Are people really this dumb?

Let me set up the situation. I'm playing a whole bunch of 2-4 shorthanded tables last night. One gets heads up with a player that's OK, and I see him from time to time. He plays decent but I have an edge against him whether it's a 2 player game, 6 player game, or anywhere inbetween.

Anyway, ~100bb eff stacks. I've been raising probably 70% of my hands, SB and BB combined in unraised pots. I pick up A4cc in the SB and pop it up to 16. Villain calls.

Flop is AK4, 2 spades. One of the two high cards was the non-spade, and while it's probably important for the hand, it's not important for this post. I lead out for a near-pot bet. Doofus calls. Turn is an offsuit 5. I lead out for another strong bet. Doofus calls. River is an offsuit 2. I consider value-betting but often get myself in trouble in these spots, so I just check. He fires out a near pot bet. The only hand that he could really be value-betting in this spot would be 3x (would probably be missed low spades or A3). I think for a second and call. He shows 56ss and mhig.

He erupts in the chat asking how I could possibly make that call. I really want the guy to sit back in because it is painfully clear that I have an edge against this guy (not just from this hand) and that he is tilting pretty bad. I am untiltable. That's 2 strikes on him just for sitting down with me. Anyway, I start talking with him and trying to befriend him so he will sit back in. He starts spewing off his poker strategy, and says something along the lines of this:

"you have to put me on a range on the river, and you can only make the call if you can beat half of that range, since it was a pot-sized bet."

Please adress the following points:

1) Do people really lack mathematical common sense that says that statement is blatantly wrong, or am I just picky in that regard? I obviously make some kind of jackass comment like 'hey, at least I could beat a bluff!'

2) how badly did this post suck?

3) do I think too highly of myself as a poker player, and possibly as a person because of that?

anything else you want to add, feel free.

yikes

Originally Posted by gabe

yikes

shocking

Originally Posted by Lukie

"you have to put me on a range on the river, and you can only make the call if you can beat half of that range, since it was a pot-sized bet."

1) Do people really lack mathematical common sense that says that statement is blatantly wrong, or am I just picky in that regard?

Umm, you mean the common sense that says you only have to beat 1/3 of his range?

I agree, the only hand you're seriously worried about is As3s, which is the only 3 that makes sense. Other hands that beat you: 44, 55, A5 maybe, AA, KK, AK very unlikely. This is a case of his bet not making any sense, and betting significantly less would get you to fold if you were in fact FOS.

2) This post will either be entertaining, or really shitty. Hard to predict and little to do with you

3) If so it's not because of this post

etc) I've been drinking

Originally Posted by gabe

yikes

This is the best post reply ever!!

I think he is not dumb, but simply undermining your intelligence. And yes a lot of poker players suck at math.

Lukie, have you played NLHE in a Casino?

Preferably somewhere like the Commerce, Excalibur or Mandalay Bay....

<-- worst math skills of any poker player ever.

This was not helpful at LHE.

Originally Posted by Fnord

Lukie, have you played NLHE in a Casino?

Preferably somewhere like the Commerce, Excalibur or Mandalay Bay....

Nope, please elaborate.

I know where you're going with this (how warped people's views of the game are) and that you've probably heard countless things that are far, far worse then what the guy on my table said.

It's always interesting to read about such things (seriously).

Originally Posted by Lukie

3) do I think too highly of myself as a poker player, and possibly as a person because of that?

I don't think there is enough space on the internet for your ego.