on the internet.

[@ploprofessor]

Ty so much for the awesome comment and Ty for watching!

[@vinultra7266]

Jon Favreau, thank you for these informative videos and keep up the great content!

[@ploprofessor]

Ty for watching!

[@jonasdainauskas6004]

Really thanks a lot for this content. Difficult things explained in a simple way. This is what I needed before going to study solvers and stuff

[@ploprofessor]

Ty so much for watching and Ty for the comments!

[@steveseattle140]

Thanks professor, the top 3 starting hands + AA strats helped me win $750 at the local 1/3 PLO, button straddle optional. My four biggest hands involved TT77 and a couple double suited Aces.

[@ploprofessor]

@@steveseattle140 love hearing good win stories like this! Ty for the comment and Ty for watching!

[@christinal2409]

Not me about to take notes with a pen and paper 🤓 PLO Professor on your way to 1k subscribers 🥳

[@gregorythomas531]

Good stuff .. I really liked that question about but ins..

[@300lbcanary2]

I'm only 10 days behind! Hopefully can catch up on a couple over the weekend. Keep up the good content! It is good reinforcement for my play, even though the games where I am (the dreaded Washington State) have bizarre structures, the online and trips to LV and TX I get to make occasionally, it is a solid base.

[@ploprofessor]

They have Capped betting in Washington State yes? I will tell you a story in a future video about Capped betting (they have that in Minnesota too).

[@300lbcanary2]

@@ploprofessor Yes capped raises and betting ($300 max bet, 3 raises max)

[@ricowz]

Very nice content. Much thanks !!

[@ploprofessor]

Ty for watching! Episode 11 just released today!

[@jennky8447]

Love the lesson, thanks!

[@ploprofessor]

Ty for the comment and Ty for watching!

[@the0freedom]

"And all of that is for free?" Thank you for the valuable content

[@ploprofessor]

TY! Appreciate the comment and ty for watching!

[@ronaldswiller7716]

love the videos. Can you explain when someone says you are blocking yourself

[@ploprofessor]

First of all excellent question! Ty for watching and Ty for asking. So last night I was at the Green Bay game and I had 5567. 6 way action pre (for like 20). Flop comes 567. You are blocking all your full house draws. Normal set has 7 outs on the flop and 10 outs on the turn (about 30 percent equity). In this situation…. With having a set and two of your own outs you are blocking your own outs vs a str8. 5567 on a 567 board only has 5 outs on the flop and 8 outs on the turn (about 20 percent equity) - pretty substantial difference! Great question!

[@schotten]

great episode again, thanks. could you discuss some pros and cons and strategies regarding small stack buy in, let‘s say 100 bb in a 5/5 game

[@ploprofessor]

I will make sure to cover that in Episode 7! Ty for the comment

[@ItsEverythingElse]

How you ever discussed straddling? I've always thought it to be negative EV but am curious to hear your thoughts. In the cash games I play I'd say the straddler re-raises half the time after getting 2 to 5 limpers.

[@ploprofessor]

Straddling really depends on a few things. 1- some plo games prefer zero straddles (25/25) at rivers. 2. Some games they are basically mandatory (any plo game in mgm Detroit if hard rock property). 3. Others - honestly depends on stack sizes. If you are 1000+ bb deep and several of your opponents are - it stars to make sense with stealing’straddling. 4- only do what your comfortable with - just keep in mind if you are at a place where 7 or 8 players are straddling in a plo game and you decide not to - you will be viewed as a nit and by default will get less action - use that to your advantage if that’s the route you choose! Choose wisely! Ty for comment and ty for watching!

[@TeeheeFr0g2]

These videos are excellent and every day I edge more to leaving Hold em in the dust lol! Will there also be an adjustment video for 6 handed online micros/low? That's the best option for me rn so some of these full 9 handed moments aren't applying real well

[@ploprofessor]

Yes, I will be covering online play in one of the next 3 videos! Ty for watching!

[@mumblesbadly7708]

Something that I find quite refreshing when playing a marathon session is puking in the bushes outside after downing a few or three hot coffees with cream.

[@bengershenov2503]

love the videos. im just getting into plo and i love it. Do you offer private coaching?

[@ploprofessor]

Yes. text me for details. 906.361.2509

[@mikaelstrom6878]

Like your videos !!!! Super! I play most micro online (just started) we play most 6 handed. Any changes in strategi

[@ploprofessor]

I believe online play is episode 9 - stay tuned (not too much change there - but there are some key differences)

[@fredsmit3481]

Josh, I'm a 2/5 player and thinking about learning PLO. Your videos came at a perfect time for me. I play at MGM National Harbor in MD and they play 5 card PLO and Big O which is also 5 cards. Will you be covering the 5 card game?

[@ploprofessor]

Yes I have 1-2 episodes specifically on 5 card. You can still use most of the same principles (except instead of 99xx your smallest range with pocket pair should be JJxxx)….. but many of the same principles apply

[@nintendolover82]

Awesome! Can you make a video on 3 betting and 4 betting in live low stakes? Also I find myself bleeding money on 3 Broadway cards with a dangler should I just be folding these? Playing them with a suit? Etc

[@ploprofessor]

I can see if I can add a video with ranges for 3 bet pre and 4 bet pre! Great questions! I like 3 broadway cards with a dangler - particularly if it’s AQT 2-5….. if you are debating on hands like KQJx….. unless your on the button or straddled with no raise I would not play that. It’ll just get ya in trouble

[@ligafftheindifferent3495]

The professor probably advocates playing them on the button. But if that is viable, that is the ONLY place you want to play these. (Personally, if I am playing a game with a tiny blind structure like 1-2 5 to go, I just muck all of these. A hand like that, even played well, can probably not even beat the rake. You can have a gap or two if they are towards the bottom, but that is it. QJ97 single suited is marginally playable. QT87 single suited is junk. Even QJT4 ds is junk. As your ranks get lower, you need even better connectivity and two suits. You won't really want to draw to these suits, but you will make them on backdoors and they can serve as nut flush draw blockers, which improves your odds when you get all in on a board with a wrap and a flush draw vs a nut flush draw. NOTE: I am not talking about hands with a nut flush. These can be played with a dangler, though I prefer to fold the ones with poor connectivity and mostly low cards. As9s6h3d is pretty weak OOP. But AsKsJd4h is playable for a single raise.

[@ploprofessor]

@@ligafftheindifferent3495 this is accurate. 3 to broadway with a dangler (without a suited ace) I generally only play on the button. Keep in mind everything is situational….

[@joemarcklinger724]

Good job, thanks, appreciated

[@ploprofessor]

TY for watching! Episode 7 should be out tomorrow!

[@dogperson432]

Maybe I misunderstood it in the video, I went over it a few times but I didn't see it clarified - if somebody makes a blocker bet on the river how can you check raise the minimum? Don't you just mean raise the minimum? We're not check raising small river bets OOP are we?

[@ploprofessor]

Check raising (min) on the river looks exceptionally strong. So yes we are mixing those in.

[@ploprofessor]

Also…. Try it a couple of times when you recognize someone outs out a small blocker bet on the river and you raise min…. They’ll fold most of the time (keep in mind player dependent)

[@mumblesbadly7708]

I once bought a new Armitron watch after a huge win I had at a low stakes game. 🤗

[@ligafftheindifferent3495]

Does WSOP in Nevada have Omaha action?

[@ploprofessor]

Yes very much so!

[@frankwashington86]

Do you have a starting hand list for nl holdem?

[@ploprofessor]

I do; and that is very dependent on tournament vs. cash game, and what kind of cash game....There are a ton of GTO tables out there for starting hands in hold em because there is only like 1300 combinations of starting hands in hold em; where PLO has like 270,000 or something like that.

[@frankwashington86]

1/2 cash game in a casino.

[@macdre1610]

Yeeeeee

[@MrCoreyTexas]

I don't know what 1-2 5/10 means, I'm an online player, not live yet. I went back and looked at earlier videos, and you don't explain. Best I can think is, there's a $1 ante, small blind=$2, big blind=$5, and straddle=$10?

[@ploprofessor]

My apologies on the late reply - 1/2/5 or 1/2/10 means blinds are 1/2 and the Bring in (if you limp) is $5 or 1/2/10 means its $1/$2 blinds with a mandatory $10 straddle. Hope that helps!

[@NeiltheDeal]

Do you 3 bet Ace high suit cards pre flop? If so how often?

[@ploprofessor]

Keep in mind everything is situational. I'm going to mix in my 3 betting hands that are super strong (like AA DS) with some hands that are weaker, but that all 4 cards still play with each other; Like A789 ds, or even QQJT. If I am in position I'm more likely to 3 bet with those hands, but I will mix in some 3 bets with them even out of position. Keep in mind 3 betting pre gets you a lot of information; if you get 4 bet, super good chance you're up against AA, then at that point it implied equity (stack sizes) will play a big part...

[@ploprofessor]

And to answer your question a little further, if you have A4J8 with just a suited ace, no, I'm generally not going to 3 bet with a hand like that b/c the hand isn't connected enough for the equity to be high. Hope that makes sense (there is a great range of suited aces in PLO)

[@NeiltheDeal]

@@ploprofessor Thanks professor, I just started getting into PLO and this is useful information.

[@benhanfling4524]

Why would you min raise a blocker bet with a hand that has equity like bottom set? Shouldn’t that be a call and you raise with hands where you missed your draw or maybe have one pair?

[@ploprofessor]

Because a blocker bet will have enough equity to call, and if they are super nutted, they will re-raise (so you would be going for thin value). I would only do this against certain opponents in certain situations - also SPR is something you do have to pay attention to. Ty for the comment and ty for watching!

[@lvzee]

Much better if pair at bottom of rundown. JT99 much stronger than 9987. More sets combined with nut straights or nut straight draws

[@happywednesday6741]

You're the professor, but 20 buy ins for PLO seems close to the knuckle for me! (All about your risk tolerance I guess). Having 10 coin flips (or even 60%ers) going against you depending on sample is not that low, not talking 10 in a row but just 10 over a decent sample.

[@ploprofessor]

I can understand; and everyone's comfort level is different. The challenge that many players run into PLO is when they start playing, they don't apply basic principles and end up losing their whole bankroll. One of my students said to me this week that their sister plays PLO and mentioned how they are always "priced in." - a term very commonly used in Hold em. Their sister still has that Hold em hat on and still hasn't learned to find their fold! If you apply the principles correctly, 20 buy ins should be enough to handle the swings both up and down.

[@ligafftheindifferent3495]

When a 4-bet would allow AAxx to get an SPR near 1, isn't 3-betting with an Aceless hand too risky, especially if there probably won't be much dead money if you wind up calling the 4-bet and getting heads up? And isn't that danger far greater when you have KKxx with no Ace? In fact, doesn't that danger make 3-betting with Kings a bad idea unless you just plan to fold them to a 4-bet, but even then, it seems the overall value of KKxx is not enough to take the risk. If you do have an Ace, the risk of facing AAxx is cut in half, but when it does happen, aren't you also in a bad spot? Finally, it also seems wrong to only 3-bet with AAxx, since that becomes easy to read and will often create awkward SPR situations. With this in mind, It seems like 3-betting is only really sound if stacks are deep enough to have a decently large SPR even after a 4 bet. Is this wrong?

[@ploprofessor]

Yes! 3 betting and 4 betting pre is largely dependent upon starting hand and STACK SIZES! If you are deep enough your 3 betting range should be wider (provided your opponents are deep too)! If you are short stacked - you can still 3 bet with plenty of hands just realized you may be committed to playing for all your chips depending on your stack size and hand! Great question and comment!

[@barriedear5990]

Hmm, top-gappers?

[@Maineventguy]

I feel priced out of PLO. The smallest games it feels like you still need $1k every time you go. Love the videos just can't afford to implement them right now lol.

[@ploprofessor]

It def. can be intimidating. When your bankroll can afford it then go to Omaha; otherwise, try getting your local 1/2 game to do Round by Round. Still plenty of room to move around with in a 1/2 PLO game!

[@trevorhohner4645]

I know nothing is said in absolutes, but I'm confused by the message. On one hand, you're saying to down bet rivers for value frequently against the tighter players, but on the other hand you're saying that when opponents block bet the river they never have it. How are you distinguishing between someone else down betting for value rather then block betting?

[@ploprofessor]

Most of the time when someone down bets in PLO they have missed their draws….. in low stakes plo when people hit their draws on the river they make the common mistake of betting pot, and they tend to do it quickly. When you have it on the turn and on the river - you should down bet because it looks weak and it’s most likely the best way to get called by tighter players. If you are against an experience plo player like myself and I see you downbet I’m likely to raise you, and if you have the nuts you’re going to get paid more…. Keep in mind everything is situational

[@MrCoreyTexas]

Never heard that 9987 > JT99, I'll have to think about that.

[@charliechien4191]

Do you ply any 5card plo?

[@ploprofessor]

I do and I will cover some basics to 5 card PLO strategy in a future episode (will be after the tournament episodes are done)

[@MrCoreyTexas]

I've always thought fold equity meant there's a good chance your OPPONENT will fold to a bet / bluff, NOT that you have pocket aces and have to fold YOURSELF to get out of the way of a monster. So your terminology confuses me

[@mumblesbadly7708]

Looking forward to losing a BUNDLE playing low stakes PLO!!! 🤗🤗🤗

[@ploprofessor]

Keep in mind everyone has expensive lessons in PLO. I’m hoping these videos can decrease the cost of those lessons so you can play smart, crush it, and run like a god sir!

[@mumblesbadly7708]

@@ploprofessor The PLO game where I normally play NLHE is usually super wild. I’m seriously considering taking a stab at it, but I don’t want to lose too much such that I couldn’t afford to replace me aging Armitron.

[@davidlarsen1981]

Its well known PLO is a postflop game. I feel you are talking too much about hot/cold equity and not enough about playability. I almost never 3 bet kings unless its good kings with a suited ace or some conectivity. Same with aces. You want some playability with those aces. 3betting often screams aces to the table. So if tou have AA94ss.. what areyou hoping to flop except an ace or like 226r. Especially OOP. AA KK hands are often just set-mining 1-trick pony hands imo. Maybe thats too weak..

[@ploprofessor]

I think if you personally rarely 3 bet with aces, my guess is you rarely 3 bet pre with rundowns and hands you should be 3 betting with. Everything is situational; and maybe the regular game you are playing at is more tight, but even if that's the case, that's even more reason why you should be opening your 3 betting range preflop. PLO is mostly a postflop game and more about intuition than studying charts....but at some point the 3 bet pre when you have higher equity should start becoming a bigger factor in your game. If you watch PLO cash games that are streamed, notice how the equities with stronger hands are good compared to the amount of people going to the flop.

[@davidlarsen1981]

@@ploprofessor but what is often misunderstood in my opinion is that preflop equity doesn't directly translate into profits. Playability, position are huge factors in turning that preflop equity into profit. It's a POT limit game, it would be easy if we could just shove all our +equity hands Allin ;) A 3-bet is often conceived as AAxx(X), so if you more often than not have AA in your ACTUAL 3 bet range you play like n open book. Sure we can 3 bet a whole more. But sitting in a 3% $300 cap rake game for example (like all games in Cyprus) doesn't call for a very active playstyle where we can try to steal a lot of small/medium sized pots. Any idea how much and at what rake limit, it dictates wether or not we can play more aggressively with our pre raises/3bets?

[@ploprofessor]

@@davidlarsen1981 I know the rake is huge is cypress! Generally is the rake is 10 percent with a cap of 5-8 bucks per pot that’s the max. Any higher (like Australia is 15 per pot and I believe cypress or other places have no cap)…. Super hard to beat. It’s easy to say to pick another game or play elsewhere but I understand that’s not an option many times. I honestly don’t know what the solution would be with the rake being super high….if the action is super good I’m surprised they would have a cap on the game. My biggest suggestion would be to raise the max buy ib

[@davidlarsen1981]

@@ploprofessor well min buyin is 100BB and there are no caps on max buyin so that's a plus i guess. I don't know anywhere where there is a cap on buyin for PLO and I live in Austria, the former poker Capital of Europe, unfortunately all card casinos here had their licenses revoked two years back :(