What's in Your HUD with Ashlee de Lange (elemeNt_za)

We sat down with South African professional poker player Ashlee de Lange, better known as elemeNt_za on PokerStars, to get his view on poker-related software.  Ashlee is currently the second highest ranked player in the PocketFives South Africa Poker Rankings.
 
PokerSoftware: What poker software are you using while playing or for review?
 
Ashlee de Lange: At the moment, I am using Hold'em Manager 2, ICMIZER, and Flopzilla.
 
PokerSoftware: How long have you been using Hold'em Manager 2 for?
 
Ashlee de Lange: I have been using HM2 for about two years.
 
PokerSoftware: How important is the software to your game?
 
Ashlee de Lange: I would say in today's game, having poker software is crucial to being a profitable player and making +EV decisions.  It is great for multi-tabling, as it gives us information on our opponents at many tables, while without it we would only be able to do the same on a few tables.
 
PokerSoftware: If a site were to ban HUDs, would it make you more or less likely to play there?
 
Ashlee de Lange: How soft the site is might affect how much I play there in the future. I feel like a HUD is so important in giving us the information we need to make certain tough decisions. Obviously if you don't use it, it can retract from your ROI.  I am pretty sure there is not a player out there who did not see his ROI increase after using the software, so I think it goes without saying that it would hinder our overall profit per game.
 
PokerSoftware: What HUD stats are the most important?
 
Ashlee de Lange: PFR, 3bet%, fold to 3bet, cbet%, and pre-flop aggression.
 
PokerSoftware: Tell us about Flopzilla and ICMIZER.  What do both pieces of software do and how are they different?
 
Ashlee de Lange: The purpose of Flopzilla for me is to practice visualizing ranges and learn which ranges produce the most number of combinations on flops. ICMIZER is software that focuses more on pre-flop situations, showing us which hands are +EV and make us money when we shove and which hands don't. It calculates how many chips we make in "First to shove" and "Reshove" scenarios and shows ranges for over-calls and over-shoves.

The software also works out scenarios in ICM and CHIP EV depending on where you are at in the tournament at the time.  Sometimes, these scenarios will ether make us shove a wider range or a narrower range.  This software works out all of the above as well as Nash equilibrium.  This software has done wonders for my pre-flop game and I would recommend it to anyone.
 
PokerSoftware: Have you tried any poker training sites?  If so, which ones and what do you think of them?
 
Ashlee de Lange: I have used quite a few training sites including Tournament Poker Edge, Run It Once, and PocketFives Training.  Tournament Poker Edge is amazing for any tournament player. I was lucky to find it, as I started my journey on PokerStars towards the end of 2012.  The site informs you of everything you need to get going in MTTs, from the best coaches in the world to awesome articles on different aspects of poker to training videos.  I highly recommend it to any MTT enthusiasts out there!

PocketFives Training was another amazing one when it was still active with some of the best resources to up your game. It helped me so much with understanding what the poker industry is really about.  Even though the training site is not hosted there anymore, I still visit the site every day.
 
PokerSoftware: Have you played mobile poker?

Ashlee de Lange: I have played mobile poker and I actually enjoyed it.  It's sick to be at a braai (that's what we call a barbeque here in South Africa) and mess around on it while your friends and family get involved in your game.  Also, it has saved me from many hospital waiting rooms in the past.

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