100 player-type reads for live cash games

Calling Station

The calling station who flats everything preflop and never raises the flop is almost never on a draw. They jus… The $2/$5 calling station who flats preflop and calls the flop will also call the turn almost every time. Plan… The calling station almost never bluffs. If they suddenly lead out or raise after being passive the whole hand… The calling station who finally raises you has the nuts. Full stop.… The $2/$5 calling station who flats preflop and calls the flop is calling the turn too. Plan all three streets… The calling station who checks the river after calling two streets is not giving up. He's hoping you check bac… The $2/$5 calling station who raises preflop for the first time all session has a premium. Don't treat it like… The calling station who folds to your c-bet is not a calling station anymore - at least not on this hand. When… The calling station who raises your turn bet has been slow-playing since the flop. He didn't just get there. H… The $2/$5 calling station is more dangerous than the $1/$2 version because he has more chips to call with and … The calling station who folds to a c-bet on an ace-high board doesn't have an ace. File that away. He'll keep … The calling station who's running bad and complaining about it is about to start calling even wider. Losing ma…

Tight Reg

The tight reg who 3-bets you has it. Not "probably has it." Has it. Their 3-bet range at this level is QQ+ and… The $2/$5 tight reg who check-raises the flop is not doing it as a bluff. At this level they're check-raising … The tight reg who flats your c-bet on the flop and then leads the turn is not bluffing. They have two pair or … The tight reg who is visibly annoyed or tilting after a bad beat is a completely different player for the next… The tight reg who open-limps has a hand he doesn't want to play for a raise. Small pairs, suited connectors, s… The tight reg who's visibly tilting after a bad beat is a completely different player for the next 30-60 minut… The $2/$5 tight reg who leads the flop after calling your preflop raise is not bluffing. He flopped something … The tight reg who checks the flop to you in position after calling preflop is not trapping. He missed or he's … The tight reg who flats your turn bet after calling the flop is not giving up on the river. He has a hand that… The tight reg who suddenly starts talking a lot at the table after being quiet is holding a strong hand. Peopl… The $2/$5 tight reg who check-raises the turn after calling the flop has two pair or better. Not a draw. Not a… The tight reg who calls your river bet and then immediately looks away is not happy about it. He called becaus… The $2/$5 tight reg who 3-bets from the blinds has a stronger range than the $2/$5 reg who 3-bets from late po… The tight reg who raises your c-bet on a dry board is not semi-bluffing. There's nothing to semi-bluff with. H… The tight reg who starts playing more hands late in the session is tired, not loose. His decisions are getting… The $2/$5 tight reg who 3-bets from late position after a player has already called a raise is making a value … The tight reg who calls your 3-bet out of position and then check-calls the flop and turn is on a draw or he h…

Maniac

The maniac who barrels three streets on a dry board is bluffing way more than you think. Their range is almost… The $2/$5 maniac who 3-bets light preflop is doing it with a much wider range than you expect - suited connect… The maniac who has been winning is more dangerous than the maniac who has been losing. A winning maniac has ch… The maniac who raises every single preflop limp isn't doing it with a real hand every time. He's just stealing… The $2/$5 maniac 3-betting light preflop has a wide range - suited connectors, suited aces, Broadway hands - b… The maniac who's been losing all night and is now shoving light is not on a strategy - he's on tilt. His range… The maniac who wins a huge pot and then immediately goes quiet is about to tighten up. He got what he came for… The $2/$5 maniac who 4-bets you after you 3-bet him is not always bluffing. At this level he knows you think h… The $1/$2 maniac who bets huge on a wet board is not always bluffing. Sometimes he flopped the nuts and he bet… The maniac who goes quiet and stops raising for a full orbit is reloading mentally. Something shifted - he eit… The $2/$5 maniac who checks the flop in position after calling your raise is not giving up. He's floating to t… The $1/$2 maniac who bets pot on every street on a dry board is not bluffing every time. He might have nothing… The $2/$5 maniac who slows down after a big pot loss is not done. He's reloading emotionally. Give him two or …

Recreational

The older rec who bets small on the river - like 20-25% pot - almost always has a made hand they want called. … The young rec who overbet-shoves the river after calling two streets has a polarized range that's heavily weig… The visibly drunk or social player at the table is playing for action, not to win. They will call you with any… The weekend rec who leads into the preflop raiser on the flop - the "donk bet" - almost always has top pair or… The gambler type - usually someone who plays other casino games too - treats $1/$2 poker like a slot machine. … The weekend rec at $2/$5 who sits down with the max buy-in is more dangerous than they look. They're not bette… The rec who's chatting everyone up and having a great time will call you just to be social. He's not thinking … The player who won't stop talking about his bad beats plays too many hands and expects to win with top pair ev… The tourist who asked "what are the blinds?" when he sat down is playing with scared money. He'll call small b… The casino gambler who wandered into the poker room is not folding two pair. Not on the flop, not on the turn,… The guy glued to his phone who looks up when it's his turn is on autopilot. He's defaulting to calls because i… The rec who won a big pot early and is now playing every hand is not running hot - he's just playing loose wit… The first-timer who's double-checking his cards every hand and asking the dealer questions is terrified of mak… The rec at $2/$5 who's sitting on a big stack and betting large on every street is not running a balanced stra… The rec who takes forever to act on every street and then calls is not thinking through ranges. He's just nerv… The rec who's up $400 and keeps saying "just a few more hands" is stuck in a session he should have already le… The guy who limps every single hand preflop is not playing a strategy. He just wants to see flops. His range i… The player who told you his bad beat story before the cards were even dealt is already on tilt. He didn't come… The couple playing together at the table - usually one teaching the other - is not a threat. The student is pl… The rec who keeps looking at your stack before he acts is thinking about implied odds he doesn't understand. H… The $2/$5 player who knows everyone at the table by name and is joking around constantly is more dangerous tha… The rec who has been limping all night and suddenly raises preflop has a hand he's genuinely excited about. Th… The player who changes seats after a bad beat, blows on his cards, or does any ritual before looking at his ha… The rec who announces he's leaving in a few hands and is stacking his chips is done playing real poker. He's j… The player who fidgets with his chips constantly and then goes completely still when a big bet lands is holdin… The rec who gives unsolicited advice to other players about their hands is not a good player. He just thinks h… The rec whose voice changes or who talks more than usual when he bets has a strong hand. Nerves come out when … The rec who plays every suited hand because "it could be a flush" is chasing draws with no understanding of po… The rec who's been folding for an hour and is visibly frustrated is about to play the next halfway-decent hand… The rec who sits down at midnight is not fresh. He's been at the casino for hours doing something else - slots… The rec who made a big hero call earlier and got it right is now calling everything for the rest of the sessio… The rec who shows his hand every time he wins a pot - even when he didn't have to - is giving you a free scout… The rec who said he was leaving an hour ago and is still sitting there is stuck. He's not going anywhere until…

Rock

The rock who hasn't played a hand in two hours and suddenly open-raises has exactly what you think they have. … The $2/$5 rock who calls preflop from the blinds and then check-calls two streets is almost certainly on a dra… The rock who calls your c-bet on the flop has something. He's not floating. Slow down on the turn unless you i… The $2/$5 rock who calls your 3-bet and checks back the flop in position is not being passive. He's controllin… The rock who hasn't played a hand in an hour and suddenly 3-bets you has aces or kings. Not "probably." Has th… The $2/$5 rock who bets the river after checking the flop and turn has exactly what the board says he has. He'… The rock who folds the flop to your c-bet every single time is giving you a license to steal. Use it - but don… The $2/$5 rock who open-raises from early position and then checks the flop is not giving up. He has a big pai… The rock who calls your preflop raise from the big blind and then donk bets the flop has top pair or better. T… The $2/$5 rock who calls your flop and turn bets and then raises the river is not bluffing. He made his hand o… The rock who re-raises your isolation raise preflop has a monster. You thought you were isolating a limper. Yo… The $2/$5 rock who defends his big blind and leads the flop with a small bet is not weak. He's value betting a… The rock who wins a big pot and immediately locks back down is more dangerous for the next orbit than he was b…

Mixed Table Read

At a table with two or more maniacs, the correct adjustment is to tighten your opening range and widen your ca… When the whole table is limping, the right move is not to limp along. It's to punish the whole table with a ra… When three or more players limp and then everyone calls a raise, the raiser has no range advantage and no fold… At a $2/$5 table where everyone is playing tight and nobody is out of line, the right adjustment is to open yo… When a pot gets three-way and two players are clearly fighting each other, stay out of it unless you have the … At a $2/$5 table that just had a massive pot, the next three hands will play differently. Everyone recalibrate… The best seat at a $1/$2 table is directly to the left of the maniac. If that seat opens up, move immediately.… The most profitable player at any $1/$2 table is almost never the most obvious one. The quiet player in seat t… When a $2/$5 pot goes four ways to the flop, the preflop raiser has no automatic c-bet. Check and evaluate. So… The best $1/$2 players in the room are not the ones with the most chips. They're the ones who've been quietly …

The Veteran Local

The guy who's been playing the same $1/$2 game for years thinks he's a reg. He's not. He's a rec with a routin…

Universal

Every player at every live table is beatable. Not because they're bad people - because they all have a pattern…