Raise 3-Bet and Fold to 3-Bet. Represents the percentage of times the player re-raised a raiser when they had the opportunity or folded when they faced such a re-raise. This poker HUD statistic is most useful during the pre-flop action – then it corresponds only to the possible starting hands and not made ones (for the purpose of clarity: BB is Bet 1, a raise is bet 2 and the re-raise is bet 3). Have in mind, that these indicators require much larger sample to be reliable, as the situation occurs less often – don’t even bother looking at them before you have 1000+ hands on the opponent. Common re-raise range pre-flop is QQ+ and AKo, which corresponds to 2,6% of total hands. You will be amazed how many otherwise good online poker players have a Raise 3-Bet stat of 2,5-3%, which makes them really predictable.
On the other hand we have the Fold to 3-Bet stat, which comes in handy when we have to decide whether to re-raise an opponent – especially preflop.
Examples using Raise 3-Bet
/For sake of simplicity we’ll assume all opponents have stacks of about 100BB/
Full ring table, we have AQ offsuit in MP and raise 3xBB. A player in LP re-raises us 9xBB. Everyone else folds and the action is back to us. What should we do? Let’s look at the stats.
a) VPIP=16 / PFR=10 / Raise 3-Bet=2,75
We are up against a TAG player with seemingly established habits in 3-betting with only the best hands. We should fold as his probable range has us crushed, but you must be careful if your own Fold to 3-Bet percentage is too high, as observant opponents will try to use your tendencies and 3-Bet you more often.
b) VPIP=23 / PFR=18 / Raise 3-Bet=11
This opponent is a little loose and definitely overly aggressive. Let’s analyze his possible holdings and see how they compare to our hand.
He seems to 3-Bet the top 11% of his hands. The top 2,6% /QQ+,AK/ of hands beat us 3 to 1. With the next 3% /77-JJ, AQ/ we tie (55 to 45 in his favor actually) and against the rest about 5% we are ahead 70/30.
The range analysis shows calling as marginally profitable in theory. Don’t forget that this calculation is accurate only in all-in situations with five visible cards, and also the fact that your AQ is not a great hand to play out of position.
In this case you should take into consideration how deeply stacked your opponent is – too aggressive players are often short on chips and present less of a threat. In conclusion, calling here is an acceptable play but you should have a plan how to outplay your opponent after the flop.
Examples using Fold to 3-Bet
/For sake of simplicity we’ll assume all opponents have stacks of about 100BB/
Full ring table, we hold a pair of 9s on the button. A player in MP raises 3xBB, a second player on the CO (the cut-off seat) calls and it’s our turn. Should we call or re-raise? Let’s look at the stats.
a) Player in MP: VPIP=22 / PFR=10 / Fold to 3-Bet=74%
Player on the CO: VPIP=19 / PFR=11 / Fold to 3-Bet=65%
Both players look like TAGs with reasonable Fold to 3-Bet percentages, although maybe a little higher than I’d recommend. The sequence in this hand is interesting because it allows us to make a squeeze play, which increases our folding equity. If we just call, we give the blinds good pot odds to play most hands and against 3-4 opponents we’re basically set-mining the flop. But if we make a strong re-raise of about 9BB, we achieve the following: first – almost certainly we’ll take the blinds out, second – we put strong pressure on the player in MP, who has an active opponent behind him and also has to act first after the flop, third – we show considerable strength against the player on the CO, who has demonstrated weakness by flat-calling the first bet and also is out of position in the hand. Even if we get called, we can hit a good flop of low cards or force a fold with a C-Bet.
b) Player in MP: VPIP=14 / PFR=8 / Fold to 3-Bet=55%
Player on the CO: VPIP=26 / PFR=13 / Fold to 3-Bet=65%
Now the first player is a bit of a nit. He plays quality hands and in result doesn’t have to respect 3-Bets as much. This reduces our chances of forcing him out of the hand. He will probably call if we re-raise, as he may also suspect that we are making a move.
The second player is a little loose and will additionally get proper pot odds if the first player calls (the pot would be 3+3+9+0,5+1+6=22,5BB giving him 3,75/1 to call). There’s a high chance he’ll also pay to see the flop.
Basically a re-raise will only put more money in the pot and won’t bring us any information about the opponents’ hands. Against these players we better flat-call and continue in the hand only if the flop is favorable.
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