I originally posted this on the PT Stud forum, and hope no one minds me cross-posting it here. All comments welcome (preferably not rude ones, as I'm a newbie !!
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Reason for the post, is that I’ve been using PTS for a month or so now and have been working on some new Auto Rate rules for Stud HiLo (they may work for Stud as well, but I’m concentrating on HiLo, as it’s what I play). I’d love to get some feedback from people as to what they think, especially since some of the “middle of the road” players aren’t easily classifiable (unlike in Hold Em for example, where putting people into distinct categories is a lot more straightforward)
My criteria when playing Stud HiLo is fairly simple though. I need to know 2 things as soon as possible (preferably within 30 hands, which is when I set PTS to AutoRate).
1) Who to target (ie, the Fish and Calling stations) and
2) Who to avoid (the Rocks, and Eagle type players)
The two criteria I’ve concentrated on are V$iP and W$@SD.
With the V$iP I broke it down into 5 categories : Very Tight (under 20), Tight (20 - 30), Semi Loose (30 - 45), Loose (45 - 70) and Very Loose (over 70) - Note these classifications are at odds with the ones you’d typically use for HoldEm, as, since there are 3 starting cards not 2, there are a wider range of starting hands you could (although not necessarily should) play. In HoldEm, if you’re playing more than about 30% of the hands, you’re toast real quick.
With the W$@SD they fell into 4 main categories : Bad (under 45), Fair (45-60), Good (60-70) , and Very Good (over 70)
This in theory gives me 20 categories, but in actual fact Stud HiLo throws up some major anomalies. For example, irrespective of V$iP, nearly everyone with a W$@SD of over 70 wins money, irrespective of how many hands they play (I have 6 exceptions out of 1,000 players logged).
Also, players who put less than 20 V$iP nearly always win money (I have only 8 of those listed), but those between 20-30 have wildly varying results. Then, those that play 30-35% seem to win again. I suspect this is down to playing style more than anything else, but this is where I know I need help doing the analysis.
One thing to note, and it shows in my categorisations, everyone who wins less than 45% loses money. Period, no exceptions. This makes perfect sense of course, if you think about the way HiLo works. If you’re winning less than 50%, even when you win you’re still losing money to other players, or the rake. The reason I’ve set the boundary at 45% is because it shows up those losers a lot quicker.
Ok, onto the categories
First up, the Maniacs. They’ll play virtually anything, and win a lot. Why, I have no idea, but they do, and my first priority is to avoid them, hence why they’re listed first. V$iP > 70, and W$@SD > 70.
Next, The Gambler - As the name implies, they either win loads, or lose loads. I simply keep an eye out for them (hence the 2nd category rating), see if they’re a winner or loser, and play accordingly. V$iP > 70, and W$@SD > 55
Now onto the ones who make you money. First, the calling station - They always lose, and put tons into the pot doing so. V$iP > 70, and W$@SD < 45
Then the Fish - They lose, but take longer to do so only because they put less into the pot. V$iP > 45, and W$@SD < 45
Finally, the rest of the Bad players. You know they’ll lose, you just don’t know how - Watch the V$iP as chances are they simply play very few hands (ie, are tight), but they seem to play them badly (don’t lay down dead hands soon enough, or call for too long before folding) W$@SD < 45
Next onto the Loose players. First up is the Loose / Very Good. Play less hands than the maniac, but nearly always winners It’s possible to trap them, but I try to keep out of their way with less than premium hands. V$iP > 45, and W$@SD > 70
Loose / Good - Mixed bag. Most are winners, but there are some horrendous losers too. V$iP > 45, and W$@SD > 60
Loose / Fair - Tend to find more losers than winners here. Probably because I have them at the lower end of the W$@SD. V$iP > 45, and W$@SD > 45
Ok, next two are ones I want to avoid as well. First is the Rock (Very Tight, Very Good). Never seen one lose, and hate playing them. Play premium hands only, won’t chase, and if they bet, chances are they have the nuts. V$iP < 20, and W$@SD > 70
Tight / Good (Eagle). These guys do lose, and this is where I need some help, as I don’t seem to be able to work out why. Could be laying down hands to early, when they should chase, or not aggressive enough. Haven’t run any analysis against it, so if anyone has ideas, please let me know. V$iP < 30, and W$@SD > 60
Semi Loose / Good - Mixed results with these, and again could do with help narrowing down the winners from losers. V$iP < 45, and W$@SD > 60
Semi Loose / Fair - Mostly losers or break even players here (basically, they’re losing to the rake). V$iP < 45, and W$@SD > 45
The PTS import file is below
Autorate Rules PTS Begin
Aggression:N
ARI_10 1 Caution - Maniac
1 1 70.00 Vol. Put Money In Pot % is greater than 70.00
4 2 70.00 Won $ At Showdown % is greater than or equal to 70.00
ARI_8 2 Gambler
1 1 70.00 Vol. Put Money In Pot % is greater than 70.00
4 2 55.00 Won $ At Showdown % is greater than or equal to 55.00
ARI_12 3 Target - Calling Station
1 1 70.00 Vol. Put Money In Pot % is greater than 70.00
4 1 45.00 Won $ At Showdown % is greater than 45.00
ARI_2 4 Target - Fish
1 1 45.00 Vol. Put Money In Pot % is greater than 45.00
4 4 45.00 Won $ At Showdown % is less than or equal to 45.00
ARI_5 5 Bad
4 4 45.00 Won $ At Showdown % is less than or equal to 45.00
ARI_4 6 Loose / V Good
1 1 45.00 Vol. Put Money In Pot % is greater than 45.00
4 1 70.00 Won $ At Showdown % is greater than 70.00
ARI_3 7 Loose / Good
1 1 45.00 Vol. Put Money In Pot % is greater than 45.00
4 2 60.00 Won $ At Showdown % is greater than or equal to 60.00
ARI_7 8 Loose / Fair
1 1 45.00 Vol. Put Money In Pot % is greater than 45.00
4 1 45.00 Won $ At Showdown % is greater than 45.00
ARI_9 9 Avoid - Good player
1 4 20.00 Vol. Put Money In Pot % is less than or equal to 20.00
4 1 70.00 Won $ At Showdown % is greater than 70.00
ARI_15 10 Tight / Good
1 4 30.00 Vol. Put Money In Pot % is less than or equal to 30.00
4 2 60.00 Won $ At Showdown % is greater than or equal to 60.00
ARI_6 11 SL / Good
1 4 45.00 Vol. Put Money In Pot % is less than or equal to 45.00
4 1 60.00 Won $ At Showdown % is greater than 60.00
ARI_14 12 SL / Fair
1 4 45.00 Vol. Put Money In Pot % is less than or equal to 45.00
4 1 45.00 Won $ At Showdown % is greater than 45.00
Autorate Rules PTS End
I know it needs improvement, but I have the 5 ones in there I want to spot (Maniac, Fish, Calling Station, Bad and Rock) and thye're easy to do so.
As I said, sorry for the long first post. Hope this all made sense, and please feel free to comment.
Thx
Alien
