What's in Your HUD with Arvydas Merfeldas (Merfinis)

We sat down with Lithuanian poker pro Arvydas "Merfinis" Merfeldas to discuss his use of poker software.  Besides playing poker, Merfinis studies at Middlesex University in London and is an instructor at Tournament Poker Edge.

PokerSoftware:  What poker software do you use while playing online poker?

Arvydas Merfeldas:  I use Holdem Manager 2 and PokerTracker 4 depending on my mood. I like them both. HM2 has a nice design and PT4 may be a little bit quicker.

PokerSoftware:  How do you keep both databases updated?

Arvydas Merfeldas:  Oh, that isn't a problem. When I'm playing and using HUD stats, I almost always use session stats, so collecting huge databases of information about players isn't vital for me.  Maybe if I were playing cash games or sit and gos it would be because you could start analyzing every regular player's tendencies, but for MTTs, I don't think it's the case.

PokerSoftware:  How is your HUD set up?

Arvydas Merfeldas:  I use a decent number of statistics. My HUD setup for MTTs is as follows:

Player Name / M / # of Hands
VPIP / PFR / Early Position PFR / Middle Position PFR
3Bet % / Fold to 3Bet % / 4Bet % / Fold to 4Bet %
CBet % / Fold to CBet % / Call CBet / Overall Check-Raise
Total Steal % / SB Steal % / BB Fold vs SB Steal / BB 3Bet vs SB

PokerSoftware:  Since you have your HUD set to session stats, do you feel certain stats like 4Bet % and Fold to 4Bet % can be relied upon for decision-making with a small sample of hands?

Arvydas Merfeldas:  If the decision is against a regular player with whom I have some history, I check lifetime stats to see what his tendencies were in the past.  A HUD for me isn't the tool that is 100% responsible for my decisions, but it helps a lot.

PokerSoftware:  Do you use PT4 or HM2 as a post-game study tool?

Merfinis:  You could say I use both of them as study tools. I use their tournament replayers to find my own leaks and my students' leaks.  I really like that you can use HUD stats on the replayer.  You can also automatically calculate pot odds, which saves time, and there is bunch of other cool stuff available like charts and reports.

PokerSoftware:  Tell us about your videos on Tournament Poker Edge. How much time goes into making a 30-minute video?

Arvydas Merfeldas:  If I'm doing a live sweat, it's an exact amount of time, but when I'm making hand history reviews, it takes a while.  I'm not native English speaker, so sometimes after recording for a while, if I'm not happy with my English performance, I just delete the video and start over because I want a viewer to fully understand what I'm trying to explain. So, it's challenging, but I feel I'm improving.

PokerSoftware:  What was your last video series about and what can we expect to come next?

Arvydas Merfeldas:  My latest series is from a Big $33 win and I'm finishing my third series this week.  I'm doing hand history review for one of our community members where he finished third in Sunday Million.  The new series will be published pretty soon.

PokerSoftware:  Do you feel players can learn more from hand history reviews than live sweat videos?

Arvydas Merfeldas:  I think so.  While doing a live sweat, you have limited time to explain your decisions because usually you are playing a decent number of tables, which requires attention.  Hand history reviews are better because you can explain your full thought process and spend as much time as you require explaining one hand.

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