What is the difference between a LAG and a maniac?

Control: a LAG's aggression is targeted and they can fold, while a maniac's is indiscriminate.

How do you play against a LAG?

Call down lighter with made hands, let them barrel their bluffs, and respect only their biggest sizings.

Should you 3-bet a LAG?

For value, yes, and wider than normal: their opening ranges are wide and they pay off 4-bets and postflop pressure with worse hands.

How to Beat a LAG

Pressure is their weapon. Position and patience are yours.

From Poker Ascent: 110,000+ drills across 10 skills, graded against the player type you are facing.

Definition

A LAG (loose-aggressive) player plays many hands and attacks constantly with raises and barrels. Good LAGs are the toughest opponents in poker; low-stakes LAGs usually overdo the aggression, which makes their pressure exploitable.

Spot them fast

They are in every third pot, raising limpers, 3-betting light, talking. Their stack swings both directions.
C-bet and double barrel frequencies far above normal, lots of probing raises, but even LAGs go value-heavy at the biggest sizings.

Preflop

Tighten your opens slightly in front of them and widen your calls behind.
Do not fold to their 3-bets at TAG frequency: continue with strong broadways and pairs, and 4-bet your premiums for value because they pay.
Let them be the aggressor with the worst hand; that is the whole plan.

Flop

Call down lighter. Their c-bet means little; continue with any pair, any decent draw, and good ace-highs in position.
Avoid bloating pots with raises when calling keeps their bluffing range in. Your raise folds out exactly the air you profit from.

Turn

Where discipline pays. Their double barrel is still stuffed with missed draws and floats; top pair is a call, second pair with equity is often a call.
But watch the sizing: when a LAG suddenly bets huge, even they are value-heavy at low stakes. Medium hands fold to the overbet, call the normal barrel.

River

Bluff-catch by blockers and story: if their line makes sense as a missed draw, pay off with your medium strength.
Value bet thin and big: LAGs call with worse because their own wide range makes them suspicious of yours.
Do not bluff them off pots they built; they call with better-than-nothing.

Two worked hands

Worked hand 1

LAG opens the button, you defend K♥ J♥. Flop K♠ 9♠ 5♣ two-tone, you check-call. Turn 3♦, they barrel, you call again: against a LAG this is a value line, not a hero call. River 6♣, they fire big a third time. Check the sizing: a normal bet is a call (missed draws, floats); a pot-plus overbet at $1/$2 is value more often than not, and folding is fine.

Worked hand 2

You hold 8♠ 8♥, LAG 3-bets your open, you call. Flop A♦ 7♣ 4♠ rainbow: they c-bet as always. Their range is so wide your underpair beats most of it; call once and evaluate. Turn brick, they check: value bet. LAG check-backs surrender exactly like TAG turns, one street later.

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By position

Play pots in position against them above all other seats; their aggression is much harder to handle from in front.
Out of position, flat less and 3-bet or fold more; do not sign up to check-call three streets blind.

By stack depth

Deep, be careful with one-pair call-downs: a LAG with 200bb behind can make your top pair a stack decision by the river.
Short, call down even lighter; their pressure loses its teeth when the stack goes in on the turn.

The mistakes that cost you

Folding top pair to the third barrel because he always has it (he does not).
Raising their bluffs out of the pot instead of calling them down.
Ignoring the overbet tell.
Playing normal folding frequencies against a player who attacks folding frequencies.

Bluff: rarely, they callValue bet: thin and bigCall down: wide, sizing-awareRespect: overbets onlyBest weapon: showdown value plus patience

Practice beating the LAG

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