Lesson
Exploiting the Loose 3-Bettor: Value-Heavy 4-Betting
Exploiting Recreational Players · advanced · 9 min
Tyler and Eric discuss how to adjust four-bet strategy against loose aggressive recreational players who three-bet too often with small sizing and call too much versus four-bets. The lesson focuses on shifting from bluff-heavy four-bets to value-heavy four-bets, and on extreme exploit lines against players three-betting as much as 40-65%.
Key takeaways
- Against recreational players who overcall four-bets, reduce hands that rely on fold equity, such as suited king-x and suited connectors.
- Move more value hands into the four-bet range, such as Ace-Jack suited and King-Queen suited, because these hands benefit when the opponent continues too wide.
- Evaluate why a hand makes money: hands like Ten-Eight suited mainly profit when the opponent folds preflop, so they lose appeal against players who do not fold.
- Against an opponent three-betting an extreme frequency such as 40-65%, you can four-bet every hand in a normal under-the-gun opening range.
- Versus a 65% three-bettor, jamming low pocket pairs can be profitable because the opponent has higher pocket pairs too rarely to defend correctly.