In my newest book, The Course, I recommend playing very aggressively from the blinds if you are facing a potential steal. Whenever someone raises from the button or the cutoff, and you suspect that their raising range is wide enough to play in position, you should attack. In this situation, I suggest reraising with something like 20% from the big blind.
Twenty percent is a lot of hands, much more than just JJ+ or AK, which are typically the hands used to reraise. My recommendations include reraising with hands like K6s, A2s, and 33.
Many readers don't know what to make of this advice. They like the idea of fighting against loose blind stealers. However, they don't like the idea of playing these big pots holding K6s when they get called. They especially don't like the fact that they'll be playing out of position.
I recognize that this situation can get out of hand if you are playing against a strong player. This type of player will understand the dynamics of the situation well, and will rarely make mistakes that can be exploited.
Fortunately, though, you won’t encounter many players like this. You’ll probably be playing against whoever is in Seat 8. And for the most part, that player will play this pot weakly and predictably. A relatively formulaic strategy will get you out of these situations comfortably and profitably.
There are some basic principles to work with.
Principle 1: Your opponent will always give you credit for having a tight, strong range.
As I said above, 20% hands include a lot of not-so-good hands. However, even if your opponent realizes that you are somewhat light 3-betting at times, most players at $1/$2 and $5/$10 limits will tend to give your bet a lot of credit. So if they call your 3-bet, they will typically do so thinking that they are behind and that they probably need to hit the flop well to continue with strength in the hand.
These players tend to be willing to give up easily on a hand when they don't hit something strong.
Principle 2: Your opponent will always be afraid of you having AA, no matter how many times you make a weak play after the flop.
For a minute let's pretend you're the person stealing the blinds from the button and calling the 3-BET. A player with a stack of $1000 limped into a $2/$5 game, you raised to $25 with :8d :7d . The player in the big blind then reraised to $80. The limper folds and you called another $55.
The flop comes :Jh :7s :6s . The big blind bets $100 and you call. The pot is now $367. Think for a moment about what to consider in this situation.
The turn comes a :6h. You and your opponent check.
The river shows :3c . Your opponent then bets $400 into the pot with $367. What are you thinking now?
If you're like most people, you're worried that your opponent has pocket aces, pocket kings, or three of a kind. However, the biggest concern is the aces.
Your fear of pocket aces persisted throughout the hand. Despite the fact that your opponent checked the turn, he could potentially be planning to fold to a bet. The big bet on the river “confirms” your fear. If you are like most players at these levels, you would probably fold your pocket 7s to this river bet.
Principle 3: Your opponents will therefore play straight and clear in these pots.
If you bet big, your opponent will give you credit for a strong range of hands. If you check or act weakly on the flop or turn, your opponent will fear a trap. Therefore, even if your opponent has position on you, he will tend to bet from the big blind with very good hands to prevent you from completing your draws, check with medium hands to get to showdown, and hold back on bluffing for fear of a trap. They may fire once as a bluff to try to take down the pot, but most players are unlikely to bet on two or even three streets.
Of course, this principle is not universal. Stronger players will regularly violate this rule. However, if you find yourself out of position when 3-betting against a relatively unknown opponent, play according to these principles until you have more information. Let’s look at some examples to illustrate what these principles actually mean.
The game is $2/$5 with a stack of $1000. A player limps and the button bets $25. You, in the big blind with :Ah :3h , reraise to $80. The limper folds and the button calls after some thought.
The flop comes :Ad :9h :7s . Since your opponent will likely give you credit for a strong hand, it's unlikely that you'll get your opponent to call you more than once with a worse hand than yours. So your job here is to bet the river, while avoiding blowing too much money if you see that your opponent's hand has dominated you.
You can start by checking. If your opponent bets, you can call and check on the next street. If he bets again, accept that your hand is losing and fold.
More often than not, when you check a flop like this, your opponent will also check. Let's say a :Qd comes on the turn. You can either bet or check. If you bet and get called, your plan is to check-fold on the river (again, it's unlikely that your opponent will call the turn with a worse hand than yours and then try to bluff you on the river with it). You can also check the turn, and if your opponent checks, bet for value on the river. If your opponent bets the turn, you can check-call and then check-fold on the river.
The idea is that your opponent tends to double bet only with hands that beat yours. So it's best to check most of the time and try to bet at a plausible time to do so.
Now consider a second example. The preflop action is the same, and you have the same hand, :Ah :3h . The flop comes, this time, :9d :6c :4h . You bet $100 and your opponent calls. This is a difficult flop to hit, and your opponent could just be trying to do just that, hit a hand, and is therefore susceptible to folding hands like KQ and KT.
The turn comes :3s. You and your opponent check.
The river comes :Ks . You should probably make a big bluff, at least $300, in this $367 pot. Your opponent will be quick to give you credit for AK or AA and fold weaker hands.
Playing these pots with a 3-bet out of position can be surprisingly easy against the typical small stakes player. They will show you how strong they are by the river, and if they are weak, you can either take the hand to showdown or steal the pot.
Translated and adapted from the original: Poker Strategy With Ed Miller: Playing Three-Bet Pots Out Of Position
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