NLH, PLO and multiway pots
I always assumed if we checked range oop as the PFR on a heads up spot, we would even more want to check range against 2 players and more.
But lately I've been playing some PLO and after finding myself in a lot of spots where I would want to bet, even if in heads up I would go for a range check, I started checking some sims on Flop Hero and found spots where indeed, we go for a range check HU but we cbet some multiway.
This challenged my pre assumption and now I'm in a surprised moment.
Bug on flop hero or possible? What's the theory behind this if so? I wonder it has to do with the burden of defense and the new resulting distribution ending with us betting some hands multiway when we would go for a range check HU?
Can this happen in NLH too?
I hope this is not just a bug on flop hero, the software got some bugs indeed. But the results goes with my gut feelings somehow, just wondering if this is indeed possible in GTO and some of the theory reasons behind it.
Thanks!
1 Reply
This is an interesting question and I hope someone gives it the attention it deserves.
In theory, OOP betting frequency is closely tied to how often your opponent(s) will bet if you check. It's possible that, on this flop, action checks through more often multiway compared to heads-up, which could incentivize more leading.
Additionally, in multiway pots, you can afford to cap your range more often because the burden of defense is shared among the players. For the aggressor to successfully bluff, they must get through multiple opponents, which acts as a natural deterrent. This dynamic allows you to put more of your nutted hands into your betting range without over-defending your checking range.
I vaguely recall pluribus used to flat the RFI from the SB sometiems then lead into a multiway pot a non-trivial amount of the time.
