The game is No Limit Hold’em, the blinds are $100/$200, and the stacks will be flying! Both players are around 100bb deep to start the hand.

Without further ado, let’s jump right in.

Preflop Action

Davy opens up the action with a raise of $500 from the Button with Ah Qs. Barak 3-bets from the Big Blind to $2,600 with Ad Td, and Davy calls.

Preflop Analysis

Davy should be open-raising around the top 40–45% of hands from the Button. A 2.5bb raise is optimal according to preflop simulations, as it puts most of Barak’s range in a tough spot. Ah Qs is a clear must-open.

Barak’s 3-bet range from the Big Blind should come in around 13%, including hands like 88+, A2s–A5s, A8s+, K8s+, Q8s+, J7s+, ATo+, KJo+, QJo, suited connectors, and suited one-gappers. He can’t 3-bet the weaker parts of that range at full frequency, but they’ll mix in at low to medium frequencies.

Ad Td is a hand that should 3-bet at a medium frequency.

The optimal 3-bet size from the Big Blind is typically between 11bb and 12.5bb ($2,200–$2,500). The goal is to dampen Barak’s positional disadvantage by creating a smaller stack-to-pot ratio (SPR).

Facing this larger 3-bet, Davy should defend with roughly 40% of his range. AQo is a hand that continues 100% of the time, mostly by calling, but also occasionally 4-betting at a low frequency. 

Simple Analysis

Davy should always open-raise AQo from the Button—it’s a very strong hand and a clear part of his range. In general, he should be opening the top 40–45% of hands from this position.

Barak’s 3-bet range should be somewhat linear, coming in around 13–14%. Ad Td is a hand that mixes fairly evenly between calling and 3-betting.

Facing this 3-bet, Davy should always continue with AQo. The game theory optimal (GTO) approach is mostly to call, with some low-frequency 4-bets mixed in.

Flop Action

The flop comes Qd 9d 6s, bringing the pot to $5,297.

Barak (Ad Td) c-bets for $2,048. Davy (Ah Qs) responds with a raise to $5,406, and Barak makes the call.

Simple Analysis

With his nut flush draw, Barak has multiple viable options on the flop: betting big, betting small, or checking. In theory, all three lines are extremely close in expected value (EV).

When facing the small bet, Davy’s AQo becomes a marginal value hand. He should mix between raising and calling, with a slight preference toward calling.

Once raised, Barak should respond by calling. Given the strength of his draw, combining flush equity with two overcards, he has enough equity and showdown value to make calling the slightly better option.

Flop Analysis

On this type of flop, Barak holds both the range and nut advantage, as he’s the only player with hands like overpairs and top set. From a high-level perspective, this makes an aggressive c-betting strategy optimal.

That said, because the board is highly dynamic, his strongest hands prefer a large bet size, entering a two-street betting line where the plan is often to go all-in on the river. This helps deny equity to Davy’s drawing hands.

Another portion of Barak’s range is incentivized to use a small block-bet, aiming to extract thin value while hiding under the umbrella of stronger hands that will also occasionally use the small size. This strategy makes it difficult for Davy to raise frequently for value, given the looming threat of nutted hands. It thereby improves Barak’s equity realization with the middle of his range—hands like Qx, JJ, TT, 99, A9s, J9s, T9s, and so on.

Ultimately, multiple c-betting strategies are viable on this board. Barak could opt for a hybrid approach, splitting his range between large and small bets, or choose a one-size strategy, either consistently small or consistently large.

Without prior experience playing against Barak, it’s difficult to say which c-betting strategy he’s employing here.

That said, by using a 35–40% pot-sized bet, he’s signaling a more merged betting range. Against that kind of range, AQ becomes a marginal value raise—it can extract value from weaker top pairs, underpairs, second and third pairs, and draws. However, this shouldn’t be Davy’s default line. Raising too frequently in this spot would leave his calling range overly weak and vulnerable to exploitation on later streets.

From a range construction standpoint, Davy should only be raising with strong but vulnerable hands like AQ, KQ, and Q9s (at low frequency), as well as bottom set, which unblocks much of Barak’s bet-calling range. Meanwhile, he should call with his stronger value hands like QQ and 99.

As for bluffs, the raising range should include nut flush draws, combo draws, weak offsuit hands with double backdoor flush draws (e.g., Ax  Td and Ad Tx), and some small to medium pocket pairs with a backdoor flush draw—all at low to very low frequencies.

Facing this raise, Barak should mostly call with Ad Td. His Ace and Ten both have the potential to make top pair, giving the hand reasonable equity. A hand like Ad 5d, by contrast, is a better candidate to raise as a semi-bluff, since its pair outs are far less likely to be good at showdown.

Turn Action

The turn brings the 2c, making the board (Qd 9d 6s) 2c. The pot is now $16,109.

Barak (Ad Td) checks. Davy (Ah Qs) fires for $4,832, and Barak makes the call.

Simple Analysis

Barak should always check in this spot, he has a significant range and nut disadvantage.

Davy, on the other hand, should always barrel with AQ. It’s a very strong hand here, especially since Barak would likely have 3-bet all-in on the flop with overpairs and even some of his own AQ combos. The optimal turn sizing is around 50% pot. By betting smaller, Davy allows Barak’s draws to realize their equity more easily, without extracting maximum value or applying pressure.

Facing this small bet, Barak should either check-call or check-raise. With such a high-equity hand, continuing is mandatory, regardless of which line he chooses.

Turn Analysis

The 2c turn is one of the best possible cards for Davy’s range. None of Barak’s draws improve, and he would have raised most of his overpairs on the flop, so donk betting is off the table as part of an optimal strategy here.

As a result, Davy now holds a very strong hand and should be value-betting. With so many value hands in his range, he’s also incentivized to continue barreling his bluffs at a high frequency. Given his nut advantage in this spot, the preferred strategy is to use a larger size, around 50% pot.

This is where Davy makes a small mistake. By using a smaller sizing, he increases Barak’s EV, giving him a cheaper price to realize his equity with drawing hands.

Against this small bet, Barak should fast-play many of his top pairs due to the shallow SPR, aiming to get the money in now before Davy’s bluffs give up on the river. He should also check-call or check-raise with all of his strong draws (flush draws, open-enders, and combo draws) as they have high equity, strong implied odds, and are getting a good price.

With Ad Td, Barak should likely shove at this point, unless he believes Davy is underbluffing. If that’s the case, he may not have enough fold equity to justify the raise and would be better off just calling.

River Action

The river comes the 2d, making the board (Qd 9d 6s 2c) 2d. The pot is $25,774.

Barak (Ad Td) checks. Davy (Ah Qs) shoves $10,164. Barak calls.

Simple Analysis

Barak should always check here, his range is extremely weak. If you’re reading this and still learning the ropes, I’d strongly advise avoiding donk bets altogether. There are very few spots where they’re theoretically correct, and even then, they’re difficult to execute well and offer minimal EV gain.

Davy faces a tricky decision with AQ. On one hand, he’s highly likely to have the best hand. On the other hand, the value of a shove is heavily dependent on how often Barak arrives at the river with flushes. If Barak tends to check-raise his flush draws aggressively on the turn, then shoving becomes the best play. If he leans more passive and check-calls them, then checking back is likely the better option.

It also comes down to how willing Barak is to make hero folds. If he’s the type to fold hands like QJs or QTs in this spot, then jamming AQ is simply too thin, and checking back is clearly best.

River Analysis

The river 2d is an above-average card for Davy, as many of his missed flush draws have now improved.

Barak, meanwhile, is at a severe range and nut disadvantage. He should have raised a large portion of his flush draws on the turn, meaning he arrives at this river with very few flushes, while Davy retains most of his. As a result, donk-betting is off the table.

From a theoretical standpoint, Davy should continue barreling with AQ. It’s a thin value bet, but one that makes sense given the structural advantage of his range. That said, the decision is heavily dependent on Barak’s tendencies. If Barak tends to realize equity passively by check-calling flush draws on the turn, then jamming AQ here would likely be a mistake. But if he plays closer to a solver-influenced strategy, where he frequently check-shoves his strong draws on the turn, then AQ becomes a clear candidate to barrel for value.

Another key factor is how call-happy Barak is on the river. If he perceives Davy’s range to be too strong in this spot, which is easy to do, given that Davy’s only natural bluffs are hands like 55, 44, 33 with a diamond, or ATo with a diamond, then Barak might overfold. If he’s folding hands like QJ or QT, then Davy’s shove becomes far too thin, and checking back would be the better play.

This is where knowing your opponent really matters. A strong theoretical foundation, combined with experience and sharp focus, is what enables players to navigate these close spots correctly.

As for Barak, his river decision is about as easy as they come: calling is mandatory, and there’s no way to go wrong there.

Final Thoughts

While there’s always more that could be said about the intricacies of this hand, it serves as a great example of where the highest levels of poker are today. It’s all in the nuances. At this level, players rarely make pure EV mistakes—the game revolves around the preferences they express within the game theory-optimal boundaries of each situation.

Reaching this point requires an exceptional level of technical skill: recognizing threshold moments across streets, understanding the mechanics that create them, studying opponents’ tendencies off the felt, and maintaining sharp focus in the heat of battle. These players are true mental athletes operating at the highest caliber.

That’s all for this breakdown! I hope you enjoyed it and learned something new—I had a blast writing it. As always, feel free to leave a comment or ask a question below.

Til next time, good luck out there, grinders!

If you’d like to read about more big pots between great players, read: Epic Showdown at the Cash Game World Championship (Linus vs. PR0DIGY).

The post High-Stakes Showdown: DavyJones922 vs Barak Wisbrod in a $46,100 NLHE Pot appeared first on Upswing Poker.

In this study, there are 126 remaining players. 125 make the money. We are on the stone bubble. This means the risk premiums will be high, the adjustments extreme, and someone will be leaving disappointed. Hopefully not us.

In my last two articles, the focus was on how raise-first-in (RFI) ranges are affected as the soft bubble emerges and calcifies. In the next two, in addition to RFI strategies, I’ll also be looking at the responses.

For this article, I’ll be using two sets of HRC outputs: one where the table chip leader is Under the Gun and the shortest stack is in the Cutoff, and another where the short stack is Under the Gun and the chip leader is on the Button. Today, the focus will be on short-stack play.

If you haven’t had a chance yet, I highly recommend reading part one (Soft Bubble Strategies) and part two (Money Bubble Tactics) of this series to help orient your reading of today’s article (part 3 of 3).

Short Stack Play

On the stone bubble, some of the most extreme adjustments come from the shorter stacks. This is due to the high risk premiums weighing on them. In ICM, not all chips are equal—each additional chip is worth less than the one before. Conversely, a single chip can be worth the world.

The reason is simple: if you cash with 1bb, you earn the same payout as the player who has 10, 15, or 25bb. Understanding this helps clarify why short stacks play so tight. Yes, they could win more chips by playing profitable chip expected value (chipEV) poker, but doing so could lose money. It’s a classic case of missing the forest for the trees.

Take a look at the HRC output below:

HRC RFI strategy for Cutoff playing an 11bb stack in an asymmetric configuration (28bb average, 1 from ITM). Cutoff vpips 16.1%.

Red: Min open. Purple: Open Shove All In.

Even in late position, the 11bb shorty plays a 16.1% rfi. This is very tight, tighter than a chipEV Under the Gun open range.

On the stone bubble, the late position short stack is open-folding 55, offsuit broadways, and K9 suited. Again, this contraction in range is due to the high risk premium on the Cutoff. See below:

Bubble factors in this setup. The Cutoff (11bb) has a 12.9% risk premium, resulting in playing significantly tighter than chipEV.

Similarly, notice how ICM impacts the Middle Position player and the Big Blind in the chart above. Even though they aren’t exactly “shorties”, they are shorter than the average stack (28bbs) and have meaningful risk premiums against most players at the table. Middle Position has a 10.6% risk premium against almost everyone; likewise, the Big Blind has a 10.2% risk premium versus almost everyone.

Only versus the short stack do both have a significant decrease in risk premium, with Middle Position’s at 2.9% and Big Blind’s at 2.4%. This is because even if they double up the shorty, they live to die another day. For the same reason, Big Blind also has a lower risk premium against Middle Position than against the deeper stacks.

Even if Middle Position gets a full double through Big Blind, Big Blind still has a chip and a chair. But against everyone else, if they stack off, they stone bubble.

Now, let’s look at how things change when the short stack is in early position:

HRC RFI strategy for Under the Gun playing an 11bb stack in an asymmetric configuration (28bb average, 1 from ITM). Under the Gun vpips 8.3%.

Red: Min open. Purple: Open Shove All In.

Now the shorty plays an 8.3% RFI strategy—99 is open-folded more than half the time, and 88 folds pure. Want to be a champion? Try folding 88 off 11bb. It might seem awfully nitty, but take a look below and you’ll see why.

$ Values of Action with 99 in ICM model. When Under the Gun min-opens 99, they make 2 cents. When they raise all-in, they lose 2 cents.

99 only makes $0.02 as an open. That’s incredibly marginal in a $215 tournament, so it mixes to fold. Meanwhile, 88 loses $4.47 when it open-shoves, and slightly more than $2 when it min-opens. These seemingly small dollar losses can add up fast and make it tough to maintain a positive ROI over the long run.

For reference, take a look at what 88 is worth in chips:

Lucid GTO Trainer preflop chart for 10bb symmetric: Under the Gun. In ChipEV, 88 makes 1.18bb.

88 wins 1.18bb at 10bb effective, but still loses about $4. Once again, this shows that you can win chips while losing money.

How The Table Responds

Below are the responses to the Under the Gun short-stack min-open. Take a look.

HRC output actions overview showing responses to Under the Gun’s min-open.

Note that only the Big Blind has any significant flatting range (41.9%); the rest of the responses are 3bet, mostly at low frequencies.

A major difference between the Under the Gun and Cutoff strategies is the dominance of min-opening versus open-shoving. The Cutoff short stack shoves about two-thirds of the time and min-opens the rest, knowing they’re likely to get it through with few players behind. Even though they’re short, no one wants to lose chunks of their stack to them unnecessarily.

On the other hand, since the Under the Gun shorty opens so tightly, the rest of the table responds tightly as well. As a result, the opener gets 3-bet infrequently and is called even less. Only the Small Blind has a meaningful 3-bet percentage (11.3%), and that’s because they only play via 3-bet.

The only players the short stack really has to worry about are the Button (50bb), who flats less than 4% and 3-bets over 8%, and the Big Blind, who plays about half the deck. In both cases, however, the investment is significantly less than in chipEV.

Put simply, Under the Gun’s range is so tight that everyone should respond honestly, while the Cutoff bets so much that everyone should respond honestly as well.

What to Do When Your Opponents Are Breaking the Rules

As mentioned in the previous article, your opponents’ responses can cause major shifts in your strategy. When the short stack is focused on survival—and let’s be honest, nobody enjoys the walk of shame back to the registration desk (too bad, it’s the bubble and that desk is long gone)—it becomes crucial to understand how your opponents will actually play, especially when they deviate from what the almighty solver says they should do.

Here are two things to watch for when deciding how to play in real life. And by “real life,” I mean your tournament life.

Wide Big Blind Defense or In-Position Flatting

Some people like to play. Some people like to play back. Whatever the case may be, when you’re an early-position opener on the stone bubble and have a higher risk of seeing flops because your opponents won’t leave you alone, there are countermeasures you can employ.

1. Shove More than the Solver: Here, I don’t mean to add hands to your range. I mean that if the $EV is comparable—or even slightly lower—than min-opening but still profitable, jam instead. Even though you have a stronger range, you aren’t thrilled to get action from the weaker one. As flops are seen and pots increase, lowering SPRs, the risk of busting increases as well. There’s no need to be a hero.
2. Fold More than the Solver: If the fringe of your range is making marginal $EV as an RFI, its value will dip further once you start facing more calls preflop—sometimes into outright losing territory. It’s not fun, but sometimes you gotta sit out and let the children play.

The One Mistake You Can’t Beat

When your opponents overcall versus your open-shoves, nobody wins. Well—nobody in the hand, at least. The caller isn’t getting the right price against your range, and you’re now at risk more often than you expected when you last checked HRC on your bathroom break… Don’t cheat!!!

The real winners are the onlooking players, who lock up a min-cash more often than they should. In spots like this, you just need your hand to win. Hopefully, you’ve got the top of your jamming range and you hold. Or, you win the flip.

There is a countermeasure, but it’s not sexy.

Once again, you just fold more. I mean fewer hands altogether. You’re in the Cutoff, and you open-fold 66 and JT suited. While these are strong, winning hands, if your opponents are calling too wide (often with an ace or king in their hand), the $EV of these shoves drops. You want to shove in a way that blocks their calls, but more often. Just fold and live to see another hand.

Otherwise, your solver-approved 66 open-shove will leave you muttering on the way out of the card room:

“Calls me with A3 offsuit… what a joke. Nice hand, fish.”

But you know what? It’s not the money that matters. It’s who we become in the pr–

Nevermind.

Until next time.

If you’d like to learn more about how to navigate tricky tournament spots, read: This Greedy Value Bet Strategy Will Help You Win More Tournaments.

The post How Short Stacks Navigate the Stone Bubble appeared first on Upswing Poker.

“If only a minority of preflop hands make the majority of the money, why should I play the rest of them?”

It’s a great question, and in this article, I’m going to break it all down for you, with some input from Uri Peleg as well.

Let’s dive in!

Why You Should Trust the Advice in this Article 

Uri Peleg is the world’s best poker coach.

Think that’s hyperbole? The facts don’t lie:

• Uri’s top students (like Barak Wisbrod and Owen Messere) have won millions of dollars in high-stakes cash games
• Through his Guerrilla Poker stable, he’s helped turn many breakeven low-stakes players into winning medium and high-stakes players
• He doesn’t just teach — he’s won millions on the felt himself too

This entire article is based on an unreleased video from Uri Peleg. That video (and many more) will be released in the Upswing Lab this summer.

You’re in good hands.

So, Should You Play Like a Nit Preflop?

The short answer? No. That’s it. End of article.

I’m joking, of course. But seriously, if most of the hands in preflop charts only generate a tiny bit of profit, why shouldn’t you just play like a nit?

To explore that, let’s look at the estimated expected value (EV) of each hand when open-raising to 2.5bb from the Cutoff (assuming 500NL rake):

The greener the box, the more the hand wins. The deeper the red, the more the hand loses by open-raising. White means the hand is barely profitable.

What we see here is striking: open-raising only hands like 88+, suited Broadways, and the top offsuit Broadways account for over 99% of the total EV from the entire opening range. And more than 80% of that comes from just JJ+ and AK.

To put it in perspective, the top 11.6% of preflop hands generate 99% of the EV from this open-raising range, and the top 3% alone account for more than 80%.

So why the hell does the solver bother open-raising 29.3% of starting hands here?

Reason #1: They All Make Money

The solver doesn’t care if it’s only a cent every 1000 hands, it will open it because it’s a savage.

That said, you don’t have to open-raise all of these hands in practice. Uri gives a perfect example:

“Let’s say you’re at a live game and really need to go to the bathroom, but you’re dealt 6h 5h in the Cutoff. The action’s on you. In that case, it might be best to just muck it and head to the bathroom.”

The juice simply isn’t worth the squeeze. If you check the chart above, you’ll see that 6h 5h has an equilibrium EV of exactly $0. That means it’s going to hover around break-even in practice too.

But if your mind is preoccupied, your chance of misplaying the hand increases dramatically—and suddenly, that marginal spot turns into a losing one.

Reason #2: If You Only Play the Best Hands, People Will Notice

While many strategic nuances are tough to notice for most players, spotting a nit isn’t one of them.

That’s because it’s a high-frequency pattern. Even in live games, people quickly develop an intuitive sense that “this guy hasn’t played many hands.” And it only gets worse if you’re playing against the same opponents regularly—they’ll stop paying you off eventually, which lowers the expected value of your strongest hands.

Does that mean you’ll start losing? Definitely not. You’re still only making profitable investments, but the return on those investments will shrink to some degree.

And if you’re playing online, the effect is even more pronounced. Players pick up on your tendencies much faster, simply because the game moves so much quicker—think 25 hands per hour in live poker versus 80–90 hands per hour online.

Reason #3: It’s More Fun

At Upswing, we strive to give you top-notch technical knowledge to help you play better and make more money, but let’s not forget that poker should still be fun. Odds are, that’s why you started playing in the first place. That part shouldn’t change.

Here’s how Uri frames it:

“While the focus during play is not necessarily on having fun, winning money is fun, and since these hands make some money, that’s another good reason to play them.”

Parting Thoughts

These marginal hands don’t have to be played one way or the other. The decision should be based on logical factors tied to performance. Ask yourself: Am I able to play my A-game right now? If the answer is yes, go ahead and play them. If not, there’s no harm in folding.

One last piece of advice from Uri on this topic:

“If you’ve got the best player in the world sitting to your left, it’s probably a smart idea to let these hands go.”

That’s it for this article! I hope you enjoyed it and now have a clearer sense of how to approach these marginal preflop hands moving forward.

Till next time, good luck, grinders!

If you’d like to learn more about strong preflop play, read: 5 Preflop Tips to Help You Crush on ClubWPT Gold.

The post Should You Play Like a Nit Preflop? appeared first on Upswing Poker.

Your unconscious mind expects a big win, but it might also remember all the times things went off script (like when that dreaded Ace lands on the flop).

In this article, I’ll break down how to approach playing pocket Kings postflop and give you a clear framework for decision-making based on Uri Peleg’s approach.

Why You Should Trust the Advice in this Article 

Uri Peleg is the world’s best poker coach.

Think that’s hyperbole? The facts don’t lie:

• Uri’s top students (like Barak Wisbrod and Owen Messere) have won millions of dollars in high stakes cash games
• Through his Guerrilla Poker stable, he’s helped turn many breakeven low stakes players into winning medium and high stakes players
• He doesn’t just teach — he’s won millions on the felt himself too

This entire article is based on an unreleased video from Uri Peleg. That video (and many more) will be released in the Upswing Lab this summer.

You’re in good hands.

A Metaphor to Understand the Changing Value of Pocket Kings

While pocket Kings are an absolute powerhouse preflop, their value can shift dramatically once the flop hits.

So, what should you do when the flop comes down bad for Kings?

Uri offers a metaphor to help frame it:

Imagine you have a beautiful singing voice that you’ve practiced your entire life, but you’re born in a place where everyone is deaf, or singing is illegal. The value of your voice is suddenly greatly diminished.

The same thing happens with Kings. Sometimes they’ll still be a very strong hand—like a set, or an overpair on a dry, disconnected flop. But other times, they drop to medium strength—like an overpair on a two-tone connected board or a monotone flop.

The value of the hand depends entirely on the situation. To play it well, you must let go of the fixed idea that you’re holding a premium hand.

And that mindset shift will help your game across the board, not just with pocket Kings. Continuously re-evaluating your hand’s strength based on the board texture and betting action is a core principle of strong poker.

The Constant Process of Re-Evaluation

In this section, let’s focus on the constant process of re-evaluating pocket Kings based on board texture and betting action, rather than diving into deep technical analysis.

The hands you’ll see below are taken from the recent Cash Game World Championship, which wrapped up just a few months ago. Every one of these hands were played by top-tier cash game professionals.

By the way, the winner of the Cash Game World Championship was Uri’s student Owen “PR0DIGY” Messere. 

Hand #1

“Lolvoidaments” open-raises from the Cutoff, and “riggeddeck” 3-bets from the Small Blind with pocket Kings (Kc Kh). The Cutoff calls.

Initial value assessment: Kings are extremely strong at this point.

The flop comes Qc 4c 4d.

Value reassessment: Kings are still a premium holding here. This board doesn’t connect much with the Cutoff’s range in terms of trips or quads—only hands like 54 suited and pocket 4s are realistically in play.

Riggeddeck checks, and lolvoidaments fires a 25% pot bet.

Value reassessment: Kings are still very strong. There are very few hands that beat them in this spot.

Riggeddeck responds with a 3.5x check-raise, targeting value from Qx and weaker hands. Lolvoidaments calls.

The turn is the 6c.

Value reassessment: With the flush completing on the turn, the value of Kings takes a significant hit. This is no longer a hand you’d feel good about getting all-in with.

Riggeddeck opts for a block bet, which aligns with our updated evaluation of the hand’s strength.

Lolvoidaments responds with a 2.5x raise. 

Value reassessment: For the first time in the hand, our opponent is signaling that they might have us beat. This is the moment where your evaluation needs a serious shift—it’s time to move from offense to defense. The question now is whether Kings are strong enough to call against this raise.

You go back to the fundamentals: equity, pot odds, implied odds, and stack-to-pot ratio. With a draw to the second-nut flush and four outs to a full house, facing a relatively small raise, pocket Kings are still strong enough to continue.

From an emotional standpoint, your excitement needs to come down. You have to accept that there’s a good chance you’re behind in the hand, but that calling is still likely the highest expected value option.

Riggeddeck calls, and the river is an Ace.

Value reassessment: The rivered Ace only reinforces what was already apparent on the turn—Kings are now in full bluff-catcher mode. That doesn’t necessarily mean you want to call, just that you’re only beating bluffs at this point.

Riggeddeck checks, the opponent checks back and shows 54s for flopped trips.

Hand #2

KevinPaque open-raises with pocket Kings from the Small Blind. PR0DIGY calls from the Big Blind.

Value assessment: Pocket Kings are very strong at this point.

The flop comes Ah 6d 6c—a rainbow board.

Value reassessment: Time to pump the brakes. What was a premium hand preflop has taken a big hit. You’re now losing to any Ace, and of course to any 6. It’s not an exciting spot—this is a hand that wants to keep the pot small.

KevinPaque checks, PR0DIGY makes a small bet, and Kevin calls.

The turn is the Js.

Value reassessment: Not much changes. Kings are still behind all the same hands—any Ace, any 6—and there aren’t many new hands you’re beating now. The goal remains the same: keep the pot small.

Kevin checks, and PR0DIGY checks back.

The river is the 4h.

Value reassessment: The value of Kings improves slightly here, based on your opponent’s passive line on the turn. By checking back, he’s signaled that he likely doesn’t have an Ace—so now you’re probably ahead. At this point, you have two options: make a small value bet to target hands like a Jack, or check and prepare to bluff-catch.

Kevin checks, PR0DIGY checks back and shows pocket 3s. Kevin wins the pot.

Pocket Kings were played correctly based on their shifting value. Small hand, small pot. No missteps at any point.

Final Thoughts

This kind of value assessment is constantly running through the mind of an elite player. As your understanding of the game deepens, the process becomes more refined, factoring in both technical and psychological nuances, and improving your ability to weigh each one accurately.

Pocket Kings will sometimes win you huge pots—but what I wanted to highlight here is how the correct core thought process holds up, even when the hand doesn’t go the way you hoped it would preflop.

I hope Uri’s advice gave you a clearer understanding of how to think through hands with Kings—especially when things don’t break your way.

Till next time, good luck, grinders!

For more tips on how to play big pocket pairs, read: 3 Pro Tips for Playing Overpairs (via Lucid Poker).

The post How Elite Poker Pros Play Pocket Kings Postflop appeared first on Upswing Poker.

I’ve been a PokerTracker user for almost a decade, and even though I’ve added other tools to my kit, I still use it daily. I don’t see that changing anytime soon.

Alright, here are the five ways I use PokerTracker 4 to work on my game:

#1 – Quick Session Review

I almost always do a quick session review after I’m done playing. The reason for this is based on science, specifically, the Zeigarnik Effect.

This psychological phenomenon suggests that people remember unfinished tasks or incomplete experiences better than completed ones. It often creates mental tension or discomfort, driving you to keep thinking about the task until it’s resolved.

It’s named after Bluma Zeigarnik, a Russian psychologist who first observed the tendency in the 1920s. The idea is that unfinished tasks create cognitive dissonance, motivating you to finish them.

By doing a review regularly, you can cool off after your session while examining the situations that caused any tension you’re feeling. This helps you keep a positive mindset throughout the day and enjoy other important things in your life.

To get started, go to “My Reports.”

Click on “New Report” and select “Hand Report.”

This will be the result:

Here, you can click on the column titles to sort the hands however you want. Most of the time, I sort them by biggest pots first, since those are usually the ones that stick out in my mind.

#2 – Checking How You Play Certain Hand Categories

The next useful thing you can do with PokerTracker is create filters for different hand categories and check how you’ve played them.

For example, maybe you feel like you’re losing too much with flopped second pairs. PokerTracker lets you create a filter and review those hands easily. Here’s how to do it:

1. In the “My Reports” tab, click on “More Filters” on the bottom left.
2. Then select “Hand Values” and “Made Hands.”
3. Then click on “One Pair,” select the following boxes, and click “Add to Filter”:

There’s no better tool I’ve tested that lets you customize filters this easily. Have fun testing it out!

#3 – Checking Your Results in Different Preflop and Postflop Scenarios

Multi-handed No Limit Hold’em is really a collection of smaller sub-games. For example, you have single-raised pots in position as the preflop raiser, single-raised pots out of position as the preflop caller, 3-bet pots in position as the preflop raiser, and so on.

With PokerTracker’s filtering system, you can create and save Quick Filters to regularly check how you’ve been performing in these sub-games and review your hands.

For example, let’s say I want to check my performance in single-raised pots where I’m the preflop raiser in position. Here’s what that filter looks like:

You can save this filter by pressing “Save as Quick Filter” in the bottom left corner. That way, you’ll be able to easily access it in the future. I strongly recommend saving your filters!

#4 – Checking How Hot You’ve Run

A feature that’s unique to PokerTracker is the “Overall Luck Bell Curve.” It calculates how often you’ve hit your flush draw, straight draw, or set compared to the odds of hitting it.

For example, with a pocket pair, you should hit a set or quads on the flop about 12% of the time. Using mathematical formulas and a Gaussian distribution chart (also known as a normal distribution or bell curve), PokerTracker shows you how lucky or unlucky you’ve been. This can sometimes ease the pressure of a losing streak or help you cool off after running hot.

Looks like I need to work on my card-hitting skills this month!

You can find this feature under the “LeakTracker” tab by selecting “Report,” then “Overall Luck Bell Curve.”

It’s important to remember that this is just one tool for measuring variance—it’s not all-encompassing. Variance is multi-faceted and hard to pinpoint. Still, it’s another valuable tool to have in your toolkit.

#5 – Stat Analysis

The final way to use PokerTracker to improve your skills is by performing a stat analysis.

This is a powerful feature that lets you monitor stats like:

• How often you c-bet on the flop, turn, or river
• How often you folded against a probe bet, delayed c-bet, or float bet
• How much you’ve been 3-betting
• How much you’ve been folding against 3-bets
• How much you’ve been 4-betting

And much more. You can even use the filtering system to get more specific. For example, you can track your betting, folding, and raising frequencies in single-raised pots where you’re the preflop raiser in position.

To run this analysis, go to the “Statistics” tab, click on “Report,” and select “Overview.”

After that, you can create a new filter by clicking on “More Filters,” or use a quick one you’ve saved earlier. I recommend using the positional tab for studying, which you’ll find in the center-right part of the window:

Once you’re there, you can add just about any stat you can think of, and PokerTracker comes loaded with a lot of them by default. To add new stats to the report, just right-click and select “Configure Report”:

There, you can type in the stat you’re looking for, like “Probe Turn,” and add it to your list by double-clicking it.

You can rearrange your stats by clicking the up and down arrows.

Knowing which stats are in the optimal range (and which ones aren’t) takes a different set of knowledge. You can start learning by using solvers and creating aggregate reports, getting a coach to walk you through it, or checking the stats of very winning players and comparing yours to theirs.

Related reading: 10 Crucial Poker Stats To Include On Your HUD (And How to Use Them)

Wrapping Up

You now have five ways to use PokerTracker to accelerate your skill development in poker. The most important part is staying consistent with your studying. Even doing a little bit every day will go a long way.

That’s all for this article! I hope you enjoyed it and learned something new. I had a blast writing about one of my favorite tools!

If you’d like to learn more about playing tough, aggressive poker, read: 3 Tips to Make Your Opponents Regret Raising Your Big Blind.

Till next time, good luck, grinders!

The post 5 Tips for Improving Your Skills with PokerTracker appeared first on Upswing Poker.

The continual redistribution of chips as players win and lose pots, combined with the shrinking field and looming bubble, makes the stages leading up to the in-the-money (ITM) phase some of the most dynamic, interesting, and ROI-defining in tournaments.

While at a final table, you’ll be making decisions around the lion’s share of the prize pool, but busting near the money too often eats away at your deep-run profits and kills your ROI.

This is the second part of a comprehensive dive into pre-money play (you can read part 1 here).

Today, we’re getting a little closer to the bubble of a 1,000-runner tournament with 125 paid.

To provide some contrast and help clarify your adjustments, I’m using Holdem Resources Calculator (HRC) sims for 175 players left (50 eliminations from ITM) and 150 players left (25 eliminations from ITM).

Let’s dive deep into strategy for this critical stage of a tournament.

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Short Stack Strategy

I’m going to drop a few charts from my HRC research, then summarize the key takeaways below them.

Just take a quick glance at the charts, maybe make a mental note of the differences, then move onto my explanations. You can always scroll back up to reference the charts as needed.

HRC Raise First In (RFI) Strategy — Cutoff, 11bb Stack (Asymmetric Configuration, 28bb Average, 100 from ITM)

From the Cutoff with 11bb, the RFI strategy is split between min-opening and open-shoving:

• Red: Min-raise.
• Purple: Open shove (all-in).

The Cutoff opens 31.6% of hands in this spot.

HRC Raise First In (RFI) Strategy — Cutoff, 11bb Stack (Asymmetric Configuration, 28bb Average, 50 from ITM)

From the Cutoff with 11bb, the RFI strategy is split between min-opening and open-shoving:

• Red: Min-raise.
• Purple: Open shove (all-in).

The Cutoff opens 30.4% of hands in this spot.

HRC Raise First In (RFI) Strategy — Cutoff, 11bb Stack (Asymmetric Configuration, 28bb Average, 25 from ITM)

From the Cutoff with 11bb, the RFI strategy is split between min-opening and open-shoving:

• Red: Min-raise.
• Purple: Open shove (all-in).

The Cutoff opens 27.5% of hands in this spot.

At 100 players left from the money, the Cutoff plays a 31.6% range. At 50 left, it’s 30.4%. At 25 left, it shrinks to 27.5%. The nearing of the bubble creates a tapering effect on the short stack’s range, and the closer you get, the sharper the contraction becomes.

Notice how the rate of shrinkage steepens. From 100 left to 50 left, the Cutoff’s range contracts by just 1.2%. But from 50 left to 25 left, it shrinks by 2.8%. The proximity of the money produces meaningful RFI adjustments.

Importantly, it’s not the min-raise percentage that’s driving this shift. The min-open frequency only drops by 0.2% from 100 to 25 left. Rather, it’s the all-ins that see a significant decline. This highlights the increasing importance of survival as a short stack near the bubble.

Paying attention to the fringe of your range becomes critical here. Take Qx Tx offsuit, for example.

• With 100 left from the money, this combo shoves 34% of the time.
• With 50 left, it drops to 10%.
• With 25 left, just 6%.

It’s easy to fall into the trap of playing a static “bubble” range when you’re short-stacked. But even with limited chips, nuance and finesse are required.

It’s crucial to understand what the fringe of your range is actually worth. With 25 players left before the money, this combo is worth just $0.05 in dollar expected value ($EV), whether you min-raise or shove. Remember, this is a $215 tournament where the min-cash is about 1.5x the buy-in. With 50 players left, the same hand is worth about $1.82.

So while these are high-frequency RFIs, they don’t add much to your bottom line.

Factors like your opponents calling too wide or too tight, your skill edge at the table, and even where this tournament’s buy-in ranks in your overall schedule should all influence how you proceed.

• How Your Opponents Play: If your opponents are calling too wide, the $EV of your fringe shoves will drop, often turning into losing plays. Conversely, if they’re calling too tight, you should ramp up your aggression. It’s important to recognize whether optimal play is overperforming or underperforming in practice and adjust your strategy accordingly.
• Your Skill Edge Vs. Your Table: Factoring in future gameplay when dealt a bottom-of-range open shove will help you decide whether to strictly follow the ICM outputs. Take the Qx Tx offsuit example: you make just $0.05 by open-jamming, a negligible amount relative to the $215 buy-in. Can you outperform that $0.05 by waiting for a better spot? Gambling tighter might be the better play. On the other hand, if you’re at a skill disadvantage, it’s usually best to take any available +$EV spot as the short stack and hope to either get it through or win when called.
• Your Buy-in Range: Players with a wider buy-in range may want to weigh the $EV of a shove more carefully and tighten up. In this $215 example, if it’s near the top of your buy-in range, you might choose to shave the bottom off your open-shoving range to give yourself a better shot at min-cashing. An extreme example: imagine an online midstakes grinder who satellites into the WSOP Main Event and makes Day 4. In that spot, you might willingly sacrifice some theoretical EV in exchange for a higher chance at locking up a five-figure payout.

Mid Stacks

It’s natural to assume that ICM pressure causes ranges to tighten across all stack sizes. However, there are situations where the opposite happens.

HRC Raise First In (RFI) Strategy — UTG1, 33bb Stack (Asymmetric Configuration, 28bb Average, 100 from ITM)

From UTG1 with 33bb, the RFI strategy opens 18.9% of hands.

HRC Raise First In (RFI) Strategy — UTG1, 33bb Stack (Asymmetric Configuration, 28bb Average, 50 from ITM)

From UTG1 with 33bb, the RFI strategy opens 19.9% of hands.

HRC Raise First In (RFI) Strategy — UTG1, 33bb Stack (Asymmetric Configuration, 28bb Average, 25 from ITM)

From UTG1 with 33bb, the RFI strategy opens 21.4% of hands.

In the HRC outputs for the UTG1 player, the ranges expand as the money approaches.

• 100 from the money: 18.9% open.
• 50 from the money: 19.9% open.
• 25 from the money: 21.4% open — slightly wider than chipEV.

At first glance, this might seem to contradict the ICM model, where you would expect ranges to tighten, not widen. However, this is a mischaracterization of how ICM pressure actually works. While it’s true that ICM often leads to tighter overall play, it would be more accurate to say that ICM determines who you should be playing against most often, not simply that you should tighten across the board.

In the configuration for these sims, the UTG1 player is only at risk of busting versus the Small Blind.

• UTG: 50bb
• UTG1 (EP): 33bb
• MP: 18bb
• HJ: 25bb
• CO: 11bb
• BU: 29bb
• SB: 39bb
• BB: 19.5bb

Stack configuration used for the earlier sims.

Bubble Factors — 150 Players Left (25 from the Money)

After the UTG player folds, the UTG1 player’s highest bubble factor is against the Small Blind.

Notice in the bubble factors above that the highest risk premiums for the UTG1 player are against the UTG and Small Blind, both at 6.8%. When the UTG player folds and UTG1 opens, the opponent they least want to play against is the Small Blind, since they are covered by them, increasing the risk of busting out.

However, in every other possible confrontation, the bubble factors and risk premiums of the opponents against UTG1 are greater than UTG1’s are against them. The opponents are the ones at risk when playing a pot versus UTG1, not the other way around. This dynamic strengthens the case for UTG1 to open wider.

The most important factors in shaping UTG1’s opening range are the Button and Big Blind stacks, since they are the players most likely to contest the pot. In this case, UTG1 covers both.

UTG1 covers the Button and the Big Blind — the two players they will be tangling with most often. They also cover everyone else at the table except the Small Blind, who they will have position on. These conditions are what cause UTG1’s RFI range to widen under ICM pressure, rather than contract.

For clarity, take a look at the Big Blind’s response to a UTG1 open, first with 100 players left before the money, then with 25, shown below.

HRC Big Blind Defense Strategy — Versus UTG1 Open (Asymmetric Configuration: 28bb Average, BB with 19.5bb, UTG1 with 33bb, 100 from ITM)

UTG1 opens 18.9% of hands.

The Big Blind’s combined defending range is 59.4%, folding the remaining 40.6%.

HRC Big Blind Defense Strategy — Versus UTG1 Open (Asymmetric Configuration: 28bb Average, BB with 19.5bb, UTG1 with 33bb, 25 from ITM)

UTG1 opens 21.4% of hands.

The Big Blind’s combined defending range is 41.8%, folding the remaining 58.2%.

Since the Big Blind is covered and at risk of busting against the UTG1 opener, they are forced to defend very tightly.

• In the 100-left sim, the Big Blind is already folding 40.6% of hands.
• With 25 left before the money, that number jumps to 58.2%.

In a chipEV environment, this level of folding would be considered extreme. At these stack depths, the Big Blind would typically only fold around 25% of hands.

Folding this much in the Big Blind would result in a losing bb/100 win rate, even if you played like a top-tier player from every other position. Because the Big Blind is forced to defend so tightly, the UTG1 player gains additional incentive to widen their RFI range.

To further illustrate, take a look at the HRC sim below, where the stacks have been rearranged.

• UTG: 111bb
• UTG1 (EP): 33bb
• MP: 18bb
• HJ: 25bb
• CO: 19.5bb
• BU: 50bb
• SB: 29bb
• BB: 39bb

Stack configuration used for the following sim.

HRC Raise First In (RFI) Strategy — UTG1, 33bb Stack (Asymmetric Configuration: 28bb Average, 25 from ITM, Different Stack Setups)

UTG1 opens 19.9% of hands.

Once again, the UTG1 range has contracted to less than chipEV. The driving force behind these adjustments is the Button and Big Blind, who now cover the UTG1 player. When UTG1 opens, the Big Blind folds 44% of the time, more than in the 100-left sim (40.6%), but significantly less than in the 25-left sim (58.2%).

Contrasting this stack setup against the earlier one highlights just how dynamic the ICM model truly is.

When thinking about ICM, think about who you do and do not want to play against.

The Big Stack

In this section, I’ll compare the two 150-remaining (25 left to the money) sims with their different stack setups.

By now, it should be clear: if you are not at risk of busting while others are, you get to play more hands. As the money approaches, the big stack at the table will naturally see an RFI increase from all positions.

HRC Raise First In (RFI) Strategy — UTG, 50bb Stack (Asymmetric Configuration: 28bb Average, 25 from ITM)

UTG opens 21.9% of hands.

In the HRC output above, UTG opens a 21.9% range. This is notably wide, considering that in chipEV:

• At 25bb effective, UTG would open around 18%.
• At 50bb effective, UTG would open around 17%.

The fact that the earliest position can widen its range by nearly 18% highlights just how much ICM pressure impacts the shorter stacks.

As noted in the previous article of this series, preference is given to combos that block opponents’ 3-bets, particularly Ax and Kx hands.

This pattern remains resilient even as the RFI range expands. The additional hands aren’t random pocket pairs or suited connectors; they are primarily suited Kx, Ax 5x offsuit, and offsuit broadways. It’s important to remember that as preflop ranges shift, so must your postflop strategy. A common mistake is to continue using GTO postflop lines that were developed for chipEV ranges, even when ICM pressure is in play.

HRC Raise First In (RFI) Strategy — Button, 50bb Stack (Asymmetric Configuration: 28bb Average, 25 from ITM)

The Button opens 55.5% of hands.

On the Button, the big stack opens over half the deck. This isn’t unusual — at 40bb effective in chipEV, the Button opens around 52%, and at 50bb effective, around 54%. What is unusual is how resilient this percentage remains in an asymmetric setup. In this table configuration, the Small Blind has 29bb, and the Big Blind has 39bb.

Again, covering the players to act means they are never at risk, their opponents are, allowing them to open even more aggressively than standard chipEV strategy would suggest.

That said, being the covering stack on the Button with 25 players left before the money is not a license to raise 80% of your hands.

55.5% is wide, but it’s still an “honest” range.

However, it’s important to understand that opening wider than equilibrium is a lesser mistake than defending wider. As an extreme example:

• If the Button opens 9x4x offsuit, they lose $8.09.
• If the Big Blind defends it, they lose $16.70.

Opening and betting mistakes are far less costly than calling mistakes, especially under ICM pressure.

Conclusion

In this article, I’ve covered the strategic adjustments for what is traditionally considered the soft bubble stage in tournaments. At this point, risk premiums are high enough that RFI percentages become much more dynamic, moving up or down depending on your stack size and table configuration.

Key Takeaways:

• Short stacks tighten up, playing for the min-cash. Pay close attention to your opponents’ tendencies — open-shoving equilibrium ranges against players who call too wide will torch money.
• When the big stack folds, the next stack with the lowest risk of busting (the one covering others) effectively becomes the new chip leader. As a result, opens widen. Make sure not to play too tight!
• With the money bubble looming, the big stack gets to ramp up aggression from all positions, but still within respectable ranges. Be careful not to play too loose.
• Mistakes around ICM pressure: It’s much worse to defend too wide than it is to open too wide.

If you enjoyed this article, keep an eye out for part 3 of my bubble series. And check this out in the meantime: This Greedy Value Bet Strategy Will Help You Win More Tournaments.

Note: Want to navigate every stage of a tournament like a pro, from the first hand to the last?

Get $200 off the ultimate tournament masterclass with coupon code BUBBLE200. Expires Sunday at midnight.

This advanced tournament course from two super high rollers will help you run deeper and win more tournaments.

Make sure you use that BUBBLE200 code to save $200 before this Sunday (May 4th) at midnight.

The post Money Bubble Tactics: Maximize Your Edge as the Pressure Builds appeared first on Upswing Poker.

The reason why is simple: your opponent can’t just start taking mindless stabs at the pot once you check. He’s going to get his equity denied or end up value cutting himself way too often. That forces him to check back more, which boosts the equity realization of your weaker hands.

But what happens after that initial aggression is just as important.

Without a cohesive strategy on the turn, you’re going to end up bleeding money, especially now that the pot is exponentially bigger. Remember, expected value (EV) flows backward from the river to preflop (meaning turn and river strategies are vital).

Today’s focus will be on cornerstone concepts for playing the turn, then we’ll dive deep into playing turns that complete a flush draw.

This is part 1 of a new series on playing turns after check-raising.

The Cornerstone Concepts – Range and Nut Distribution

Whether you were the preflop raiser or caller doesn’t really matter. That idea’s long outdated.

Thanks to solvers, we now understand which variables actually drive the action:

1. Preflop ranges and how they interact with the board (this is where nut advantages and range advantages come from)
2. Positional dynamics (being in or out of position matters far more than who raised pre)
3. Stack-to-pot ratio (SPR shapes what kinds of bets are threatening or commit us)
4. Bet sizing—especially block bets and overbets, which play a huge role in shaping turn and river play

How Different Turns Affect the Equity and Nut Distribution

Now, enough high-level theory, let’s look at some actual examples and break down the mechanics behind the optimal strategy.

We’ll focus on Big Blind vs Button, since it’s by far the most common check-raise spot you’ll encounter.

Playing from the Big Blind against the Button

In this scenario, the Button open-raises, and you defend from the Big Blind.

The flop comes Js 8s 2d. The Button fires a 75% pot continuation bet, and you respond with a 3.5x check-raise. He calls.

At this point, the turn card can drastically shift the dynamic, and your strategy needs to shift with it.

This article kicks off a new series on how to play the turn after check-raising the flop, focusing on five of the most strategically relevant turn types:

1. Flush-completing turns
2. Straight-completing turns
3. Overcard turns
4. Blank turns
5. Pairing turns

We’re starting with Part 1: Flush-Completing Turns, where your range and nut advantage are often at their peak, and aggressive play is the name of the game.

#1 – Flush-completing turns

Flush-completing turns are, on average, your best-case scenario. That’s because a huge chunk of your flop check-raising range consists of flush draws and one-card backdoor flush draws. When these improve on the turn, your overall equity shoots up with them.

These turns are usually so favorable that you’ll actually have the range advantage, which is rare. Spoiler: this won’t be the case on most runouts.

So we’ve nailed down the first part of the puzzle: range advantage. Now let’s look at the second key factor—nut distribution.

To understand how that distribution plays out, we need to revisit the mechanics behind flop check-raises.

On the flop, the Button will look to press his nut advantage by fast-playing his strong hands using a large size, to lower the EV of your many draws as much as possible. That’s his way of protecting his edge, and it’s important for understanding what kinds of hands actually reach the turn.

In response, you check-raise with a highly polarized strategy—mostly two pairs and sets for value. Only a few hands are strong enough to check-raise for value, and your bluffs are built around your best draws.

After facing this check-raise, the Button continues with his strong made hands (top pairs and overpairs) and strong draws.

Because of this dynamic, you retain the nut advantage on the turn. While his range is heavy on top pairs and overpairs, yours contains the two pairs, sets, and now-made flushes.

So, back to flush-completing turns. On these, you hold both the range and nut advantage. This means we can expect the optimal strategy to be highly aggressive, with the optimal bet size being towards the smaller side of the spectrum. 

Let’s pull up the solver and see if the data backs this up.

Bet-sizing legend: 124 = 33% pot, 188% = 50% pot, 282 = 75% pot, 812 = 212% pot (all-in)

So why is the optimal bet size a small one? I kept you in suspense for a reason.

It all comes down to the disadvantages of playing out of position. There are two key ones:

1. You don’t get to realize your equity for free when you’d like to.
2. You have to prevent the in-position player from realizing his equity for free.

Now think about your range: you’ve got a bunch of thin value hands, like two pairs, that can’t profitably bet large. But if you check, your opponent gets a free shot to improve, and sometimes he’ll outdraw you.

So what’s the solution? Bet small.

That small sizing lets you extract value and deny equity from the hands that still have outs against you. It threads the needle between protection and value.

Case in point: say you have Jh 8h on the 4s turn. Here’s what the solver recommends:

The lightest color represents a 33% pot-sized bet, which is the solver’s preferred bet size in this situation

We see that the solver chooses to bet 33% pot almost every time with Jh 8h, and the same goes for all combos of J8s.

Now let’s flip it and look at how the Button is supposed to respond to this strategy:

Take a look at the Button’s folding range—specifically his Jx region.

You’ll notice that the solver has the Button folding some KJ and QJ, and folding the majority of JT and J9 combos.

These hands are the ones that drive the range vs. range dynamic in this spot. They’re just strong enough to compete with your value hands, but not strong enough to call comfortably once you apply pressure.

Hands like 8x and 2x don’t really move the needle. Those combos often get turned into bluffs when you check, but that’s a topic for another day.

What matters here is this: checking and letting those Jx hands realize their equity for free may only have a small impact in each individual hand, but across thousands of hands, that small edge becomes a significant EV leak.

The reason you’re able to block bet so effectively in this spot comes down to having both a range advantage and a nut advantage.

If you lacked one—or especially both—of those edges, the Button could exploit you by raising aggressively and folding almost nothing. Your range wouldn’t be strong enough to fight back.

But thanks to those twin advantages, he’s handcuffed.

To see what I mean, look back at the previous image showing the Button’s response to your block bet. He doesn’t raise at all. 

Why? Because if he starts raising here, he caps his own get-to-river range, which opens the door for you to exploit him later. In other words, the Button has no good raise candidates, and the solver knows it.

Departing Ideas

Before wrapping up this first part of the series, I want to leave you with a quick cautionary note—and a nifty trick.

If you’ve been following my articles, you’ve probably noticed I’ve been harping on flop strategy quite a bit. And for good reason. Your turn strategy is only as good as the range you arrive with—and that range is built on your flop check-raising strategy.

If you’re not getting to the turn with a range that closely mirrors the solver’s check-raising output, then the “optimal” turn strategy I’ve laid out here won’t apply. Garbage in, garbage out.

Now for the trick I promised.

If you look at the solver’s output for this spot, you’ll see that it barrels about 85% of its range on the turn. That gives you permission to simplify your strategy by just range betting the turn.

And here’s the kicker: even the solver can’t exploit that strategy for more than 2 big blinds per 100 hands—and that’s in a pot worth nearly 40 big blinds. That’s just 0.5% of the pot in EV loss.

In other words, it’s a perfectly acceptable simplification that makes your life way easier—and your strategy still incredibly tough to play against.

Wrapping Up

That’s all for part 1 of this series!

If you enjoyed this kind of advanced strategy breakdown and want to see more content like it, drop a comment below—I’d love to hear your thoughts.

I had a blast writing this one, and I’m looking forward to reading what you have to say.

Until next time, good luck, grinders!

If you’d like to learn more about how to apply postflop aggression, read: Mastering the Donk Bet (3 Pro Tips for Max EV)

The post How to Play Flush Turns After Check-Raising (Advanced Strategy) appeared first on Upswing Poker.

Newcomers to the game can enjoy free poker games on several different platforms. The sites on the following list offer free poker online, with no deposit or any kind of money commitment required.

Here’s a look at the best places to find free poker games online:

ClubWPT Gold

A sweepstakes poker site backed by the World Poker Tour (WPT) brand, ClubWPT Gold is a newer option for those looking to learn the game or just play for fun.

For more on this new site, check out our in-depth ClubWPT Gold review

Not to be confused with PlayWPT, the “Gold” version is a separate browser-based site that offers No-Limit Hold’em ring games and multi-table tournaments. You can choose to participate using play money (“gold coins”) or virtual currency called “sweeps coins” that you can eventually redeem for real cash prizes. Neither option requires an initial deposit to get started.

There is no dedicated ClubWPT Gold mobile app as of yet so you will need to go to ClubWPTGold.com to sign up.

Enter your personal details and promo code UPSWING2 when signing up to receive free sweeps coins (SC) and qualify for special freeroll tournaments.

Navigate to the wallet or “coin exchange” to purchase or claim more free gold coins (GC). If you click on “daily login rewards,” you can claim a set amount of free GC (and bonus SC) every day, with additional bonuses available for seven days of consecutive logins.

At the top of the home screen or lobby, you can easily toggle back and forth from SC to GC mode.

If you’re looking to stick to play money only, be sure to keep the GC option selected. Both modes allow you to try out ring games and MTTs against real opponents in most US states, and also offer freeroll tournaments with chances to stack up more of the virtual currency of your choosing.

PlayWSOP.com

WSOP, perhaps the world’s most famous poker brand, offers free poker online through its PlayWSOP platform. The free poker site is available as a no-download desktop client, with a quick one-click sign up process if you want to use your existing Facebook or Google account to register.

PlayWSOP.com is also available as an app download for mobile devices. Apple iOS users can find PlayWSOP in the App Store, while Andriod users will find the app in the Google Play store. PlayWSOP is also accessible on Amazon Kindle Fire.

After signing in to PlayWSOP, the platform gives you the option of having a virtual dealer take you through the basics of poker. PlayWSOP offers both No-Limit Hold’em and Pot-Limit Omaha as free poker games, and you can practice your skills in both cash games and tournaments.

Replay Poker 

Replay Poker offers free poker online in a package that very much resembles the world’s top real-money poker sites. The platform features a variety of “cash game” stakes that allows you to practice your bankroll management skills, with the site’s most skilled players awaiting at the top tiers of the play-money cash game ladder.

The Replay Poker platform offers No-Limit Hold’em, Pot-Limit Omaha, Omaha Hi-Lo, and Royal Poker, a version of Short Deck Hold’em with only tens through aces in the deck. 

Players can access Replay Poker with no download required, but note that the client isn’t compatible with the Internet Explorer browser. The desktop version stands as the only way to enjoy the platform, as no mobile app for Replay Poker has been released as of yet.

Zynga Poker

One of the longest-running platforms offers free poker online, Zynga Poker offers free poker games on a no-download desktop client. Like some of the other choices on our list, Zynga Poker requires just a one-click sign-up process if you use your Facebook or Google account details to sign up.

Zynga Poker presents the chance to play in free “cash games,” Spin & Wins, and Sit & Go single table tournaments. Zynga Poker’s games are free to play, but you can also buy play money chips at any time.

In addition to the desktop version, Zynga Poker can also be played on a downloadable app for both Apple and Android devices.

PlayWPT

Watch any World Poker Tour broadcast and you’ll no doubt see plenty of commercial time dedicated to the PlayWPT free online poker site. PlayWPT offers No-Limit Hold’em cash games, tournaments, and Sit & Gos.

The vibrant visual interface of WPT makes the platform one of the more aesthetically appealing places to find free poker online. Upon sign-up, the platform starts you off with play money credits, but you can also buy more chips for the free games at any time.

The PlayWPT platform is available as a browser-based client, and also as an app download for Apple iOS and Android devices.

247poker.com

The 247poker platform offers free poker online as more of a brain game versus the other free poker sites on our list. When you sign in for a session, 247poker allows you to pick among easy, normal, hard, or expert difficulty.

From there you’re instantly taken to a six-max No-Limit Hold’em game where you’re pitted against five AI opponents. 

The 247poker platform is perhaps the most efficient way to use a free online poker site as a training tool for real-money games. The more difficult levels of 247poker feature challenging AI opponents.

The post What is the Best Free Online Poker Site? (Top 6 Reviewed) appeared first on Upswing Poker.

Every time you see someone limp into the pot, you’re being handed an opportunity — often to win their entire stack, or at least a big chunk of it, in short order.

You’re about to learn how to absolutely destroy these players. Here’s what you will find in this article (click a section to skip to it):

• Why Friends Don’t Let Friends Open-Limp
• Preflop Strategy vs Limpers
  • The Two Approaches to Countering Limps
  • Baseline Strategy vs Limpers
• Postflop Strategy vs Limpers
• 7 Tips That Have Helped Me Win Countless Stacks from Limpers

Without further ado, let’s dive in!

This article has been updated (originally published July 20th, 2018).

Why Friends Don’t Let Friends Open-Limp

Never be the first player to limp into the pot. I repeat, never be the first player to limp into the pot.

Open-limping (just calling the price of the big blind as the first player in the pot) is basically never a good strategy. This is a topic we have discussed many, many times, but it’s worth revisiting.

Pro note: There are very few exceptions to this “don’t open limp” rule. In short, limping is only optimal in a few scenarios such as when it folds to the blinds or when there’s a big ante.

Open-limping is a weak and passive play that leaves you few ways to win the pot. This is not to be confused with limping behind other limpers, which has its place, and can be profitable.

When you raise preflop, there are a few ways for you to win the pot:

1. All of the other players at the table fold.
2. You win postflop with a c-bet or barrel against one or two opponents.
3. Your hand hits the board and you are able to win at showdown.

Not only can you not win the pot preflop by limping, the play also makes it more challenging to steal the pot postflop. This is because there will likely be several other players in the pot.

Limping also prevents you from representing a strong hand on certain board textures. You aren’t telling a very credible story about having a big hand on that A-J-T flop if you limped preflop, and then go H-A-M postflop.

Your most likely avenue to win the pot when you limp is to hit your hand and win at showdown. Raising preflop also serves another purpose. It forces players behind to make a more difficult decision about their hand.

Preflop Strategy vs Limpers

Not all limpers are created equal. This section of the guide will go into specifics on why that is.

First, it will cover the two approaches you can use when facing a limper. Then it will demonstrate a baseline strategy for playing against a limper when you have no reads on them.

The Two Approaches to Countering Limps

The optimal strategy when facing a limper depends on a number of variables:

• The skill level and tendencies of the limper
• The aggressiveness of the players at your table
• Your stack depth

That said, there are two major ways to approach open limps.

1. Play tighter

Playing tighter against limpers makes sense from a theoretical perspective.

When someone limps, they’re signaling that they have a hand they consider playable from that position.

Sure, some players will limp random and trashy hands, like 9c 3h, but those are rare these days.

So, now you’re up against a player with at least a semi-reasonable hand, plus the Small Blind and Big Blind. That’s three players to worry about.

There are a few more specific variables to watch out for that should make you take this tighter approach when facing limpers:

• The limper is a competent player with a potentially balanced limping range
• Players behind you are aggressive
• Effective stacks are short

But if the limper is a weak and/or inexperienced player worth targeting, the better approach might be to…

2. Loosen up

Playing looser against limpers can be a good move, but it’s riskier.

When a player frequently open-limps preflop, you can assume they’re weak, passive, and worth targeting with aggression. A player who open-limps regularly is prone to making mistakes—after all, they’ve already made one by limping preflop.

The mistakes they make postflop will allow you to over-realize your equity when you isolate them. Limpers rarely put you in difficult spots postflop, making it easy to win pots you aren’t “supposed” to win.

You should actively look for opportunities to play pots with these passive players. Forcing a limper to call your raises preflop (out of position and with a weak range) is one of the most profitable situations in poker.

That said, a few other factors need to be in your favor to make loose play against limpers truly optimal:

• The open limper is unlikely to limp and then 3-bet.
• Effective stacks are deep, increasing the chance the limper makes a costly postflop mistake.
• The players behind you are tight and unlikely to 3-bet.

When it comes to sizing, aim to find the perfect amount that puts the weakest hands in their range in the toughest possible spot. Of course, that’s essentially the goal of any bet in poker. (We’ll dive deeper into sizing in Tip #1 at the end of this article.)

Don’t squander your opportunities against weak players who limp into pots. Keep isolating them and putting them in difficult spots until they give you a real reason to stop.

Some players will let you hammer them limp after limp without ever pushing back. Sure, they’ll make a hand once in a while—but that shouldn’t faze you.

You’ll already have stolen so many pots from them that you will be paying them with their own money, like Teddy KGB at the end of Rounders.

Baseline Strategy vs Limpers

You won’t always know how a player approaches limping, especially when you first sit down at the table. That’s why it’s important to have a solid baseline strategy for playing against limpers. From there, you can adjust as new information comes in.

This default range assumes you’re facing a competent player who limps with some thought behind it. That’s not to say he’s using a balanced limping strategy (almost nobody is), but he’s at least being selective.

By “limping thoughtfully,” I mean he’s choosing to limp with hands that fall in the gray area: not quite strong enough to raise, but still playable. Think A4 offsuit in late position, K6 suited from mid-late position, or 65 suited from early-mid. You might also see the occasional trap mixed in.

With that in mind, here’s the range I’d use as my starting point. These are the hands I would always raise against a limper if I had no reads and was sitting in early or middle position (you can loosen up from later positions):

Red = Raise, Blue = Fold

You may be thinking that this range is tight, and it is, but let me explain why it’s a great baseline strategy for raising over an unknown limper:

1. It’s made up of hands that hit well and can extract value, which is the primary way to profit from a limper.
2. There are still players left to act who can 3-bet or cold-call, which makes equity realization more difficult.
3. You don’t yet know whether the limper tends to fold, call, or play aggressively postflop — so it’s unclear whether weaker hands will perform well as raises.

Without reliable info on these factors, it’s smart to keep things tight and avoid putting yourself in marginal spots.

You can start adding more hands depending on these factors:

Note that while some of the following tips may suggest tightening up, I don’t recommend removing any hands from the baseline range above. That range represents the tightest you should ever play against a limper.

To wrap up, here’s one more example for your reference: the recommended Button vs. Limp range from the Upswing Lab. This assumes exactly one limper, regardless of their position:

Button vs Limper range recommended in the Upswing Lab.

The looser/weaker the limper is, the more light blue hands you can profitably raise with. Get “Vs Limp” charts for all 8 positions when you join the Upswing Lab.

Postflop Strategy vs Limpers

Now that you have a solid understanding of which hands to raise over a limper, let’s shift to postflop play — specifically, how to approach the flop.

We’ll walk through two example flops that represent common board textures. In both cases, you’ll be on the Button playing against a Hijack limper.

Assume your opponent is a somewhat competent player who limp-calls with a justifiable — though still flawed — range, including hands like:

• Weak to medium strength Ax hands (suited and offsuit)
• Offsuit broadways
• Offsuit connectors (like T9, 98)
• Suited connectors and 1-gappers (like 76s, 75s, 64s)
• Random high card suited hands (K7, Q8, J7, etc.)

Example #1

Online $2/$5. 6-Handed. Effective Stacks $500.

Hero is dealt two cards on the Button
UTG folds. Hijack calls $5. Cutoff folds. Hero raises to $20. 2 folds. Hijack calls.

Flop ($47): 8s 5d 3s
Hijack checks. Hero…

Let’s break your range down into two parts: value bets and potential bluffs.

Value Bets: Against weaker players on low boards, you’ll want to play your value hands in a very straightforward and aggressive way. Widen your value range and fire big bets — anywhere from 66% to 105% pot — followed by frequent double barrels to extract value right away.

If the limper seems unaware (as most are), size your bets based on hand strength. With a very strong hand like QQ, go big — 80% pot or more. But with a more marginal value hand like 77, a smaller size like 66% pot is usually better.

Bluffs: When the limper appears to play fit-or-fold postflop, you should expand your bluffing range beyond just the obvious candidates like gutshots, open-enders, and flush draws.

What kinds of hands should you add? Look for hands with two overcards and little showdown value — think KJ, KT, QT, and similar combos. These hands have six clean outs to top pair and can become value hands on later streets, making them excellent candidates to semi-bluff.

There’s another exploit you can use against unaware limpers, one you should never try against a solid, thinking player: reduce your bluffing bet size. Betting smaller, somewhere in the 50% to 60% pot range, gives you better pot odds and takes advantage of the inelastic calling tendencies common among weaker players.

Even if the limper adjusts correctly by calling more often, you still benefit: their range going into the turn is often weaker than normal, which makes your double barrels more effective.

If the limper seems too sticky, though, tighten up your bluffing range to include only your strongest draws. There’s no point in bluffing someone who can’t be bluffed.

Now let’s look at a different type of flop, one that calls for a slightly different strategy.

Example #2

Online $2/$5. 6-Handed. Effective Stacks $500.

Hero is dealt two cards on the Button
UTG folds. Hijack calls $5. Cutoff folds. Hero raises to $20. 2 folds. Hijack calls.

Flop ($47): As 9d 3c
Hijack checks. Hero…

Value Bets: You can apply the same principle as before: the stronger your hand is in absolute terms, the larger you can bet. Simple and effective.

Bluffs: Bluffing works a bit differently on this type of board. Because there are no overcards that can fall on the turn, betting big becomes less attractive. If your opponent has missed the flop, which will often be the case, it won’t matter whether you bet $15 or $30. He’s likely folding either way, since most of his misses won’t have two overcards to backdoor into something.

This is a sharp contrast to the previous example, where the board texture made it likely your opponent held at least two overcards (or a gutshot or better). On those boards, sizing up can make sense. But here, since so much of your opponent’s range will miss entirely, you can punish that by betting every one of your own misses for a small size, say $15, roughly 30% of the pot.

7 Bonus Tips That Have Helped Me Win Countless Stacks from Limpers

To round out this guide, we will go over seven bonus tips to help you win as much as possible when facing a limp.

To wrap up this guide, here are seven bonus tips that will help you maximize your profits when facing a limper.

Tip #1: Raise to 3bb+1bb per limper when playing online, and 4bb+1bb per limper when playing live

These raise sizes have stood the test of time. They’re large enough to discourage players behind you from cold-calling with poor pot odds, but still small enough for the limper to call with their usual junk, which is exactly what you want.

That said, you should always be ready to adjust in order to maximize value against weak players.

For example, in a live game, if your 5bb raises are getting snap-called by players holding trash, try bumping it up to 6bb, then 7bb, and so on, until you finally get some folds. Once they start folding, dial it back to the previous size.

This simple tweak helps you build bigger pots while maintaining a significant range advantage.

Tip #2: Iso-raise with a slightly tighter range from the blinds

Playing out of position (OOP) is always tougher because you have less control over the betting. That’s why it makes sense to keep your range tighter when you’re OOP — especially when iso-raising.

You’re often facing a loose, unpredictable calling station, which makes bluffing less effective. Instead, you’ll want to iso-raise with hands that can flop strong top pairs or solid draws — hands that don’t mind getting to showdown or barreling for value.

As a rough guideline, stick to the red hands from the Button iso-raising chart when you’re in the blinds.

Remember: When you’re out of position, tighter is better.

Tip #3: When your opponent limp-3-bets, assume they have a strong range

If you’ve played live poker for any length of time, you’ve probably seen players limp with Aces, Kings, or Queens, hoping to spring a trap. This same play happens online, too,  and more often than you might think.

When a player limps, it’s usually because they either don’t think their hand is strong enough to raise or they’re slow-playing a premium hand like AQ+, JJ+. Occasionally, you’ll run into a weird bluff, but most of the time, a limp-3-bet signals serious strength. You should adjust your response accordingly.

The hands that perform best against this kind of range are strong suited Broadways, AQ offsuit, and pocket pairs. That said, some players will only limp-3-bet with JJ+, AK. When you spot someone doing this, pay close attention to their stack size.

• If they’re short, you should only continue with JJ+ and AK.

• If stacks are deeper (100bb or more), you can justify set-mining with smaller pairs, hoping to stack them when you hit.

Just don’t get sticky. If you miss the set, fold. Bluff-catching against this kind of range is usually a losing proposition.

Tip #4: Value bet thinner, especially on the flop and turn

Recreational players who limp are often calling stations, too. That means they’ll call big bets with weak hands just to chase draws, far more often than a solid player would.

They usually misunderstand pot odds and massively overestimate their implied odds. As a result, they’re happy to call large bets while drawing to straights, flushes, sets, or even random two-pair combos.

This creates a golden opportunity: start going for thinner value than you normally would, especially on the flop and turn. You’ll be surprised how often these players pay off with second-best hands.

Tip #5: Don’t barrel with weak draws

Recreational players tend to be much stickier than solid opponents. That means your bluffs won’t get through as often, and trying to push them off marginal hands can burn money fast.

Instead of firing indiscriminately, be more selective. Focus on bluffing with hands that have solid equity, like strong gutshots, open-enders, flush draws, and combo draws. These hands give you multiple ways to win: either by getting a fold or by improving on later streets.

Lean towards using just one of these barrels vs limpers.

This happens because they go to the flop with a wide and weak range, which misses much of the time; while the range they will go to the turn with is a much more pair- or draw-based, and very infrequent includes air type hands.

For this reason you should usually be wary of bluffing on the turn, and instead try a ‘one-and-done’ strategy on the flop. You should, however, make sure you capitalize on the fact that recreational players fold more than they should on scare cards.

Tip #6: Tend to bluff-catch more often on the river

Players who open-limp tend to show up with a wide and sometimes surprising range of hands. That means by the time they reach the river, their range is often much wider than a regular’s — and harder to pin down.

They also love to slow-play. Limpers often enjoy the feeling of trapping, which means they’ll check strong hands more often than regulars do. Put these two traits together, and you’ll find that they may bluff too often on average, simply because their river range includes so many missed hands.

That said, always consider player type. If the limper is passive, they may still not bluff enough, even when their range is full of misses. Against those players, you should lean toward folding unless you have a clear bluff-catcher.

Tip #7: Limp behind with hands that aren’t strong enough to raise and play well multiway

As previously mentioned, limping behind another limper can be a good play.

If you look down at a hand that seems too weak to raise but plays well in multiway pots, consider limping behind.

Related article: The Starting Hands That Make the Most Money in Multiway Pots

For example, suppose a player limps in early position and you look down at 4s 4d on the Button. Raising this hand isn’t a bad move, but depending on how the limper plays, you might be better off limping behind. Same goes for hands like As 6s and 8h 7h.

Wrapping Up

As with any situation in poker, there are plenty of nuances when it comes to playing against limpers.

There’s no universal best line — it depends heavily on the player, the stack sizes, and the dynamics at the table. You’ll need to apply sound logic in each spot, realistically assess how your opponent is likely to respond to different bet sizes, and then determine the most profitable course of action based on that.

Just remember — the highly exploitative advice in this article, especially when it comes to tailoring your bet sizes, is intended for use against weak, unaware players. Against tougher, more balanced opponents, these same strategies can backfire. If they catch on to what you’re doing, you risk getting exploited yourself.

Hopefully you feel more comfortable playing against limpers after reading this article. If you have any questions or feedback please leave a comment section down below!

Want more? Here’s the article I recommend reading next: How to Adjust Your Strategy in Splashy Live Games.

Til’ next time, good luck, grinders!

The post Limps in Poker: The Ultimate Guide to Crushing Open Limpers appeared first on Upswing Poker.

It’s called ClubWPT Gold and it is absurdly soft (see: our ClubWPT Gold review).

This site features a unique 8-handed cash game format that includes a mandatory straddle and an ante. The structure creates a different dynamic than typical online cash game formats.

This change in dynamic presents opportunities for players willing to put in a bit of effort to learn how to play preflop optimally. That’s why, in this article, I’m going to share five tips for crushing preflop play in these games.

Note: Want perfect preflop ranges for ClubWPT Gold at your fingertips?

Access the winning play in seconds with the new ClubWPT Gold charts in the Upswing Lab.

Already a Lab member? Access the ClubWPT Gold charts in the Preflop Master App here.

Tip #1: Loosen Up Your Open-Raising Strategy From the First 4 Positions

The ante has a clear effect on optimal strategy: it incentivizes looser open-raising due to the added dead money in the pot. Since you’re risking the same amount to win more, your raises don’t need to succeed as often to break even.

The straddle, however, has a slightly tightening effect for players outside the blinds. Yes, there’s more dead money (an extra 2 big blinds), but there is also an extra player to worry about. Quick example: when you’re in the Cutoff position in a traditional blind structure, there are 3 players left to act. In a straddle game, there are 4 (Button, both blinds, and the straddle).

These two factors largely offset each other, but the overall effect is still a slight shift toward looseness.

Bottom line: the ante’s incentive to loosen up outweighs the straddle’s incentive to tighten up, so the optimal strategy leans toward opening a bit wider from early and middle positions.

Check out this comparison between the theoretically optimal Lojack open-raising strategy in a traditional setup vs the ClubWPT Gold 8-max straddle + ante format.

Here’s the more familiar Lojack range for a game with no ante and no straddle:

And here is the slightly looser Lojack range you should use on ClubWPT Gold’s straddle + ante cash games:

The LJ raising range for ClubWPT Gold displayed inside of the Preflop Master App. This set of ranges is exclusively available for Upswing Lab members.

The first range consisted of about 18.5% of hands. The second range is about 21% of hands. That’s a 2.5 percentage point increase on ClubWPT Gold.

Tip #2: Play Looser Against 3-Bets When Out of Position

With more dead money in the pot, the pot odds you’re getting when facing a 3-bet are significantly better, making more hands profitable to call.

Consider:

• Standard structure: you raise to 2.5bb and face a 7.5bb 3-bet. You must call 5bb to win a pot of 16.5bb.
  The price to call in this scenario is 30.3% (i.e. you need to realize 30.3% equity to break even on a call).

• Straddle + ante structure: you raise to 5bb and face a 15bb 3-bet. You Must call 10bb to win 35.1bb.
  The price to call in this scenario is 28.5%.

That ~2% shift is can make hands like pocket pairs, previously mixing between call and fold, become clear calls. Hands that were neutral EV calls before will often become +EV calls.

Note: The poker gods rewards the prepared. Get ClubWPT Gold preflop charts made specifically for the straddle + ante format.

Only in the Upswing Lab.

Tip #3: Open Raise Tight(er) From the Small Blind

The Small Blind’s optimal strategy changes dramatically in the straddle + ante structure.

Now you have two players left to act instead of one, and you’re out of position against both. These factors combine to dramatically tighten the requirements for a profitable open-raise.

When there’s an extra player to act, you’re nearly twice as likely to run into a strong hand. If only one player is left to act, they have a 0.45% chance of holding pocket Aces. With two players left, that chance nearly doubles to 0.9%. As more players remain, the likelihood of running into stronger hands increases.

Plus, being out of position means you’ll have a harder time realizing your hand’s equity—you’ll be reacting to the in-position player more often than not.

Bottom line: Tighten up significantly from the Small Blind in this format.

Tip #4: Play Looser Against Open-Raises

This tip builds on the first one.

With wider opening ranges across the board and better pot odds due to the ante, you can profitably call with more hands.

The straddle does increase the number of players behind you, which normally tightens your range, but that’s somewhat offset by the fact that the extra player is out of position*.

*Unless you’re in the Big Blind.

So, you’ve got two strong forces (wider opens and better pot odds) incentivizing you to play loose and one mild tightening factor (extra player behind).

The net result is that more hands become profitable to cold-call compared to traditional blind structures.

Let’s take a look at the optimal Cutoff strategy vs a Hijack raise in both formats.

We’ll start with the familiar Cutoff defense range in this spot:

And here is the range you should play from the Cutoff against a Hijack open on ClubWPT Gold:

In a standard game, you can profitably play 10.5% of hands. In the ClubWPT Gold format, that jumps to 14.2%.

That’s nearly a 40% relative increase in playable hands!

Tip #5: Treat the Big Blind as the New Small Blind (with a twist)

In a straddle structure, the Big Blind is very similar to the Small Blind in a traditional setup. Consider the similarities:

• There is only one player left to act after you
• You’re out of position

The big difference is the ante. With eight players contributing, there’s a ton of dead money in the pot. That makes calling more attractive, even with marginal hands.

So the Big Blind’s strategy should resemble how you’d play from the Small Blind in a normal game—but with a twist: you get to call more often.

Take a look at how the Small Blind defends against a Cutoff open in a traditional game vs how the Big Blind defends in the straddle + ante format.

We’ll begin with the familiar Small Blind defense range against the Cutoff:

Orange = 3-Bet | Blue = Fold

This aligns with the typical Small Blind advice of playing a tight, 3-bet only strategy when facing a raise.

Contrast that with how the Big Blind should play against the Cutoff on ClubWPT Gold:

Red = 3-Bet | Green = Call | Blue = Fold

You’ll see similar 3-bet frequencies (both are around 10%), but the ClubWPT format includes a much wider calling range, thanks to that ante.

Final Thoughts

ClubWPT Gold offers a great opportunity to dive into a format where few players understand optimal preflop adjustments. And when people don’t have a solid plan preflop, the postflop streets get messy, meaning more edges for you.

With these five tips in your arsenal, you’re better prepared than most of your opponents to crush these games.

If you really want to have an edge in these soft games on ClubWPT Gold, join the Upswing Lab to access to the full set of preflop charts now!

Until next time, good luck out there, grinders!

Note: Want to learn what the new poker site on the block is all about? Check out our ClubWPT Gold review!

ClubWPT Gold Review: What You Must Know Before Playing

The post 5 Preflop Tips to Help You Crush on ClubWPT Gold appeared first on Upswing Poker.