What's in Your HUD with Rory Andrews (mcandrews3rd)

I am pleased to be interviewing friend and British poker pro Rory “mcandrews3rd” Andrews on his views on poker software and HUDs. According to PocketFives, Andrews has been ranked as high as 145th in the world for online poker tournaments. He shows over $800,000 in cashes across multiple online poker sites.

PokerSoftware.com: Are you thinking of upgrading to Holdem Manager 2?

Rory Andrews: I will upgrade to Holdem Manager 2 in the near future. From what I understand about the new version, you can get stats for players’ tendencies against you as opposed to in general, which looks very helpful. 

Rory Andrews: I do not have that many statistics for each person, to be honest: Voluntarily Put in Pot % (VPIP), Pre-Flop Raise % (PFR), 3bet %, Flop Continuation Bet %, Fold to Continuation Bet %, and Hands. I find these statistics give me the information to make a basic judgment on the style of opponent I am facing. Generally, I expand the statistics box to find specific stats depending on what type of situation I find myself in.

PokerSoftware.com: Does basic observation replace the need for a HUD?

Rory Andrews: I think in poker, you're always looking for as much detail as possible, so the HUD alone is never going to be enough. Against players I don't know much about, I just have to make do with the information I have.

Rory Andrews: I would say the 3bet % statistic is the most overrated; if not, it is definitely the most incorrectly used. There just are not enough hands on any player to get a 100% read on their 3betting % and range during multi-table tournaments. With the ever-changing dynamics, relying on this statistic to make your decisions will end up in some bad errors, in my opinion. With these types of situation table dynamics, stack sizes and player images are far more important.

PokerSoftware.com: What statistics do you think are the most underrated?

Rory Andrews: I don't really discuss HUDs that often with other players, so I don't know what other people undervalue, but I think the varying statistics for continuation bets are the most important ones for myself, or at least the ones I use most. Specifically, how often they are folding turns and rivers once calling the flop or raising, etc. I find these to be far more useful than anything else.

PokerSoftware.com: Do you think HUDs are good for poker in general?

Rory Andrews: I have quite a biased view on this, as I rely on my HUD to play a lot of tables at once. If HUDs were restricted, I wouldn't be able to put in half of the volume I can now and that would hurt my hourly rate. Honestly, I don't feel players who use HUDs have a great advantage over those who don't. When I have fewer tables going near the end of my session, I barely use the HUD and play a lot better than early in the session, when I am at 12+ tables and almost relying on the HUD.

PokerSoftware.com: Have you tried mobile poker?

Rory Andrews: I tried it once or twice, which I enjoyed, although it seems pretty flawed for MTTs. My phone would die way before the tournament would finish, so I would need to plug it in or have a couple of spare batteries. I think is great for special situations like your internet cutting out late in a session. It is a good gimmick for pulling in some recreational players too. Even if I don’t use it often, it is nice to have the option.

PokerSoftware.com: Is there any poker software on the market you would like to try?

Rory Andrews: I have heard a few people suggesting learning tools in the form of software that analyzes our hands and shows us our leaks, but in my opinion, nothing can replace the things you can learn talking poker with other pros. The human brain just seems more capable of playing this game than computers at the moment. I don't know of any software out there that has grabbed my attention, although as mentioned earlier in the interview, it is time I updated to Holdem Manager 2.