2013 Concept of the Week Threads
________________________________

5 Apr 13: When to play draws aggressively; Bloobird

Project CotW Update:

July 8: Turning made hands into bluffs; Aesah;updating this one

July 17: 3 Betting: YouFaiil

July 26: Realizing your equity: illini43

August 5: Using Poker Stove: Cangurino

August 14: Donking: DonkDonkDonkDonk

August 23: Playing small pocket pairs: xxMaquiladoraxx

September 1: Mental Game: DKBarrel

September 10: Adjusting to stack size: PitaPita

September 19: Preflop Raise Sizing: DreadX

September 28: Last Red Line Post Ever: mpethybridge

October 5: Defending 3 Bets: YouFaiil

October 14: Default line creation: xxMaquiladoraxx

October 23: Bluffs and Bluffing: PitaPita

November 1: Varying Opening Range and Size: DreadX




2012 Concept of the Week Threads
________________________________

3 Jan 12: Exploitative vs Balanced Strategies; RainbowBright

18 June 12: Delayed C-betting; udbrky

20 July 12: Bluffing; lunatic fringe

23 Sept 12: Slow Playing when facing a bet; lunatic fringe

9 Dec 12: Modern day card cheating in live games; blackchilli

17 Dec 12: How to make a setup with good ergonomics; Rapidesh123




2011 Concept of the Week Threads
________________________________

10 Jan 11: Execution In Poker; *Split*

24 Jan 11: "From Hell's Heart, I stab at thee" (you awful limpers), mtagliaf

31 Jan 11: Donking, DonkDonkDonkDonk (awesome!)

07 Feb 11: Restealing, mpethybridge

14 Feb 11: Isolation Plays; *COINFLIPS*

21 Feb 11: What We Can All Learn From Rush Poker; SammyG-SD

28 Feb 11: Playing AA; darlingm

09 May 11: Grinding Past Black Friday; udbrky

10 June 11: Realizing Your Equity; oldschool

25 July 11: Advancing your game (When nittiness no longer cuts it); DDAWD

31 July 11: Check/Calling; NJD77

1 Sep 11: Turn Check Raise Or Barrel?; oldschool

9 Oct 11: Varying Opening Range and Size; thejuggernaut


2010 Concept of the Week Threads
________________________________

04 Jan 10: Playing Small Pocket Pairs; Y2Dennis

11 Jan 10: Playing KK; mpethybridge

18 Jan 10: Computer Security for Poker Players; SilentNoise

25 Jan 10: Applying Baluga Theorem; breathweapon

01 Feb 10: Configuring Your HUD; *Split*

08 Feb 10: Playing Suited Connectors; babar86

15 Feb 10: Reg Wars!; Newmanmi

22 Feb 10: Playing Out of Position; Magodeoz84

01 Mar 10: Fold Equity; Waffe

08 Mar 10: Moving Up/Down Stakes; venice10

15 Mar 10: Playing Shorthanded; wmermus

22 Mar 10: Extracting Value (From Your Poker Site); KurtSF

29 Mar 10: Turning Made Hands Into Bluffs; SammyG-SD

05 Apr 10: Re-Stealing; Vanguard

12 Apr 10: Playing Limped Pots; toedder

19 Apr 10: Using the Overbet; DukeMuscle

26 Apr 10: The Game Behind the Homegame; pfapfap

3 May 10: Catching Cheats; blackchilli

10 May 10: Didn't happen

17 May 10: Preflop Betsizing and Game Structure; NewSkol

24 May 10: The Last Word on Red Line; mpethybridge

31 May 10: The Microstakes Mindset; springsteen87

7 Jun 10: Understanding Polarization; *Split*

17 Jun 10: The Micro Mindset; springsteen87

21 Jun 10: Playing Middle Pocket Pairs; xxMaquiladoraxx

28 Jun 10: Didn't happen

5 Jul 10: Why allinEV is a horrible measure of luck; funkyj

12 Jul 10: How to final table a WSOP event.; KurtSF

19 Jul 10: Introduction to Game Theory; Cangurino

26 Jul 10: Pitfalls of Common Thinking (thinking like a fish); macvolcan

2 Aug 10: Planning/Default Line Creation; *Split*

9 Aug 10: Using SPR at uNL; DonkDonkDonkDonk

16 Aug 10: A Conversation On Bet Sizing

23 Aug 10: I has toppest pair!; SammyG-SD

30 Aug 10: The Maths of Poker, Part 1; Lx12

27 Sep 10: Thinking About Combos; *Split*

15 Oct 10: Check-Raising The River; Lx12

28 Oct 10: The Money Ball Of Poker; ChazDazzle

8 Nov 10: Raising vs Completing from the Blinds Preflop in Limped Pots; Lx12

15 Nov 10: Getting Diamonds From Charcoal; *Split*

6 Dec 10: Showdown Value; gadolparah

12 Dec 10: Coping With Stress; Renseru



2009 Concept of the Week Threads
________________________________
02 Feb 09: Using PokerStove; a video course in ranges and equity; *Split*

09 Feb 09: Table Selection; Jasons0147

16 Feb 09: Preflop Positional Awareness; CaptVimes

23 Feb 09: Blind Stealing; Happy Pixel

02 Mar 09: Basic Cold Calling; Alex23

09 Mar 09: Isolating Limpers; KurtSF

16 Mar 09: 3 Betting; KNN05

23 Mar 09: Evaluating Board Texture; Bostik

30 Mar 09: Continuation Betting; Cangurino

06 Apr 09: Value Betting; Cry Me A River

13 Apr 09: Using and Reacting to Flop Check/Raises; mpethybridge

20 Apr 09: Blocking Bets; i vi ii V7

27 Apr 09: Advanced Cold Calling (I missed the flop, now what?); King Spew

04 May 09: Playing Draws; Rapid Evolution

11 May 09: Reacting to 3 Bets; mpethybridge

18 May 09: The River; Sounded Simple

25 May 09: Adjusting to Stack Size; Rapid Evolution

01 Jun 09: Getting the Most Out of PT3/HEM; pele02

08 Jun 09: Common Leaks; JLBorloo

15 Jun 09: Zen and the Art of BR Management; KurtSF

22 Jun 09: Exploiting Shortstacks; *Split*

29 Jun 09: Blind Defense; venice10

06 Jul 09: Evaluating Villains' Stats; mpethybridge

13 Jul 09: Starting Tables; jasons0147

20 Jul 09: Playing Professionally; Ronfar

27 Jul 09: Playing Deep; mpethybridge

03 Aug 09: Bluffs and Bluffing; Zeth

05 Aug 09: Let's Talk About Floating; Moya, with a special guest appearance by Digger the Dog--Unscheduled; this one just sort of happened.

10 Aug 09: Didn't happen

17 Aug 09: Playing the Turn; Sounded Simple

24 Aug 09: Hand Reading; I vi ii V7

31 Aug 09: Sizing Preflop Reraises; Vanguard

07 Sep 09: LOL, Villain Donked Into Me; RichBrown360

14 Sep 09: Squeeeeeeeze; Joopjan

21 Sep 09: Balance in Life and Poker; tcarr89

28 Sep 09: Releasing Your Inner LAg; Alex23

05 Oct 09: Adjusting to Live Play; notontilt09

12 Oct 09: Live Play Etiquette; venice10

19 Oct 09: Tilt Management; SwAyWithSkill

26 Oct 09: Post-Session Review and Note Taking; SammyG-SD

02 Nov 09: Three-Betting Redux; Hand Selection and Some Situations; GregGGhehe

09 Nov 09: Collecting Thin Value; joopjan

16 Nov 09: How to Deal With and Get Out of a Downswing; AFchung

23 Nov 09: Playing AK; I vi ii V7

30 Nov 09: Reasons to Bet; PokerRon247

07 Dec 09: Double Barreling; Ricky1231

14 Dec 09: Transitioning to LAG; *Split*

21 Dec 09: The Mental Game; zachvac

31 Dec 09: Digest of 2009 CotW Posts for New Players; mpethybridge

___________________________

Notes:

1. These topics are just to get us started; we can add more as time goes. I'm more or less out of ideas, so PM me ideas and I will add them in.

2. To sign up to write a "Concept of the Week," PM me and I'll add you as the author to the schedule.

3. When you sign up, you are committing only to start the thread, not holding yourself out as an expert. You can do so by writing a theory post, posting a hand history (or more) that pertains to the subject, or just asking some questions that pertain to the subject.

4. If you sign up to start the thread, START IT. I reserve the right to lower the ban hammer on oath-breakers who say they will start a thread and then let everybody down. I probably won't, but don't risk it.

5. If a subject is two weeks away and unassigned, I'll go looking for a volunteer; if it is one week away and unassigned, I will do it myself, so don't bother signing up less than a week in advance.

6. The current plan is for the "Concept of the Week," Thread to stay open and stickied for one week, and be locked when the next one gets posted. At the end of the week it is up for, the thread title in the original post here will be converted to a link to the thread itself.

GOGOGOGO!

Link? I couldn't find this.

TDK Rocks Tilt Management

Thanks.

Also, Sanabria signed up for next week's blind defense OP, but has not been around for a while and has not responded to a PM I sent him asking if he was going to do it. So I am assuming we won't see it; anybody want to take it over?

hmm blind defense....mine would be "Why, its the micros?"

Then you can't do it, lol, because:

a. better to learn HOW to defend your blinds when they are .05 and .10 than when they are $2 and $4; and,

b. the difference between losing .75bb/orbit and .40bb/orbit is 3.8bb/100 hands.

Big ty to mpethybridge for starting the "Official Stats and Graphs Analysis thread" and this CotW thread and to all the 2p2ers who contribute all this timely and insightful info. I've read HOCG, Slansky, ect but nothing has helped my game more than lurking on this forum.

That is all, just expressing my appreciation. I hope to give back in the future.


P.S. Another great free 2p2 resource : http://forumserver.twoplustwo.com/32...thread-340027/

+1

wow, what a wealth of knowledge here, thank you!!

actually no, because this is one of the most important and least understood ideas of the game that is absolutely crucial to moving up imo. however, if we didn't do it for that reason then the rest of the CotW shouldn't be done either. damn all you lurkers, give us something back or **** off imo.

i also think that there should be a post about some of the more math intensive spots of the game because it seems that barely anyone looks at that anymore, and yet it is the thing that underlies all of our decisions. however, i do think that that particular topic would draw rather heavily from some of the old CotWs and would thus be more of a grand synthesis with a little extra flavoring.

also, i wouldn't mind doing the preflop raise sizing even though it will definitely touch on stealing too. i know that it is something that everyone disagrees about but i could give my perspective on it.

1. KNN did a good job of getting people thinking in the right direction.
2. There are already great posts on the topic if you are smart enough and not too lazy to actually look for them.
3. There are people (like me) who subscribe to sites like DC, Stox, and CR that cover topics like this in depth; sure let's just give it away for free.
4. For the most part, this particular topic is -
a) Easily tackleable if you just think about ranges
b) Not necessary to think about beyond 3-betting for pure value

Oh yeah and split already did a PB on bet sizing.

i don't know if you have seen the last post that Kelisitaan (sp?) made before he was banned, but basically the point was that 2p2 is no longer a place that any of the mid-stakes and high-stakes (and small-stakes if you look at that forum) post real advice because of how widespread this place has become throughout the poker world. you are advocating the shutting down of the free flow of information because it is free and you pay. then why post on 2p2? what things are sacred and what things are not? you definitely learned to play poker somewhere, and if the spread of information is -ev for you, well you can stop, but this place shall continue. it is actually in the micro forums where things get taught. even though for me i did my learning from the stickies and through conversation. as an example, this was posted in SSFR thread and at least 2 people in that thread want it deleted because of the information it contains: http://forumserver.twoplustwo.com/96...et-all-559759/

also: there is an open CotW for preflop raise sizing, so that is what i was volunteering to fill in.

to be honest, i have thought long and hard about the posting of ideas on 2p2, but while i won't criticize anyone else for their decisions, i have yet to come to my own.

TBH, I don't think much of what is posted in the micro forum is really that much of a revelation to a SSFR or MSFR player.

For me, there is no question that I have learned far more than I have given out. On top of that, poker is far more fun/interesting if someone knows the basics. Teaching people to not be horrible at poker is +EV. If they don't feel completely out classed, they will continue to play.

There was a reality show that only made the Reality Network that covered Boston Rob and Amber (of Survivor fame) and Boston Rob's attempt at becoming a poker pro. DN was teaching Boston Rob. His comment hit home: "I've taught Boston Rob everything he knows. But I haven't taught him everything I know."

At some point, you have to work things out on your own. Those I keep to myself. However, if the right play is obvious, there's no reason not to share.

true, but it is still creating more regs. i do give out the obvious information (not to sound too defensive), my point was more that i vi was talking about the censoring of certain topics because of reason xxx and yyy. there just is no clear delineation where it starts and where it ends.

what is obvious to one person is not necessarily obvious to another imo. there are plenty of people who trash sites likes dc due to the information they spread.

But they charge money for the information. 2+2 is 100% free. My point was that certain info should not be given away for free when people like myself pays for it. Sure, I could just turn a blind eye and pretend that it didn't happen. But as a regular contributor to this particular forum, I should think that I have a little bit of say or that my opinion should mean something.

lol nits its my info to give and i can do with it whatever i want. I have never held back in posts if ppl think something about me i dont mind lvling with ppl its fine. You guys need to stop being nits honestly.

it flies by most ppls heads anyway.

i feel like saying oh 3 bet the btn cause ppl open c/o too much is just too little.

This post makes me angry.

1. Its your fault if you're paying for information that can be worked out on your own for free.

2. It will go over most people's heads anyway.

3. Withholding information from public posts (a) shows a basic misunderstanding of the poker environment and (b) actually does harm.

Look, its a maturing game. There are very few fish anymore and they're only in the micros. Most of the people on the tables, even in the micros, are regs. You need to learn how to beat regs. Its no longer 2006 and you can't setmine your way to profitability. If bad reg x has a huge leak with 3betting, he's going to get sick of losing and take his roll and buy an xbox and go on with his life and not think about poker again. Or you can teach him how to 3bet well, keep him in the game, and continue to adapt yourself.

Are posts such as the CoWs turning the games into a shark tank? Yes, but its been like that for a while. Anyone who doesn't know what they are doing is going to get cut up real fast, fact. Its been like that for a while and we aren't going back to the "good ol' days".

The real smart players have already started moving their income streams away from the tables; they are becoming coaches. There will always be true big dogs like Durrrr and kelistan who are going to kill the games. The medium sized dogs are smart to make money outside the games if possible. And the little dogs will be fed to the big dogs, as always.

So quit whinging about preserving the fish pool and learn to be a better poker player. I suggest talking with other people with similar interests as a great way to do that. Or go ahead and take your ball and go home.

I have no problem with people making money off their ideas.
So long as people - have either sought permission from the author of the idea or material - or can claim that the idea cannot be copyrighted or the manner in which the idea is explained is distinctly different - no seller of a poker product should have any qualms with the information being shared.

Information should be free.
But people's hardwork should be adequately compensated.
So just dont steal or plagiarise. And where possible or appropriate correctly attribute or acknowledge where the idea comes from. If any of that contravenes 2+2 own policies let the moderators sort it out.

Anyone not wanting to share their knowledge to a large extent - should really not be a part of an open forum such as 2+2. Their are plenty of places to socialise in the world - and even forums specifically designed for just that on 2+2.

If Greg believes he can add to CotW discussion on 3-betting and he puts effort into it - I think we should actively encourage him.

Greg, sorry, buddy, I completely forgot that you had posted here about doing a CotW. I was thinking about it, because knn05 already did the subject, and then it slipped my mind to respond.

My question to you is what exactly are you proposing that is different from knn05's CotW? Are you planning to focus in on a specific aspect of 3 betting? I'd like to see you do a CotW, I'm just not sure what you are proposing.

My thoughts on the recent discussion:

1. Digger, as usual, is 100% correct. The CotW threads are the sort of thing the 2+2 forums exist to facilitate. This is a strategy forum. The idea that we should not post strategy is completely contrary to 2+2's mission. If you disagree with posting strategy, then you should either convince the site owners it is bad (lol, good luck) or you should not be a member of the community.

2. This whole notion that posting strat makes the games tougher is silly as applied to the micros and probably to small stakes as well. The games are getting tougher independently of 2+2; DC, Stox, and the general legislative environment in the U.S., Germany and Italy have all had an effect on the games' difficulty. I don't really look at strat on 2+2 as the problem; I look at strat on 2+2 as our collective efforts to keep up with the folks who are paying big bucks to sit at the feet of Baluga Whale and other expert player/coaches.

3. I spent a few years as a college professor. Everybody in all of my classes had access to the same knowledge; not everybody got the highest grades. This is why I don't worry about strat being widely available.

4. Look at the high stakes forums. They are full of strat discussions. Sure, you can see people playing it close to the vest at times in those discussions, but the high stakes players are all smart enough to realize that even if they are expert, they can still learn from situations that come up in their game. When you say that you are against posting strat, imo, you are basically saying, "I have learned all there is to know, and now I want to keep it from other people." This makes me lol on several levels.

5. IMO as a moderator, posting in a strat thread that people should not post strat constitutes trolling and warrants infraction points and a ban for repeat offenses. As long as the (futile) discussion is kept to threads like this one, the reg threads and the chat threads, I have no problem with it. But I will take action against it if it shows up in strat threads.

6. The real problem with the games is not that strat is widely available. It is the barriers to entry that limit the number of the new fish, and create an environment in which everybody in the U.S., and a few other countries who deposits is, on average, more highly motivated than in 2005/6. If you are in the U.S.complaining about strat being posted but are not politically active trying to get the law changed, then your thinking on the subject is pretty poor, imo.

you've got it.

I mean im going to go into depth what kinda hands to 3 bet why u 3 bet them. I'm mostly going to focus on how to queeze out the most ev out of every hand and some misconceptions about 3 betting and what it actually accomplishes. Im going to focus on player types. You cant just 3 bet the same range vs all players, 3 betting is based on game flow and how the opponent see's you what kind of opponent it is.

How to adjust to several different opponents, ill give a fast example lets say u have been 3 betting the same opponent over and over and over again with trashy hands like K7ss, Q2ss,T5ss, ect...(I will discuss why 3 betting these hands vs ppl who fold alot is good vs 3 betting 67ss,78ss,JTss) and he is starting to adjust By calling QJ,KQ,TT,88,77. So now you have to change your range he isnt playing like a tag anymore he is now playing like a fish so you need to take out all the dominated hands like K7ss,Q2ss and put in a value range like AJ,AQ,KQ,JJ,. You would never 3 bet TT vs him before cause there is no point he doesnt call worse, but you might 3 bet it vs a fish.

Umm I will talk about other stuff 3 betting vs ep, creating image, How to better play in 3 bet pots. I mean there is soooooo much that knn skipped.

Ill talk about how you can 3 bet/fold AQ in some spot and where u have to call it. Ill talk about 3 betting KK vs calling against nits. I mean there is so much that isnt covered that I can cover. There seems to be alot of gap in logic about 3 bet pots like they just dont think what thier opponents think. People simply auto pilot 3 bet sc's and in most cases thats just ****ing atrocious.

I also wanna give a little tease on bluff raising on the flop and how its similar to 3 betting pre flop and how it all relates to maximizing the most ev out of every single spot

Anyway Im going to France in like 3 hours, I'll be back sept. 3rd or there about pm me if u have anymore questions mepthy

Way tO TRUMP ME WITH UR I WAS A COLLEGE PROFESSOR IM SO COOL BLAH BLAH BLAH, I SWEAR IF I WAS UR STUDENT I WOULD THROW PAPERS AT U!!!!!!!11111

rofl, I u. You would have been one among many, fwiw.

OK, the next open slot for a cotw is Nov. 2. That work for you?

have a great time in France!!!

yeh its fine, but i lied more like i would sleep at the back of the class then cram for ur final.