The difference between NL10 and NL10,000

2cardconfidence looks at why sometimes the nosebleeds looks like the micros in terms of the strategy.

Today, we welcome 2cardconfidence to the family at PokerStrategy.com. We love his GTO videos, and he has kindly agreed to share them with us. 

This first video is about the difference between NL10 and NL10,000.

It is a humorous, yet informative, look at why some GTO-inspired plays might look amateurish to those unfamiliar with unexploitable strategy. 

It's a perfect video to watch if you are just finding your feet with our new partner GTO Wizard. 

We shared a few words with the man behind this video (below) and we will be having some very detailed GTO discussions with him in the coming weeks. 

If you like this video, be sure to check out the 2cardconfidence YouTube channel. 

Meet 2cardconfidence

What is your background in poker?

2cardconfidence: I played as a hobby while studying, sometimes more, sometimes less successfully at mid stakes, including some shots at lower high stakes; quit poker when I finished studying and started a "real job"; didn't like a real job and started playing poker again; this time approached it much more seriously, including daily studying; became a consistent winner at mid stakes and went full pro.

What games did you start at?

2cardconfidence: I've basically always played NL cash games, so that's also how I started. But from the beginning, I've always sprinkled in some tournaments now and then and always found them appealing. I've tried out SNGs and PLO here and there, but never for too long and I always had NL cash games as my main game and tournaments as a nice side hobby. So, no, I've never played the short stack strategy that PokerStrategy recommended, either.

Do you live GTO also outside of Poker? (thinking of analysing the queue in the supermarket and thinking which cashier has the best EV to queue at etc)

2cardconfidence: Yes, 100%. Shopping lines, where to sit on a train or aeroplane, whether to eat the sandwich with chicken or salmon first... Once you start trying to optimize in one area of your life, it's hard to turn it off. I think it's very fun though (but my wife doesn't always).

What games do you play now?

2cardconfidence: NL500 has been my main game for the past years, and that's almost exclusively what I play today. In recent years, I averaged about 40-50k hands a month, but this year has been much less, as my main focus has been the YouTube channel and everything around it. It just takes a lot of time, but it's extremely fun, and I'm happy I've found something besides poker itself that I can enjoy doing all day.

"Study the spot, not the stake"

What percentage of the player pool at NL500 is it important to understand GTO against? I'd say it's probably all of them right? 

2cardconfidence: Yes, the amount of people who are playing theoretically sound is higher on higher stakes than on lower stakes. I'd still approach it from a different perspective, and instead of thinking about how many players it is important to understand GTO against, focus on how many spots it is important to understand GTO in.

The more common a spot, the better studied it is. So a BTN vs BB SRP is way better understood and played more GTO on all stakes than a 3-way pot that goes to the river. And the higher the stakes, the more people are capable of being balanced in uncommon spots.

What would you tell your "pre-solver you" that he should change in his game without giving him a solve?

2cardconfidence: Bluff more! - I used to struggle to see a spot in its entirety. I was afraid of losing money because my opponent would "sniff me out", instead of seeing a situation as a spot where I also have x, y & z value hands. Solvers helped me a lot to see the bigger picture. (Second on the list would be the same for bluff catching).

Stay tuned to PokerStrategy.com where we will be having a detailed Q&A with 2cardconfidence on using solvers in the modern era.