Is GTO Even Useful in Low Stakes? (3 Viewers)

[CirrusVII]

Hi all,

I play micro/low stakes most of the time and try to play seriously and work on my game when I can, and I recently got GTOWizard to help with my game. However, it's no surprise that micro/low stakes players suck so much that sometimes it becomes difficult to understand what they are doing. Is GTO even helpful here? The highest I've played is 1/2. Thanks.

CirrusVII

 

[Tonystark137]

It is and it isn't. Gto us often looked at in a vacuum but you have to look at pattern. Does player like to over bluff? Playing tight? How does the stake relate to them. Lots of factors.

 

[ChipMonster]

Gto baseline to be aware and then exploitative because they’re not playing gto is best approach

 

[drdr]

Gto baseline to be aware and then exploitative because they’re not playing gto is best approach

Ding ding ding. Winner.

 

[DrStrange]

Understanding the idea of GTO is useful in general. GTO solvers will help you identify areas where you can improve - open your mind to new strategies. Some degree of balance is needed even vs the least observant / skilled villain if you play with them over multiple sessions. Perhaps not so much when playing the lowest stakes casino randoms.

GTO is not a profit maximization technique, it is more of a loss mitigation tool vs skilled villains. I think exploitive play is more profitable, sometimes much more profitable in the typical micro stakes live game. I default to exploitation as the first option. And if I begin to think GTO might be needed due to the toughness of the game, perhaps I should be looking for a better game.

 

[LeLe]

Use GTO as a guideline not a black and white answer.

For example you open with 99, get 2 callers and bb squeeze OOP and have a sizeable number of chip behinds.

This is a high % call by GTO but if you know the BB is never squeezing with AQ, AK or TT and below at this spot then 99 is an exploitative fold here

 

[Kentucky]

My question to OP is “What is GTO?”

Is it the numerical output of a statistical model, or is it a series of broad logical inferences drawn from experience and justified/understood by looking at the data. I think you asked - should I do the former? - and folks have answered - yes, you should do the latter.

For me, something like GTO Wizard is not a great tool for learning to play 1/2. You can e.g. memorize some opening charts - but maybe they assume a 3BB open and Villain opens to $10 or $12. Should I defend my marginal BB hand in this case? What if there are already 2 callers? What if they don’t have 100BB stacks? You can’t possibly learn all the charts for different opening and 3-bet sizes, stack sizes, never mind what each hand then does on the thousands of unique flops.

Better I think to start with a supposition like “I should play my good hands and draws aggressively” and then look at the solver to see some examples. Yes, if I arrive at flop X the GTO output is raising those parts of it’s range. To learn this way you probably need instead a Jonathan Little course or Jaka or whatever where it’s more about proving what is a “good” play by looking at the numbers. This is a better way of thinking about GTO poker. Maybe we should call it “GTO backed poker” or something

Personally the worst thing you can do with a solver is use it to justify a bad beat after the fact - well the solver said I should call a shove from the OMC 10% of the time with J8o there.

 

[BigDutch888]

Hi all,

I play micro/low stakes most of the time and try to play seriously and work on my game when I can, and I recently got GTOWizard to help with my game. However, it's no surprise that micro/low stakes players suck so much that sometimes it becomes difficult to understand what they are doing. Is GTO even helpful here? The highest I've played is 1/2. Thanks.

CirrusVII

Are you also using hand tracking software? If so, you can find out where your biggest leaks are and use GTOwizards’ Trainer to study those spots. As others already said, I think a good mix of exploitative and GTO can give you and edge.

 

[Dbxela]

Yes.

If you could play a GTO solution in that game you would probably crush it more than humans trying to exploit it. Two problems.

1. Those fishy multiway spots aren't in GTO wizz
2. The bits that are solved, you aren't able to learn the solution well enough.

So we try to use it to learn broader patterns and simplified general principles. And node lock to understand what works in branches away from the main solution.