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Specia l thanks to one of the best No-Limit Ho Idem players in the world, Tom "kingsofcards"
Marchese. This book wouldn't be as awesome without your insight and contribution.

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Table of Contents

l . Introduction
2. The Bir th Of A Hand Range
3. What's tvly Range?
4. The Pouncer
5. Offense ls The Best Defense
6 . Balancing
7 . The Chosen One
8 . We Are T he Chan1pions
9. The Overbet: Wow, That's A Big Bet
10. M ini Rockets

l l . Instinctive River Play

12. The Exan1
13. T he Final N ote

14. Glossary

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11

Chapter 1: Introduction

\Vith the exp losion o f training sites and personal coaching and fewer fish, No-Limit Ho Idem
games have dried up .
Or so it seems.
There are players who sti ll w in a lot at their relative stakes. How do they do it? \Vhat is the
di fference between you and them?
The answer is that they exp loit the bad regulars better than yo u. No matter how many standard
plays a regu la r has in his a rsenal or how solid he is, there are parts o f his game where he keeps
making mistakes over and over again w ithout realizing it.
\Ve are go ing to teach you how to recognize these m istakes and exp loit them. \Ve w ill be
surpr ised if you don't become a belier player by the end o f the book.

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11

Chapter 2: The Birth Of A Hand Range

Although it seems irivial, hand-reading s1arts before the flop. [fyou don't have a good idea of
your opponent's pre-flop range, you are not meet ing the minimal requirements of a successful
poker player. Stating that his pre-fl op range includes pairs, suited connectors, and some
broadways doesn't say much about the player, since everyone has that range before the flop.
You need to be more speci fie.
Does Villain have offsuit broadways such as A To or QJo in his range at th is ptisit ion? Does
Villain play suited connectors such as 65 and 67? \Vhat about su ited one-gap connectors such as
68 and 79? How does he play small pocket pa irs such as 22, 33, 44, and 55 from the bli nds?
Know ing the answers to these quesiions will elevate your play against regu lars and improve
your w in rate.
To help us fom1 a c lear picture of the underlying hands in a range, we will analyze a solid
winning regu lar's posit ional stat istic.~ . \Ve w ill look at his SB, BB, and UTG ranges because
ihose spots are the most d.ifficult to play, si nce they're typ icall y played out-o f-posi tion.
Additionall y, a pot often invol ves the CO or BTN versus one of the blinds, so it's important ttl
kntlw htlW to exploit the SB and BB.
\Ve are goi ng to study the range ofa player named T om as he takes different posit ions around
the tab le.
Small Blind
Tom p Jays about I 7% of all hands from the small blind. Using Poker Stovent, we see that this
range consists of (22+, A Ts+, K9s+, Q9s+, .19s+, T 9s, 98s, 87s, 76s, 65s, AJo+, KJo+, Q.Jo}, or
about 225 of I ,326 possible hands.

Let's deiemline how many of these hands are suited connectors. There are four combinat ions
each of65s, 76s, 87s, 98s, and T9s, for a total of20 comb inat ions, or rough ly 10% of Villain's
range. Th is means that if we are facJlg resistance on a flop such as 6~ 7 K~, we're more likely
dealing w ith a set or two pairs than an open-ended straight draw since ihere are four
comb inations of89s and eight combinations of66/7 i /67s.
\Ve open on the button with JTo. Tcm1 calls from the BB. On a low paired flop such as 662 or
336, Tom almost never has a real hand when be check-raises. He is basicall y representi ng tr ips
or a fu ll house. Based on his pre-flop range, he rare ly has 6x or 3x in his range. ff Tom has an
overpair, he is usuall y going to check-call rather than check-raise. Add it ionall y, he would've re-5-

raised pre-flop most of the time w ith QQ+, leaving his flatt ing range as small pai rs, suited
connectors, and somet imes AQ and '<Q.
Tom would check-call on the flop with quads or fu ll houses. \Vhen he check-raises, it's usually
with either air or broadways that he :Je rends pre-tlop. lt shouldn't be surprismg that Tom is
check-raising w ith these types o f hands, since they have decent equity against small and
med ium pocket-pairs.
Since we know that Tom never has any strong hands in his range when he check-raises on th is
board, we should continue w ith the hand. The question now is whether we should 3-bet or float.
A 3-bet forces him to fo ld hands such as KQ and KJ that could improve on the tum. But we
leave ourselves vulnerable to a 4-bel shove because would we ever play 6x like that? Even if we
do, he won't believe us. And flailing w ith 6x or with good overpairs here allows us to continue
with our entire range next time our opponent check-raises us on a flop where what be represents
isn't congruent w ith his pre-fl(>p ranges.
The re are two scenarios that usuall y take place afier we call the flop check-raise: V il lain w ill
check-fo ld tum or V illain w ill fire the tum and give up on the r iver. Our tum act ion usuall y
depends on how strong our hand is. \Ve w ill bet or raise the tum w ith the bollom o f our range
and the top o f our range. Thus, our range for an aggressive play on the tum consists of air,
gutshots, overcards, sometimes big overpairs, and tr ips or better.
Our range for checking beh ind ma inly consists of medium pocket pairs w ith showdown value
because we want to play a small er pot and want to avoid mak ing a hard decision on the tum . In
the occasion that Tom fires the tum after the check-raise and we have a hand such as 88-TT, if
we th ink T om w ill bet the tum and river enough, we should call the flop c heck-ra ise, then call
the tum and ri ver. Many small- and mid-stakes players raise the tum to avoid a tough decision
on the r iver, even though it's far more profi table to call the tum and river. The main reason is
that we will catch his rive r bluffs. Also, if we raise the tum, we are almost always behind if
we're called. And since Villain usua:Jy has a hand w ith at most six outs if we are ahead, the
value of catching a river bluff is higher than the value of protection. Of course, if you have few
chips lefi on the tum- i.e. less than a pot-sized bet- you should get it in on the tum.

Big Blind
Tom plays about 21% of all hands from the big blind.
TAGs lend to play too loosely from the SB relat ive to the BB posit ion. Looking al the posit ional
stats o f regu lars, a common theme is their looseness from the SB posit ion relative to the BB
posit ion, even though the stats should be reversed. \Ve need to exploit th is.
You should be tighter from the SB against a late posit ional raise because you are out of

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posit ion, you don't get to close the a:t ion, and your odds aren't as good. You should play more
hands in the BB than in the SB because you get better odds and you get to close the act ion if the
SB calls or folds. l\t!any players still play more from the SB than ihe BB, desp ite its posi tiona l
disadvantage. One reason for th is is that re-raising against a CO or BTN who opens too loosely
gives the SB the initiative and also forces the BB to onl y play when he has a good hand. Such
reasoning is correct, but only because most players in the BB don't exp loit the SB's looseness.
So, how do we exploit the SB if we are in the BB 0 The answer is simple: 4-bet a lot.
Since there are 34 combinat ions ofQQ+ and AK, we can balance our range. in th is spot by
adding another 34 combinat ions. Even ifV illain knows our range is QQ+ and AK as well as,
say 34s and 96s, he can do nothing about it because mcire than half of the time we have a great
hand. Th is means V il lain is going to fold very often pre-flop. Or he can start 5-bet shoving over
our 4-bets w ith Jess than premium hJldings. Of course, in the forums, small- and mid-stakes
players like io say they 5-bei shove ' ight in th is spot a Jot when in reality, it rarely happens.
How many times have you caught a 6-max multi-tabler 5-bet bluffing in th is spot? N ot many.
Otherwise, you can exp loit him by 4-bet bluffing in th is spot against other players and only do it
for value against him.
Regarding 3-betting ranges, it's important ttl note that as stacks get deeper (I 75BBs), many
small- and mid-stakes players are very unba lanced because they do not 3-bet w ith hands such as
J.J and QQ. They don't feel comfortab le 3-betting those hands because they feel they are
overp laying them. Hence, they aren't 3-bett ing light enough as stacks get deep and are calling
with suited connectors and broadways more often. If they were to 3-bet light, then QQ and .JJ
are actually the top of their range and thus, they would be ecstat ic to 3-bet w ith these hands. T o
exploit their unbalanced 3-bett ing range, stan 4-bet bluffing these players more. In the occasion
that your 4-bet bluffs get caught, it's not the end of the world since you will get extra action and
value for the top of your range--i.e. .JJ+/AQ+- since opponents will stan calling and shoving
against your 4-bets Iighter.
Under t he Gu n
Tom plays only 12% of his hands from UTG. Th is is a reall y narrow range {22+, ATs+, KJs+,
QJs, .ITs, T9s, 98s, 87s, 76s, AQo+, KQo} , and it puts him in a lot of tough spots, largely
composed of low c.o nnected boards. Th is is a strong range with good equity against a great
player who is in position, but Tom will often not realize that equity. For example, 98s only has
pre-flop equity of36.6% against this range. However, there w ill be numerous boards where
Tom w ill have io fold that range, sinply because opponents w ill correctly deduce that his range
is often po larized.

For examp le, say Tom has pre-nop stats of2 1/1 6/2.5 and opens UTG. You call with 77. The
flop comes Q~39~. \Vhen Tom bets th is flop, you should fbld because even if he's bett ing

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100% of his hand range, you only have 40% equ ity w ith future streets to play. But if you ho ld
98s, you have up to 53% equity against the top 12% of hands, hence you should call.
Now, let's go over the poss.i ble tum cards and dec ide if we should continue if we hold 98s.
Turn 2~: If V illain is known to bet the tum w ith 100% of his range, we should call because we
still have 49. 7% equity. However, no one bets here 100% of the time, so let's see what happens
if Tom check-fo lds the bottom 40% of his range and bets the top 60%. Is th is a tum call ?
Vill ain's pre-flop range cons ists of L8 combinat ions of pairs, 32 combinati ons of AK!AQ and 40
combinat ions of suited bniadways and connectors. That's 120 combinations, and 40% of 120 is
48, wh ich means Tom is check-fo lding 48 hands and betting 72 hands. Let's figure out what
hands Tom wi ll check- fo ld and see how our hand does against the rest of his range.
Tom w ill check-fo ld any AK that isn't AsKs; that's 15 hands. He will check-fo ld
44/55/ 66/77/88; that's 30 hands. Assum ing he's betting w ith everyth ing else, what is our equity
against th is new range? \V e have an equity of36.5%, wh ich is decent, considering we are
gett ing better than 2-to- I. The problem is that we st ilJ have one more street to play.
Say the r iver comes 7~ . Vill ain bets again with his entire tum range. \Ve now only have 35.5%
equity. \Ve w ill pnibably get greater than 2-to- I odds, so it's about a break-even cal l. But what
if Vi llain gives up 20% of his turn nnge and bets with 80% of his range for bluff and va lue?
Can we st ill call?
\Vhat is our equity once we remove 20% ofTom's holdings from his river range? That's 20% of
78. \Ve' ll call it 15 hands: three hands of76s, three hands of8 7s, four hands of JTs, plus one
each of T9s and 98s .
\Ve only have 29% equity against th is range. Assuming that Vi Ilain is bett ing two-th ir ds pot on
the r iver, it's barely a break-even call. Th is is the main reason why calling dcnvn 3-barrels from
a so lid player who opens UTG is not a good idea over the long run- un less, of course, he is
tilti ng. So, does that mean there's noth ing we can do when a TAG opens UTG w ith a strong
range? That's not the case, because we have posit ion and wi ll be able to represent a w ide range
of hands, especiall y on boards where we know he rarely has two pairs or better.
The tum card (2~) dictates the frequency with wh ich Tom value-bets or bluffs. T om is less
likely to continue his bluff on a non-broadway turn card because it's tougher for opponents to
fo ld their pocket pairs . Opponents might tum two pairs i f the tum card is 6 to 9. Thus, when
Tom is betting on a low tum card, we should fo ld more often than not. There isn't any type of
leveling to the tune of, " l know it's a bad card to bluff Thus, if ! bet here, I have a good hand
and he has to fo ld." So lid TA Gs don't th ink li ke that. They check-fold if they don't have a hand

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on a board where

i ~s

hard

Ill

represent a hand.

!i's another story on a broadway turn card. T om's bluffing frequency increases dramat icall y.
\Vith a solid UTG range, a broadway tum card gives him gutshots, open-ends and pairs 10 bet
with . Thus, Tom is likely 10 bet the majority of his range on a broadway turn card. Let's go over
the ho ldings to see whether T om can deal with a tum raise.
\Vhen the tum card is an Ace, T om is likely to fire another shot w ith his ent ire range. He's go ing
to bet at least 85% of percent of the time. \Vhat's our play?
Stacks are S200. UTG opens for S6; Hero calls; pot is S 15. Flop: S 12 bet + S 12 call + S 15 pot =
S39. Vill ain bets S33 on tbe tum; pot is S72; he has S l 6 1 left and it's up to you.
Due to the nop texture, Tom is Jikely 10 bet 85 to 90 percent of the time. Let's remove I 0
percent of his range and see what happens. \Ve' II take 22 and 44 (I 0% of 120 is 12 hands} out of
his range, leaving Tom with about 108 comb inat ions on the turn . lfwe take 15% from those
hands (1 5% of 108 is 16), we can remove 55, 66 and four combinations of67s and 78s. lf he
check-folds w ith those holdings, how many of his turn bets are value-bets?
Tom w ill bet-call w ith 27 start ing hands: three each of AA, QQ and 33, and nine AQ; he m ight
also bet-ca ll w ith nine AK combinations. A lthough AK looks like a strong hand here, Tom is
draw ing slim if he calls a turn raise with th is holding. Let's imagine a worst-case scenario and
assume Villain will call w ith nine AK combinat ions. In total, 27 out of 96 combinat ions are
value-bets. The rest are b lu ff~ and semi-b l u ff.~. So, V illain can only bet-call 28% of the time.
Lei's sol ve a simple math prob lem to determine how often Tom has to fo ld 10 make raising the
tum profitab le for us. lf we call there is S39 + S33 + S33 =S I 05 in the pot. If we raise Tom's
tum bet to $99, we risk S99 to win SI 05, so Tom has to fo ld at least 99/ (99+ I 05) = 48.5% of
the t ime if our turn raise is to be profitab le. Considering that Tom will bet-fo ld 66% on that
spot, it's a +EV play.
Although such a play may seem transparent, Tom might not notice that his tum bet is getting
raised every time an ace lands on a broadway-small-small nop. Unti l he starts calling down and
playing back, we should cont inue abusing him in th is situation.
For discussion's sake, let's assume the flop is Q+2 7~. How often is he fi ring the turn and how
do we counter it? Let's assume Tom is betting w ith 75% of his range on a tum T . Should we
call , fo ld, or raise?
Tom check-folds w ith 25% of his range, which is 30 comb inations . Let's figure out what
holdi ngs Tom is check-folding w ith. \Ve wi ll remove 33, 44, 55, 66 and 88 from Tom's range,

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leaving {99+, 77, 22, AT s+, KJs+, QJs, JTs, T 9s, 98s, 87s, 76s, AQo+, KQtl} . \ Vith wh ich of
these hands w ill he bet-call ?
The answer is something like th is: six AA, three QQ, three 22, three 77, three TT, one A Q ,
one A+ K+, one K J+, 12 AQ. That's a total of3 1 hands. Considering Tom is betti ng the tum
with 99 hands, he can only call 3 1/99- 3 1% of the time. From our math above, V illain has to
fo ld at least 48.5% of the time.
Thus, when the tum comes an ace, don't freeze. Th ink how frequently V illain is bett ing and
what percentage AX hands make up of his pre-flop range.TA Gs rarely ever have worse than
AT in their UTG range. This means he's bet- folding the tum w ith lots of hands.
There will be times when Vi llain is check-calli ng the tum w ith AX as well. In such situat ions,
he w ill fo ld to a river shove un less he's improved to two pairs or tr ip aces.

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11

Chapter 3: What's My Range?

And why is th is important?

As you move up in stakes, your opp:lnents w i II read hands better <1nd be more aggressive. They
will gauge ihe strength o f your hand range beiter and w ill be able to put a lot o f pressure on
you. Because you won't know whether you are gelling outp layed or your opponents are runn ing
hoi, you may revert to the hand-range theorem: "If you are at the bottom of your range, fold. If
you are at the top of your range, call or raise."
Follow ing th is maxim alone shou ld make you a better player. The hard part w ill be to detem1i ne
\\h at your (>pponeni thi nks is your range in a part icular situation based on your position and the
line you have taken. You should also be awa re of the types of opponents you face. Against nits
who always show up w ith the nuts, you should fold even at the top of your range when they use
the bet-bet-bet line or raise your r iver bet.
A simple way to distingu ish between players is io remember wh ich players always seem to put
you in di fficuli spots. Most likel y, they're getting (JU! o f li ne and using pure aggression to get
you to fold. Against this type of opponent, you shouldn't fold the top of your range to river bets
and should consider semi-bluffing ihe tum more.
In the exam, there are quest ions to help you beco me familiar w ith th is concept.

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11

Chapter 4 : The Pouncer

The pouncer is a type of player that pounces on weaknesses. \Vhen he sees someone get out of
line, he w ill do someth ing about it. Most players usually choose the safe route and wait for a
hand. \Ve often overestimate someone's pouncing potentia l. For examp le, when we hold Alo in
the CO and middl e posi tion (lv!P ) opens, we don't 3-bet for fear of getting 4-bet, even though
our opponent hasn't shown any trait of being a pouncer, i.e., 4-betting li ght. Anuther reason we
don't 3-bet is because we don't know how he plays. But our opponem doesn't know how we
p lay, either. So, go ahead and be the aggressor. h's way easier to adj ust when you have the
initiative.
To be a pouncer, you have to be w ii ing Hl experiment. No amount of coaching or theory
discussion is going to benefit you much if you don't exper iment and try incorporat ing the advice
into your game. That's why some players who aren't fundamentall y sound and don't know a lot
of poker theory can still win. They try di 1Teren! plays and know wh ich plays work for their
game.
In a way, poker is li ke a li tt le kid. Y:m have to push your edges ttl see what you can or cannot
get away w ith .You'll be amazed at how many people elect to ro ll over and play dead and let
you have your way. But you have lO force yourself to pu ll that trigger. And once ii happens, you
will wonder why you didn't do it sooner.
The pouncer has the un ique ab ility to recognize when your range is vu lnerable and turn up his
aggression because he knows yo u can't take the heal. If you don't know who the pouncers are in
your game, th ink of those annoying players who always seem to put you in tough spots and
make you fo ld when you don't have the nuts. Those are the pouncers in your game, and they are
the ones whose games you should look over after each session. You w ill be surprised at what
they get away w ith.
Lastly, the best th ing about be ing a pouncer is that when you are on a "heater," you w ill w in
more than if you were a so lid player w ithout pouncer status. You wi ll get paid off lighter, and
th is adds a lot of va lue to the top of your range. Th is doesn't necessaril y mean you start
" lagging" it up pre-flop. You can st ill play your standard pre-flop game. You j ust exploit ranges
more effectively post-flop.
Below are two examp Jes of pouncer> in act ion.

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Example 4.1 : Th is is a spm where Hero can be a

pouncer by betting the tum with the intcnti~n of
bett ing the river. Vill ain's range is mostly high
cards and he is rarely checking back with hands
Stronger than 9X. You will get called on the turn
some-of the times when Villain is holding hands
such as AK. AQ, 88, 77. 76, and 44. But don't
worry; he won't often call a river bet because your
range is strong when you bet that tum ..Thus, you
must follow through on your read of his tum range
and bet the river.
A non-pouncer would've bet the turn, and if he got

called, would have convinced himself that he'd get

a call on the river if an ace or king didn't come,
even though people don't often check behind on the
flop with AK in a 3-bet pot and decide to blufTcatch with it on two streets.

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Exa m pie 4.1 : S31S6 6-tvlax

SB : S581
BB: S355
UTG: S270
Hero (.\'IP}: S893
CO: S647
BT'.'/: $737
P re-flop: Hero on :\1P with J~ T~
I/old, Hem raises to $24, I/old, BTN
re-raises to S78, 2/olds, Hero calls S5.t
' Flop: (Sl65) 9~3~ (2 players)
Hero checks, BTN checks
T urn: (S 165) 9~63~5 (2 players)
He;o?

Example 4.2: Th is is a classic situation where

Example 4.2: S3/ S6 6-!Vlax
pouncers w in a lot of pots. You re-raise in
SB: S417
posit ion w ith h igh cards and cont inuation bet on a BB: S732
missed nop. You then check back the tum and
UTG: S l 97
don't improve on the river. A pouncer would or
1v !P: S I09
shou ld almost always bet the river.
CO: $974
Hero (BT '.'I): S835
Th ink of your range after the pre-fl op, llop, and
tum acti on. Assuming the river isn't a queen or
Pre-flop: Hero on BTN w ith Ao!>QY
ace, wou Id you ever show up with a hand
2/olds, CO raises to S2 1, Hero re-raises
stronger than TT by the river?
to S72, CO cal Is SS I
For th is reason, if you are in CO's spot, you
shou ld h igh ly cons ider betting the r iver if you
can't beat ace-h igh. If you have a hand Iike 78 or
TI when you get to the r iver, the decision to
check-eva luate (mostly end up check-calling) or
to bet the r iver yourself depends on whether you
have been betting a lot of rivers. If you have, you
are more likely to get called by worse, usuall y a
small pair or AK/AQ. l fyo u haven't been bett ing,
then check-evaluate is a betler play.

Flop: (S 153) JY7Y5+ (2 players)

CO checks, Hero bet~ S 111 , CO cal Is S 111
Turn: (S375) J 75 2~ (2 players)
CO checks, Hero checks
River: (S375) J\'7 5+2-!oX (2 players)
CO?

It also depends on whether your opponent is aggressive. lf he has been active, then c hecking the
river is a superior play because your range looks li ke a draw. Additionall y, si nce he is
aggressive, he' ll often have air. The reason is if he is aggressive and has a h igh, there's no way
he's checking the tum because he kr.ows he's aggressive and w ilJ likely get looked up light.
Back to Examp le 4.2, where Hero is on the button.
Against an aggress ive opponent who's tak ing down a lot of pots, y()u might have w call
somet imes w iih ace-h igh on the r iver. Good river cards to call on the river are board-pairing
cards and cards that are lower than a 7 since players don't defend re-raises out o f position w ith
small suited connectors or small pocket pairs .
Another strategy is to try to show up at the ri ver sometimes w ith hands stronger than TT. But
since that is diftlcult to do because we want to stack our opponent, it is better to bet the tum and
hope for a fo Id.
Exercise 1: Open a notepad and t it le it "\Vhen V illain Tanks." Save three hand histories from
your session when V illain is legitimately tank ing over a wugh decision but ends up fo ldi ng.

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Note whether you are bluf6ng or betting (rais ing) for val ue. ff you were betti ng (raising) for
value, th ink o f what is the best hand that he w ill call you w ith in that spot. Over t im e, you w ill
see a familiar pattern in these hand histories. V illain folds way too o fien in certain spots. These
are the spots where you can add a lot of bluffing and semi-bluffing hands to your range.

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11

Chapter 5 : Offense Is The Best Defense

Poker is a much easier game when you are the aggressor and not the defender, check-calling
both streets afier the flop w ith a marginal hand is neither fun nor pro fitab le. It's also easier to
balance your betting range than to balance your check-calling range. And betti ng allows you to
bluff and sem i-bluff without hav ing a hand. You can o ften fold out your opponent's ace-high
hands that have showdown value when you hold some random suited connectors.

Example 5.J: Some p layers like to check-call in

Example 5.1: S3/S6 6-1v!ax

th is situati on. They say they li ke to balance the ir

check-call range here so that opponents w ill be
less likely to barrel them on the tum and the
river. Bui once you chec k-call the tum, un less an
opponent is reall y good, he is un likely to bluff
the r iver since you frequently have Qx, or won't
fo ld hands li ke 88-JJ .

SB:S82 1
BB: S l 93

Hero (UTG): S988

MP: S295

CO: S622
BTN : S734
P re-flop: Hero is UTG w ith K+ Q+
Hero raises to S24, 2/olds, BTN re-raises
to S72, 2/olds, Hero calls 548

By checking on the tum w ith K+ Q+, you are

checking w ith the top o f your range and are
losi ng value on yc;ur non-showdown ha nds such
as 9Ts, JT, 78s, AK, and AJs. If you aren't
Flop: ($ 153) 7+5Y2~ (2 players}
bett ing the tum w'.th the top of your range, what
Hero checks. BTN c hecks
are you betting the tum w ith? You should almost
always bet K+ Q+ on the tum so your bett ing
T urn : (S 153) 7+5Y2~Q (2 players)
range isn't weak and you get more credit frnm
Hero?
your opponent.

Betting w ith K+ Q+ also al lows you io get away w ith betting your non-showdown hands that
can take down the pot w ith a tum bet when V illain is holdi ng hands such as AJ, JT, A4, and 8T.
But if you check, those bands are likely betting on the turn since you checked tw ice and you
can't bluff-call.
Thus, it's better to j ust bet the ium w ith K+ Q+ in this spot. Then you can also bet w ith 88-.JJ for
protection and to prevent yourself from gett ing bluffed i f V illain decides to fi re the ium and the
river. Of course, we can close our eyes and call the turn and the river. Bui it's sometimes better
to take the Iine that keeps you out of a di fficult situat ion.
[fyour opponent starts checking back and raising your iurn bet, you should consider checking
the tum more o ften .
- 16 -

11

Chapter 6: Balancing

Balancing your range is an important practice. But how do you balance?

Before we get to balancing, we should state the reasons for bett ing. \Vhen you bet, you are
either bluffing, bett ing for value, or betting for prntecti on.
\Vhen you bluff, you try to represent a made hand to induce your opponent to fo ld . \Vhen you
value-bet, you try to represent a blu'f so your opponent can call. Betti ng for protect ion doesn't
occur as much in no-limit hold'em as it does in pot-li mit Omaha, but you w ill sometimes do so
when you have a good but vu lnerab:e hand and you want to charge your opponents for drawing
when they are beh ind.
\Vhy is it important ttl know the reasons for bett ing?
By knowing why you are betting, you avoid mak ing costly mistakes such as m indl essly bett ing
in situat ions where you should check, and vice-versa. Furthermore, recogn iz ing these situations
will help you to bluff and value-bet more effectively.

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Example 6.1: Th is is a spot where players

sometimes check beh ind for pot control. Un less
you have a better reason ihan "checking beh ind 10
keep the poi small wiih my marginal hand," you
should bet on the tum way more often than you
check.
Vill ain's range afier the flop call is JJ, 66, 55, 78s,
.IT, QJ, KJ, AJ, TT, 99, 88, 77, and 67s. Villain
may also check-calJ with hands such as 9+8+ or
A+Q+, though those hands are more likely 10
check-raise the fl op than 10 check-call.

Exauo pie 6. 1: S3/S6 6-M ax

SB: S700
BB: S642
UTG: $755
MP: S623
CO: S3 1I
Hero (BTN): S934
Preflop: Hero on BTN with K~J~
3/ olds , Hero raises to ) 18, I f old, BB
ca.lls 5 12

Flop: (S39) JY6+5~ (2 players)

Against the above range, discounting 9+8+ and
BB checks, Hero bets S34, BB calls $34
A+Q+, we have 60% equ ity. Although ii is
un likely ihal a worse hand than JT and QJ will call Turn: (S l07) JY6+5~Q~ (2 players)
our turn bet, betting the turn makes our hanJ a
BB checks, Hero ?
li ttle easi er to play. It also protects our twobarrell ing range and charges our opponent to
draw.

\Ve will fold if we're check-raised on the turn .

One might reason that making the hand easier 10 play isn't the most profitable line, and that's
true. However, there are situations in wh ich we don'i know our opponents' tendenc ies as well as
we would like to, in wh ich case bell ing prevents our making a costly mistake on ihe river,
whether by calli ng or fo lding incorrectly. It is important to note that al though we strive io play
perfectly and make the most profitable play whenever we can, we ofien don't play perfectly and
don't have enough infomiation to make the best play.
~\1aking

the most profitable play can also increase variance. lfyou know you have a 1il1 prob lem
and start 1op lay worse if an opponent outdraws you on the river, then you should bet the turn.
This definitely shouldn't be the reason why one would choose a less profitab le play, bui
sacrificing a litlle EV so you can continue playing your A game is very imp:lrtant and shouldn't
be underestimated.
Alternative Line: \Ve can check behind ihe tum and call all blank rivers. Blanks river in th is
situation are 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, and Q. \Ve can fo ld to an 8, 9, T or ace. \Ve can raise a river J and
depending on ihe opponent, we can also ra ise a K. Th is line is very profi table against opponents
who Iike to float oul of position or !um whatever weak made hand ihey have on the fl op into
bluffs al the river. lfyou don't know whether !his trait app lies 10 your opponent, start analyzing
- 18 -

more hands.

Important Note: 1fVi ll ain is tr icky and aggressive, we should check behind on the tum a 101 o f
the t ime to avoid a check-raise.

- 19 -

Example 6.2: This is a bet on the turn .

A lot of worse hands such as JJ, T 9-A T and 78 are
calling.
Betting the tum also protects our two-barrelling
range. Th is is especiall y important when the turn is
a king. If Villain knows you are capable ofvaluebetting with less than a pair of kings on the tum,
he's less likely to call your second barrels w ith
marginal holdings in future hands, and th is allows
you to bluff more.
Unless the river is an ace or ten, we should va luebei the river as well. JJ and T x w ill cal l somet imes
since the king is such a great card for you ttl
continue bluffing.

Example 6.2: S3/ S6 6-Max

S B: S688
BB: S405
I JT G :

$?.?.~

Hero 0'lP) : $623

CO: S290
BTN: S740
Preflop: Hero on MP w ith Q+Q+
I f old, Hero raises to S 18, 2.folds, SB
ca lls S IS, I fo ld
Flop: (S42) T~7Y3+ (2 players)
SB checks, Hero bets S36, SB call s S36
Turn: (S I 14) T~ 7Y3+ KY (2 players)
SB checks, Hero?

lf we bet the tum, we should fo ld if we're checkraised. There are too many combinations of hands
that beat us versus the combi nations of draws that
Villain is check-raising the tum w ith.
Important ~ote: As in hand 5, if Villai n is tricky and aggressive, we should often check
beh ind on the turn m avoid a check-raise.

- 20 -

Example 6.3: Th is appears to be a simp le spot to

value-bet the ri ver. But your r iver range is reall y
strong after the pre-flop, flop and turn action.
It's difficult for KJ or KT to make hero calls on
the r iver because most draws get there and your
opponent can on Iy beat air or a missed backdoor
flush draw in a situat ion where you rare Iy have
air and don't o ften have a flush draw.

Example 6.3: S3/ S6 6-ivlax

SB: S385
BB: $676
UTG: S289
Hero (.MP) : S972
CO: S544
BTN: $635
Pre-flop: Hero on CO w ith A K
I f old, Hero raises to 524, 3 f olds, BB
calls S l8

There's a small chance that your opponent is

call ing w ith wmse and a big chance that your
opponent can show up w ith hands better than AK, Flop: (S5 1) 7 K~Qo!o (2 players)
so you should check back.
BB checks, Hero bets S46, BB ca lls S46
On the same note, since your r iver range is strong
here when you bet, you should cons:der turn ing
AJ , 89 and 56 into bluffs ifvou
make it to the
'
river w ith them. Those ha nds rarely, if ever, w in
at shtl\vdown after the flop and tum act ion, st) i ~s
pro fitable to somet imes bluff with them.

Turn: (S l 43) 7 K~Qo!o6+ (2 players)

BB checks, Hero bets S I 12, BB calls S I 12
Ri"er: (S367) 7K~Qo!o6 9~(2 players}
BB checks, Hero ?

Hav ing a pair also lessens the chance o f your

opponent hav ing a low set, wh ich h is strong ha nds are composed of if he's check-calling from
two streets after defending from the blinds. KK and QQ usuaLi y re-raise from the b hnds, and
KQ probab ly check-raises the flop most C>f the t ime.

- 21 -

11

Chapter 7: The Chosen One

\Vhenever you gei to the river, there are only a few strong hands in your range, i.e., ihe strong
hands that you are trying to represent const itute only a small percentage of your pre-flop range.
For examp le, i f you've bei the flop, turn and river on a board of K~J~8+ 7+3, your strong
hands are KK, KJ, K8, K7, AK, KQ, JJ, J8, 88, 9T, 77 and AA .
Assuming you opened from UTG and your pre-l:lop perceniage from that position is 14%,
PokerStove shows that you are opening w ith (22+, A Ts+, A5s-A2s, KTs+, QTs+, J9s+, T9s,
98s, 87s, AQo+, KQo }. Th is range inc ludes 144 hands. Now, let's look at our strong hands and
see if they are congruent with our pre-flop range. lfyou are opening only 14% UTG, you don't
have K8, K 7, and J8 in your river range.You only have 48 hands: KK, KJs, AK, KQ, JJ, 88,
T9, 77 and AA. So, at the river you are representing almost 33% of your pre-flop range. That's a
lot of hands.
\Ve w ill assume that you w ill check KQ on the river, since the tum comp letes a straight, and
what worse hands are going to call your bet? KT is going to have a tough time, and ihe majority
of V illain's range is a pair plus a draw on the tum. This leaves you w ith 36 river hand
comb mat ions. Now you are only represent ing 25o/o of your pre-tlop range. Which is sti LI a lot.
It should be noted that th is is a great board to 3-barrel because a lot of hands w ill call ihe turn
but check- fo ld the river.
Let's look at a more interesting hand w iih a board that hits less of your pre-flop range. Suppose
you open UTG and ihe board runs K7594. Yem bet fltlp, turn and river. A good player should
shove over your river bet since you can't have that many strong hands by the time you get to the
nver.
On ihe river, you are beit ing AA, AK, KK, KQ, KJ, K9, 99, 79, 75, 77, 55, and 68. Thal seems
li ke a 101 of hands unti l you realize that KJ, K9, 79, 75, and 68 aren't part of your pre-flop range.
You're left with AA, AK, KK, KQ, 99, 77, and 55. That's 42 hands, wh ich sti ll make up a large
percentage of your pre-flop range.

But how many of these hands can call a river shove? You literall y have no strong hands in your
range. You w ill call w ith KK, 99, 7i, and 55 because-let's be honest- no one folds sets.
Alihough on the river, AA. is the same as A K/KQ because it's hard to imagine someone val ueshoving w ith worse ihan KQ in th is ;pen, but no one folds aces even though ihey shou ld if they
are folding AKIKQ in th is spot. N ow you are left w iih KK, 99, 77, 55 and .A.A from your

- 22 -

original river betting range. That's 18 hands. So, if you bet the flop, turn and river on a board of
K7594, you can only call a river shove w ith 18 hands.
Th is is a spot where you have lo revert to what part of your range your hand is in. A smart
player is go ing to know you rarely show up w ith a strong hand. And i fhe's a pouncer, he w i II
try to take the pot from you.
The most comp licated situat ion is when you open UTG and the flop comes 977 rainbow. \Vhen
you bet and get raised, except for four combinat ions (three 99 and one 77), you are going to
have a tough time play ing on . Conversely, you should seriously consider rais ing the flop and
runn ing a 3-barrel bluff This is why it's tough for UTG raisers ttl call r iver bets on paired
boards and boards with one high card and a bunch of small cards .
It should be noted that the best spots to mess around w ith are when the top of your opponent's
range consists mainly of pairs.
Of course, you shou ldn't try to w in every pot; give up sometimes so your opponents don't know
what you are up to.
It's very easy to play post-flop when we are ab le to narrow our C>pponents' pre-flop ranges by so
much. Th is is why we should cons ider re-raising from the cutoff or the button whenever we can.
Players generall y don't know how to play well out of position, so their ranges end up being very
unpolar ized. For examp le, a so lid TAG opens at UTG+ I and we three-bet on the button. A
typ ical so lid TAG w ill call your 3-bet w ith 77-JJ, AQ, KQ, AJ, JT and QJ. That's probab ly it.
He w ill rarely have AA-QQ because he would usuall y 4-bet these. He doesn't like ca lli ng preflop with AK out of position because if the flop comes a bunch of low cards, he' ll end up checkfo ld.i ng with the best hand. Thus, for him, 4-betting pre-flop is never a bad idea. But when you
are playing against opponents who are active in position and know how to read hands well , it's
bad to have an unbalanced pre-flop calling range. Thus, you should consider calling 3-bels out
of posi tion w ith AK some of the lime as well as calli ng w ith AA-QQ.
Generall y, with AA-KK, the most optimal line to take is basicall y to close your eyes and checkcall against an aggressi ve opponent. Don't be afraid . \Vhen the flop comes J32, a good player is
go ing to bet. Then if the turn is a Q, he's going to bet again . And on a r iver 9, he's going to bet
again. He never puts you AA or KK. He puts you on someth ing such as a stubborn TT that will
fold to a river bet, or maybe KJ. He is also value-betting hands such as AQ, KQ, KK and A.A..
QQ is a little tricky; you just have to go with your reads. You can't go too wrong by checkcalling all the way. [f s actuall y a reall y good strategy. Good players aren't afraid to move you
off your hands. They are going to apply a lot of pressure to you. So, when you have a good

- 23 -

hand in a 3-bet pot, call.

\Vhen I'm out of position with AK-AJ, I like to call the 3-bet from an aggressi ve player and play
post-flop. I will check-cal l on almost every flop because I know he's goi ng to bet a Jot of them.
Additionall y, when the turn comes a high card, especiall y when it's an ace, I'm goi ng to get
another bet since he's going to try to move me off my hand. The river is also a check-call.
Opponents will usually 3-bet before the flop, check back the tum and fold to a river bet. Thus, if
the tum goes check-check and you don't improve by the river, feel free to bet. He's going to fold
a lot because check-cal Ling the flop and betting the river isn't a good line to take as a bluff. But
"~th our outs that can lead to strong hands, check-call ing with those big-card hands is a good
strategy.
lfwe improve to a pair other than aces, we should bet for value. I wouldn't bet an ace on the
river 100 often because this is a scare card to many players, and they will bet at it 10 represent a
big pair. You will obviously check-call. It's a good strategy to check-call the river against
aggressive opponents, even if you inprove. He's goi ng to bet frequently after you check the
river if it's a broadway card.
A more important reason is for ba lance and protection for your range. You don't want your
regu lar opponents to th ink that you cannot show up with a good hand on certain boards in 3-bet
pots. You want them to know that you are capable of showing up with a big pair after you reraise the flop, bet on a flop of 2~ 7~8, check on a tum 5 , and check on a river Q . The reason
is you want him to be a litt le gun-shy the next time he's in a pot and has posi tion on you. That
way, you wiU get cheaper showdowns for your marginal holdings. From the examp le above,
marg inal holdings would be 76, 99 and A5.
One important note: balancing is not as important if you are up against bad players who don't
pay attenti on to what you are doing; in th is case you are free to bet the river. Don't make a play
without any logical j ustification and chalk it up as balanc.e . Although th is shows your opponents
that you are capab le of the occasional bonehead move, it's generall y a bad way to approach the
game.
Here is an example where it's difficult for Villain to call a 3-barrel bluff because his range is
weak.

- 24 -

Exa mple 7. l is a good spot to 3-barrel.

Unless Villain is reall y balanced in th is spot, his
range is mostly AK, AQ, suited connectors, 99, TI,
and some random hands that he 3-bet with.

Exa mple. 7.1: S3/S6 6-Max

SB: $700
BB: S544
UTG: S673
MP:S804
Hero (C O) : S900
BTN: S434

Vill ain will often bet Jx, QQ and KK and check

with JJ and AA once in a long time. There are times
when Villain might check with J+X+ but it doesn't
Preflop: Hero on CO with Q~T~
occur very often. \Vhen peop le flop such a monster
2folds, Hero raises to S 18, I fold, SB
after 3-betting pre- Aop with a marginal hand, they
re-raises to $60, Hero calls S42
can't help but bet the maj ority of the time.
\Ve should bet the i:lop because Vil Iain's range is
likely weak. \Ve can continue playing aggress ively
on a lot of turns, such as 9, K, Q, spades, and
diamonds. It is probab ly best to shove any river if
Vill ain calls the turn.

Flop: (S90) .1~ 7+3 + (2 players}

SB checks, Hero ?

Your flop bet will frequently be ca[eci No need to worry. Just calm down, ti re the ium and
fo llow through on the river. VilJ ain seldom has a strong hand in th is spot after the pre-flop and
flop action. If you size your flop and tum bets so that your river shove is the size of the pot,
then Villain will have a pretty tough call.
If the board is rainbow, it's a little different because Villain is more likely to slowp lay and go
for a flop check-raise or go in check-call mode with overpairs and sets. But a two-tone flop is a
green Iight to barrel it off.
I would bet S75 on the fl op. If the tum pairs the board, I'll bei S90 because it gives the ill usion
that I have the hand locked up and want to lure his draws in. I will fo llow through with a big
river bet.
If the turn doesn't pair the board, I' ll bei something like S 195 so l can make a pot-sized river
shove. I will shove on the river un less I improve to a hand with showdown value such as a pair
of tens or queens. Of course, if the tum and river cards are small er than a jack, I will likely
shove the river with a pair of queen; for value.

- 25 -

11

Chapter 8: We Are The Champions

\Veil , sometimes.
\Vhen we get to the river against a good, aggressive player and our river bet gets raised,
somet imes we close your eyes and call to avoid being exploited. He's going to bluff-shove often
because he knows our range is very narrow by the r iver.
Of course, many low- and mid-stakes players mindlessly call bets and raises at the river,
claiming they can't fold because they are at the top of their range and don't want to be exploited.
Th is is a valid claim, but only against the right type of opponent. Low- and mid-stakes games
are so fu ll of bots who are constantly playing 8+ tab les that when they raise your river bet, it's
al most always the nuts. You can fold in th is case.
But as you move up in stakes, good opponents will try to move you off your hand if the hands
at the top of your range are not the nuts. That's when yo u sometimes call.

- 27 -

Example 8.1: Th is is a spot players often get into

but they don't usually talk about it in detail.
On the river, A K is usuall y the best hand we
can show up with after the previous action. Th is
means we w ill have a tough time fo:di ng since we
are at the lop of our range. Our river range
consists mostly of one-pair hands and bluffs.
So, do we cal I? The answer depends on several
variables.
The river is a fo ld against the maj or:ty, if not of
all players below 400NL because they wi ll rarely
bluff-raise their one-pair hands on the river. If
they have a hand such as 76, their thinking
process in th is spot usuall y goes lo the tune of,
"The Ko!o is a good card to bet because it is
congruent w ith T ri's pre- flop range. However,
there are times when he wi ll bluff with ai r and
with the right pot odds, I can call."

Example 8. 1: S3/S6 6-/\1 ax

SB: $300
Hero (BB): $I 087
UTG: S583
;\'IP: Sl720
CO: SIOO
BTN: S500
Pre-flop: Hero on BB w ith A K
I f olds, MP raises to S 18, 3 fiJlds, Hero
re-raises to S66, M P call s S48
flop: ($ !35) 2o!o69~ (2 players)
Hero bets S I 05, CO bets SI 05
Turn: (5345) 2o!o69~5 ( 2 players)
H~ ro checks, CO checks
River: (5345) 2o!o69~5Ko!o(2 players)
Hero bets S268, MP raises all-i n, Hero ?

The option of bluff-raising sometimes goes into their process but they w ill debate back and
forth and eventuall y choose the safe choice, wh ich is folding or call ing. They rarely pu ll the
bluff-raise trigger. Thus, whenever you find yourself in th is spot, fold. Don't call and j ust ify it
by saying, "I was at the top of my range," whenever you see sets and 78. And you are going 10
see Iots of them.
However, as you move up in stakes and play against tougher opponents who are capab le of and
willing to pu ll the tr igger, you are going to have w close your eyes and call. Does th is mean you
are going to call al l the time here since you are at the top of your range? No. for one thing,
allhough you rarely show up w ith a hand stronger than one pair on the river, the trequency with
which you are gelling bluff-raised is much lower than in theory. Thus, you are only cal ling
some of the time. The reason for calling is 10 protect your river range so that your opponents
don't get the idea that you are consistently bet-folding the r iver in th is spot. Otherw ise, your life
wi II be di fficult.
You should suspect your opponent L-; turn ing his made hands inttl bluffs on the r iver if you are
consistentl y in th is spot against him. If you are, he is likely blufllng you because combinat ionwise, it's tough 10 show up w ith a good hand on th is board all the time.

- 28 -

lf you're not sure htlw to respond io a river raise, then checking the river is a viable opticm.
However, betting the river is beiter in small- and mid-siakes games because you will gei some
light call-downs and you will also be protecting your river b luff.~. After all , if you aren'i betting
with A+K+ for val ue here, then what hands are you betting with on the river? Your river range
will be unbalanced and it will be weighted with a Jot of bluffing hands.

- 29 -

11

Chapter 9 : The Overbet: Wow, That's A Big Bet

It has been a long time since overbets were common in smal l- and mid-stakes games. \Vhen
Prahlad Friedman was crush ing the competition w ith absurd overbets, everyone mimicked him
because it was the natural th ing to do . You copy those who win big. The use of overbets has
decreased iremendously since ihen .
\Vhen th inking of situations in wh ich w 3-barrel, look for nops where Villain almost never has
the nuts but w ill check-calJ often w ith marginal holdings. Examp les of such nops are 442, AA5,
and Q2T. You just have to trust me. They fold a lot of r ivers.
You should use an exploitive strategy against amateurs and bad players by overbett ing mostly
for value. They don't fo ld and they don't care if you are only overbetting w ith the nuts.
People don't like to do th ings outside the nom1 because the standard p lay looks more correct.
After all, it is standard for a reason. No one can crit icize your play. Bui if you want to improve
as a player, you must think try to think outside the box in certain si tuat ions. One example is
imp lementing tbe overbet in your game. No one w ill disagree that adding the overbet t(> your
arsenal makes you a very tough player. But you must balance your range so that you don't
become exploitable.
Lucki ly, almost no one in the small- and mid-stakes games w ill be ab le to exp loit you except for
a few ti lty call s that happen to be right. Players at th is level aren't good enough to beat you even
if you have an unbalanced range because when you overbet, it's either air or nuts. As you
improve, your nut range w ill widen. An overbet is profitab le primaril y because players like to
fo ld and wai t for a better spot.
An overbet can be effective when your opponent has a very narrow calli ng range. For examp le,
a so lid player w ith stats of 16% for UTG+ I opens pre-nop. You call w ith 76 on the cutoff. The
flop is Q62. He cont inuat ion-bets and you call. In th is situat ion, you are never folding th is flop.
He can have air or high cards, and y3u have outs to improve to a better hand to which he w ill
have a hard time folding. The iurn is a 4. He bets. River is a 3 and he bets again.You want to
tum your hand into a bluff here and overbet-shove his river bet.
lv!any players have a bet-fold mentality in th is situat ion. They don't want ttl check and lose
value to hands such as QJ, QT and .J.J. They a lso don't want to check and ca ll a big bet. So they
bet with the intent ion of folding. Besides sets, what can call th is river shove? It's un likely he has
a 5 in his range, consider ing that he is so tight pre-flop. It is easy for you ttl have a 5 in your

- 30 -

range. You can even have a hand such as 75s that decides 10 float this flop bet w ith a backdoor
and luck-box into a straight on the r iver.
Since he can ho ld few hands that can call on the r iver, you should try the bet size that will make
him told most o tten. A basic value bet w ill induce some 10 told . l3u1 he'll o tlen have Kt)+ here,
and once he bets the r iver, he'll tend w call th is bet because he's getting odds and he is curious.
He' ll have a tough time ca lling when you jam the river. \Ve need to balance our range so as to
be more capab le of shoving on 75 or a bare 5 here. T oward this end, we can shove sets on the
river, and two pai r will be fine against people who like 10 make hero calls or just hate fo lding.
In any case, V ill ain wil l rarely have hands that can call us. \Vhen he does show up w ith the nuts,
he w ill see that we are capab le of shoving a w ide range of val ue hands in this situation and w ill
have 10 gi ve us credit the next time we make th is play.
11 is important to remember that as your val ue range w idens, you w ill be able 10 get away w ith
more bluffing hands as well. A simple analogy is pre-flop play. If you can re-raise w ith QQ preflop, then you can add more weak hands to your pre-fl op re-raising range. ff you only value reraise with AA, then the next time you re-raise, people are going to call you often because no
one has AA that often.
One meia-game consideration is how to adj ust if you recently overbet the r iver and your
opponent fo lded and didn't see your cards. The so lut ion is fairly simple.You overbet again until
ib is part icu lar opponent starts calling. Although ii seems like people wi ll start calling if you
keep overbetting, th is isn't true. Some players are very good at taking abuse and w ill fold unt il
they have a reall y good hand to call with . Some players, i.e., recreat ional and bad players, get
curious or t ilted af\er seeing you making two r iver overbets and wi ll start calling you. But many
players, especiall y tight regu lars, just filld over and over.

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Exam pie 9. 1 presents a good board to 3-barrel

and overbet-shove the river.

Exa mple 9. 1: S3/ S6 6-Max

SB: S I 14
BB: S625
UTG: S789

\Vith so much money beh ind on a draw-heavy

flop, V illai n is go ing to check-raise the fl op
~IP: $1502
majority of the time w ith premium hands such as
Hero (CO): $1020
two pairs, sets, and straights. One reason is w
BTN: S738
protect his hand. Another reason is IO get a lot of
money in before a scare card comes on the turn
Preflop: Hero on CO w ith A Q~
and we slow down with AJ or better. Since Villain
is out of position, it's hard for him to attract value I f old, Jv!P raises to S 12, Hero re-raise to
S36, 3 f olds, iv!P calls S24
on later streets because we can check back the
tum and contro l the pot.
Flop: (S80) J 8+7 (2 players)
i\.1 P checks, Hero bets 5 72, Jl.1P calls
After the fl op call, V illain's range is somewhat
defined. He w ill have mostly a pair plus a gutshot
such as T J, 89, TT, or 99. He might also have JQAJ . [f he slowplayed pre-Aop w ith QQ-.1\A, it's
not a great Aop for him; he'll usuall y play
passively with those hands for fear of overp laying
them .

Turn: (S224) J 8 +7 K~ (2 players)

M P checks, Hero bets S 195
River: (S6 14) .I 8+ 7 K~
/v!P checks, Hero ?

X (2 players)

Against the flop range we have given him, a K~ on the tum is probab ly the worst card for him .
\Ve should continue betting the tum and following through on the river.
Even if the turn is a di fferent card, th is is st ill a great spot to continue bluffing because his range
is made up mostly of hands that can call bets on the flop and turn due to their draw ing equity,
but they aren't strong enough to call a r iver shove. Thus, by betting the turn and shoving any
river, you are go ing to get him to fo:d the majority of his range. Vil lain won't call un less he
improves w a great hand on the r iver .
\Ve are c.o nfident that he can't call a river shove without improv ing because w ith our tum bet, if
he has a made hand stronger than t"o pai rs, he wtluld've check-raised all-i n to end the hand and
avoid making an incorrect decision on the river. There's only one pot-size bet left after the tum
acti on and the board is so drawy . It would be disastrous for Villain if we held a hand such as
A T or Q Ts and he failed to end the hand.
l~s

possible that V illain is check-calling with two pairs on the tum, but it is high ly un likely due
to stack size and board texture. Considering there's so much money in the pot already, a m istake
on the r iver is very costly and he should try to avoid it.

- 32 -

11

Chapter 10: Mini Rockets

P layers otten have a hard time playing small pocket pai rs trom the bli nds agai nst a good cutoff
and button opener. lmpli ed odds aren't great because when you hit a set, you don't get paid off
that ofien since your opponents' ranges are wide and they usuall y don't have good enough bands
to stack off. You are out of position and often fold the best hand.
One strategy is to fo ld 22 to 55 before the flop. That's fi ne. Just don't let people know you are
fo ldi ng small pocket pai rs out of the blinds or you'll have difticulty playing on flops such as
2-!o3-!o9Y or 4+5-!oQ~, or basicall y any flop w ith a big card and tw o cards below six .
Another common strategy is to re-raise w ith these holdings against loose cutoff and blind
openers. You usuall y take it down pre-flop, and if your (>pponents play fit-or- fold poker, you
can take it down w ith a conti nuation bet. If your c-bet doesn't do the job, you w ill ofien see the
tum and river for free, s ince V illain will frequently go check-check. It's not the end of the world
if you're caught runn ing a huge bluff w ith a small pocket pair, since you' II be re-raising out of
the blinds with big pocket pairs and you'll get paid off on those holdings.
The th ird strategy is to call pre-flop. Generally, the plan is to check-call low flops or flops w ith
only one card higher than ten and hcpe for a cheap showdown. O f course, if your opponents are
good, th is showdown isn't usuall y cheap and that's where most players are lost. lf only they
knew that one can check-raise the r iver.
You can check-call the flop on boards w ith a broadway and two small cards, and ifthe turn
goes check-check, you should seriously consider check-raisi ng the r iver. On boards such as Axx
or Kxx, once V ill ain checks beh ind the turn, he rarely has top pair beat; otherw ise he would bet
the tum for value. So, when you check the ri ver hoping to see a showdown and your opponent
doesn't oblige, you should o fien check-raise. People take this same li ne w ith strong hands such
as sets and two pai rs, so your opponent doesn't need a lot of convinci ng to fold bis marginal
ho lding.
Based on personal exper ience and that of many of my students, you w i IJ get a lot of folds at the
river. The times you don't get fo lds are when your tipponem improves to two pairs or hits a
gutshot. As we all know, having two pai rs or better in a hold'em game is pretty difticull.
For balance, you should also check-raise the rivers w ith strong holdings. Don't be afraid to lose
value in the event that the hand is checked through. Your opponent will see what you have and
know that you are capable of check-raising the river w ith strong holdings. Th is w ill add
credibility to your r iver check-raise bluffs.

- 33 -

11

Chapter 11 : Instinctive River Play

Th is is a very important concept. Ut:lizing it in the right situations can be the difference
between a break-even player at 2/41\L and a big w inner at 3/6N L. It took me a lot to put it into
pract ice.
The concept is not c.o mp lex, nor it is difficult to grasp. The difficult th ing is knowing whether
you are applying it in an actual game. I didn't know I had th is leak until l started playing PLO,
where on the r iver it's more djfficul110 extract value from th in hands than in hold'em because
ranges are more po lar ized_ On ly through thousands of PLO hands did I recognize that I wasn't
checking enough in N LHE .
The bet-bet-bet line is very strong in N LH E. Th is line is mrely used with marginal holdings-you usuaJl y have either the nuts or ai r. let's go lCl an examp le.
Example I I. I: Unless you have an aggressive and
bluffy image, you should check the river here more
often than you bet. K+J+ is the bottom of yo ur
value range by the r iver when you are taking the
bet-bet-bet line. Thus, you won't often get worse
hands 10 call.
You're not go ing to be very ha ppy when you check
and see hands such as KT , A 9, 9T, and .JJ
showdown. But un less you've been gelli ng out of
line, those hands aren't call ing your river bet.
There are also several draws that could have
missed on the river and w ill consider bluffing.

Example 11. 1: S3/S6 6-ivlax

SB: S493
BB: S200
Aero (UTG): $680
MP: S500
CO : S720
BTN : $770
Pre-flop: Hero is UTG with K+Jt
Hero rnises to 5 18, 2.fo lds, BTN call s
S 18, 2.fo lds
Flop: (S45) K+9~5~ (2 players)
Hero bets S38, BTN call s S38

For these reasons, you should check and evaluate.

The decision to check-call or to check-fold depends Turn: (S 12 1) K+9~5~3 ( 2 players)
Hero bets S I l~, BTN calls S I 14
hea,~ l y on what type of player you face. Is Villain
the type lo tum his hand into a bluff, or w ill he
happiJ y show down 9X or TT and hope you have a River: (S349) K+9~5~3Q (2 players)
Hero?
missed draw as we[I?

- 34 -

Example I 1.2: \Vhat is your action '.or each river

card?
Before we detem1ine what we shou Id do for each
river card, we should fi gure out Villai n's range
after the tum action. Once we know ih is, our river
decision becomes much easier.
On the flop, Villa in is calling with KK, 88, 33,
Kx, 8x, A3s, clubs, and sometimes 99-QQ.
After ihe turn, un less we have a crazy image,
Vill ain's range is Kx and clubs. \Ve should go over
what fl ush draws hand Villain calls with on the
tum. He could have Ao!> Ko!>, Ao!>Qo!>, Ao!>Jo!>,
Ao!>T o!>, A"'5o!>, A"'4"', Ao!>2"', K"'Qo!>, Ko!>.fo!>, and
Ko!>T"'. He could also have Q"'J"', Q"'T"', .f"'T "',
and To!>9o!>. Since our opponent is a regular and not
a random fish, it is not often Villain calls our iurn
bet with a naked queen-high fl ush. For the sake of
equity calculation, we will include Qo!>Jo!> and
Qo!>To!> in Villa in's range.
Vill ain could get stubborn wiih 8x and 99-QQ and
call our tum bet i f he feels we 2-barrel too much.

Example 1 1.2 : S3/S6 6-l\1ax

SB: S400
BB: S548
UT G: S755
Aero (MP): $678
CO: S766
BTN : S334
Preflop: Hero on l\'fP with A~A t
I f old, Hero raises to S 18, CO calls S 18,
3/ olds
flop: ($45) K~8o!>3"' (2 players)
Hero bets 54 1, CO calls S4 1
Turn: (Sl27) K~8o!>3"' 2" (2 players)
Hero bets SI 00, CO calls SI 00
River: (S327) K~8"'3"' 2" (2 players)
*Hero has S5 I 9 behind. \Vhat is Hero's
action iFthe river is:
A.Kt
B. Qt
C. 9o!>
D. 9"

Now, Vill ain's range head ing to the river is {KK88, 33, Ao!>Qo!>, A"'Jo!>, A"'T "'' Ao!>5o!>, A"'4"',
Ao!>2o!>, KJs+, Qo!>Jo!>, Qo!>To!>, KQo}. \Ve left out
Ao!> Ko!> because Villai n will usually re-raise preflop with AK. Now, let's figure out what our river action should be.

A. If the river is a Kt , the question is should we check or should we bet. lf we check, is ii a

check-fo ld or check-call?
Since Villai n has a lot of busted draws in his range and may value-bet worse, we shtmld check
instead of betting.
Agai nst the above range on a river Kt , we have 65% equity. Thus, if we know Villai n bets his
entire ri ver range, we should check-call. However, Villain is rarely betting his ent ire river range
- 35 -

so we are goi ng to modi fy it a little bit.

Let's assume that he' ll check back with 99, TT, J.J, and A+2+ because they have showdown
value and w ith the exception of JJ, not a lot of worse hands are calli ng a river bet. This is
because a pa ired river card usuall y discourages people thlm bluffing with a missed draw. That
means we should check- fo ld more often w ith our bluff-catcher hands.
Against V illain's modified range, AA has 43% so we should call again.
Now, let's make V i Ila in a reall y tight regu lar. He's fo lding any non-nut flush draws on the turn.
He's not bett ing with anything worse than Kx for value on the river, either. Is the river still a
cal.I ? No. Our equ ity is 22.7% against a range of /KK-88, 33, A+ Q+ , A+ J+ , A+ T +, A+5+ ,
A+ 4+, KJs+, KQo, AA). Since we usuall y get 2.5-to- I on a river pot bet, it's a check-fold . If
we th ink V il lain is ca lli ng our pre-t:b p range w ith 6+5+ and 5+ 4+ and w ill bluff the river if he
misses, it's still a fo ld because AA only has 29% equity on the river.
Note that when the K + pair s the board, V illain is less likely to bluff when checked to; fewer
combinations give him made hands (particularly trips) to value bet, so he's more likely to be
call ed_ This is where you enter the level war but as a default, the river is a check-fo ld.

B. I f the river is a Q+, should we bet or check?

lfwe bet, we get Kx or better to call and everyth ing else to fold. However, by check ing, the
same Kx or better hands w ill value-bet. \Ve w ill lose to two pairs or better but we can still gain
a bet from KJs, and we can pick off some m issed fl ush draws or a random bluff.
AA has 58% equ ity against a river range of {KK-88, 33, A+Q+, A+J+, A+T + , A+ 5+, A+4+,

A+ 2+, KJs+, Q+ J+, Q+T + , KQo } on a river Q+.

Since the river doesn't pair the boarci, Villain's bluffing frequency wi ll increase. Afier all , he' ll
rarely w in w ith ace-high . Vi lla in may also value-bet w ith worse hands such as KJs and KTs.
Thus, it's a check-call.

C. If the river is a 9+, shou Id we bet or check?

Since we don't have the A+, we should check. Not having the A~ increases our opponent's
number of nush draws by at least 50%, wh ich means that more hands will beat us. Thus, after
checking, if V illain bet.~ two th irds pot on the river, it's a fo ld.
lfwe have the A+ and the river is a ~ lub, we can safely bet-fo ld the r iver. Our having the A+
removes a lot of flush draws from our opponen~s range, and he's going to have some Kx in his
- 36 -

range that have a high chance of calling a r iver bet.

lf we check, do we check- fo ld or check-call?
AA has 58% equity against a river range of {KK-88, 33, A+ Q+, A+ J+, A+ T+ , A+ 5+, A ~+,
A+ 2+, KJs+, Q+ J+, Q+T + , KQo\ , so it's a river call even though it looks like we should
check-fo ld. The main reason we are calling the r iver is the high probabil ity that Villain is valuebeiting KQ. lf we know that Villain is tight and doesn't call a pre-flop ra ise w ith KQo or doesn't
value-bet th in on the rive r, it's a check- fo ld. [fhe value-bets th in, then it's a call.
D. If the river is a 9Y, check-call , bet- fo ld, a nd check-raise are all viab le opti ons.
\Ve check-call if our op ponent is aggressive and somet imes bluff at the r iver. Additionall y, he
can value-bet w ith worse.
\Ve can bet-fo ld to extract value from calli ng stations but generall y don't value-bet thin or have
a curious mind. \Ve are rarely getting bluff-raised in ih is spot because our line is reall y strong.
Additionall y, since there's a flush draw on the flop, if Vill ain thinks we are bluffing, he's go ing
to call way more o ~en than turn ing a pair into a bluff.
\Ve can check-raise all-in on the r iver to get a few hero calls from KQ or KJs that value-bet the
river and feel they don't want to fold the top o f their range. Check-raising also w idens our
check-raise river range and a llows us to get more. credit when we check-raise the r iver as a
bluff.

- 37 -

A. I f 1hP. river is 1hP. A+ , chP.r.k- fO ld ing is

Exttmple II .3 : S3/ $6 6 lv!ax
the best option. Ln addi tion to the 99 and 7x SB: S480
hands that Vill ain may hold, nut-tlush
Hero (BB) : $748
draws also beat us .
UT G : S500
~IP : $776
Moreover, since our hand looks like a
CO: S l 40
busted draw, it's un likely that V illain is
BTN: S228
turning 9x, TT and small pocket pairs into
bluffs.
Pre.flop: Hero on BB w ith J J+

Vi II ain doesn't have that many draws at the

river si nce the board pairs the tum. Th is
lowers T8 and non-nut-tlusb draws'
imp lied odds. Those hand might also be
draw ing dead.
Thus, on the r iver, it's a check-fo ld .
B. If the river is a 2+, it's a shove. Villai n's
range for calling a river bet is w ide here
since there are so many draws that miss.
It's not unusual to see Vi ll ain show up w ith
9x or Tl -QQ at the river.

I f old, M P raises to S18, 3folds, Hero calls $ 12

flop: (S39) 9+7~ 3~ (2 players}
Hero checks, NlP calls S35, Hero check-raises to
S I 15, M P calls S80
Turn: (S269) 9+ 7~3~7 (2 players)
Hero bets S 188, MP cal Is S 188

River : (S645) 9+7~3~ 7 X (2 players)

H ero has 5427 behind. \.Vha! is Hero's action if
the ri ver is:

C. If the river is a T+ , it's a check- fo ld.

A .A+

You no no Ionger beat TT. Moreover,

hands such as 9x or 88 are less likely to
call your ri ver bet because T+ comp letes
some straight draws. You might also have

B. 2+
C. T+
D. Q~

A~T~

and

K~T~.

Vill ain rarely has a pair ofiens on the r iver at\er the tlop action since having a ten in his hand
means that he w ill have a combo straight and flush draw. Such a hand will likely 3-bet the flop
and try to get all the money in on the flop.

D. If the river is a Q~, it's a close spot. It's a check-fo ld against most players. Against a few
good regulars, it's a check-call. The reason is once you check the r iver, you rarely have Qx beat,
un less you have AA and KK. If your opponent is capab le of recognizing th is, he should tum
any pair worse than Qx into b luff.~.
\Vhil e it is true when you check the river, you most likely have a busted straight draw or a
- 38 -

random bluff, V illain should sti II bluff w ith 9x in the occasion you have A 9s and K9s, TT, and
JJ and w ill fold to a r iver bet a lot. It's ra re for you to call on th is r iver if you check on a Q~ .
Important Note: A majority o f players below 600nl, if not all, won't be turn ing 9x into bluff.<;
in th is spot and w ill Likely have trips, a fu ll house, or a fl ush when Q~ appears at the river and
they bet big. However, th is is a great spot to go over because when you take th is line and check
on the r iver when a draw hits, you are almost always check- folding your entire river range.
Exercise 2: \Vhenever you play, there are river cards that make you want to scream because
they are li terall y the worst card in the deck for you. Create a notepad w ith the tit le "\Vorst Card
In The Deck" and copy the hand histories. Go over your action and the lines you took before the
river card. Do ing so w i II enable you to fi gure out great bluffing spots on the r iver when an
opponent takes the same action and li ne but checks the r iver out o f position. \Ve have all been
in that annoying spot before. Just make sure to get the hand history down so you w ill have more
confidence bluffing in the future.

- 39 -

11

Chapter 12: The Exam

For th ese problems, ussume all you r opponents nre 11verage T AG regulars in a S3/S6 6.\Iax gn mc. Their pre-llop stats are 22/ 16/2.5.

Problem I : $3/S6 6-Max

SB: S235
BB: SS48
UTG: S289

MP: S673
Hero (CO) : S630
BT'\: $677
Pre- llop: Hero on CO with At 5t
2folds, Hero mises to $14, BTN calls S24, 2
f olds
Flop: (S57} A ~T 2 (2 players}
Hem bets S44, BTN ca lls S44

Turn: (S I45)

A ~T26

Ri\'e r: (S355)
Hero?

A~T26J

(2 players)
Hero bets S I05, BTN calls SIOS

- 40 -

(2 players)

Problem I : S3/ S6 6-/\i ax

SB: S235
BB: S548
UT G : S289
M P: S673
Hero (CO): $630
BTN : $677
Pre-flop: Hero on CO w ith A~5~
2folds, Hero raises to $24, BTN ca lls
S24, 2folds
Flop: (SS 7) A~ T 2 (2 players)
Hern bets S44, BTN calls $44
Tu r n: (S l 45) A ~T26 (2 playeis)
Hero bets S IDS, BTN calls S l 05

Answer l: A common line players l ike to take on

the r iver is to bet-fold. After all, we have the
highest pai r and no fl ushes or trips are possible.
And if we bet and get raised, we are likely beat and
can fo lJ U UI hand .
Although th is seems like a standard spot to betfold, un less you have a crazy image, you should
almost always check and evaluate here.
The decis ion on whether 10 call or fold heavil y
depends on game-flow. The maj or ity of the time,
it's a check-fo ld since few drawing hands can call
the flop and cont inue on the turn. Hands like K Q
or K +Jt are possi ble, but that's a reall y narrow
range. l'v!oreover, Kt Jt isn't betting the river and
we lose to K Q .

Vill ain is un likely to tum Tx and Q+.J+ into bluffs

because they picked up showdown equ ity. And
since the board is dry, V illain might slowplay
hands such as 22 and TT. A.I is also a big part of
' - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - ' Villain's r iver betting range .
River : (S355)
Hero ?

A~T +2

6 1 (2 players)

\V ith so few bluff<; and so many val ue hands in V illain's river range, we can safely check-fold.
On the river, if you are Vil lai n, this is a great spot w turn the bottom of your rnnge into bluffs.
The bottom of your range in th is situation would be pairs or gutshots that pick up a flush draw
on the tum. Ii is unlikely someone is check-calling with two pairs or better on the river. He w ill
bet it for value on the river.
Alternative Line: An al ternat ive line ttl take on th is hand is ttl check the turn instead of betting.
On ace-high flops, some regulars li ke 10 float continuation bets w ith gu1sht1ts such as KQ/KJ/QJ
and w ill stab at the tum. Check-calling the tum allows us to pick up a few bluffs and we also
balance our check-calli ng range. On r ivers where our hands don't improve, barr ing spec ifi c
reads, it is a check- fo ld .
[f we check the tum and Villain che:ks back, then we should bet the river for value. T x and Jx
might get curious. vVe are rarely getting blutr-raised on the r iver because it's an unbelievab le
line 10 take as bluffs. Small- and mid-stakes players just don't bluff-raise rivers often, especiall y
after checking beh ind the tum. Bet6ng the r iver also protects our bet-check-bet range on ace-

- 41 -

high Oops.
lmportant ~ote: One imponant note to take on this hand is that the river play is based on what
happ ened in the previous street. This is because the strength of our opponent's river range varies
greatly depending on our tum action. Thus , if we bet the nop and tum, we should check the
river. lfwe bet the nop and check the tum, we should bet the r iver.

- 42 -

P rob lem 2: S3/S6 6-Max

SB: 5389
BB: $749
Hero (UT G): S722
MP: S485
CO: S399
BTN: S679
Pre-flop: Hero is at UTG w ith A~J~
Hero raises to S24, 4/ olds, BB call s S l 8
Flop: (S5 1) A 6+3Y (2 players)

BB checks, Hero bets $43, BB chec k-raises to

S l 28, Hero?

- 43 -

Problem 2: S3/ S6 6-Max

SB: S389
BB: $749
He ro (U TG) : $722
MP: S485
CO : S399
BTN : S679
Pre-flop: Hero is at UTG with A~J~
1-!ero raises to S24, 4/olds, BB call s S l8
flop: (S5 I} A 6"3"' (2 p layers)
BB checks, Hero bets S4 3, BB chec.kraises to S l28, Hero?

L-~~~~~~~~~~~~~~--'

Answer 2: A flop call is more di fficult than it looks

here, especiall y when we have no backdoor equ ity.

If Villai n is a so lid regular and doesn't check-raise

li ght, we shou ld fo ld. However, some p layers like 10
call the nap and fold to a tum bet, or call the flop
and the tum and fold 10 a river bet e ven though
opponents rarely check-raise ace-h igh flop bets and
s-Jow down in future s treets. Addit iona ll y, on aceh igh rainbow boards, p layers don't suddenl y go
crazy a nd start b luftlng aga inst UT G opens.
But for the sake o f discussion, let's dissect BB's
range. \Vith 77-JJ, V illain is way more likely to
check-fo ld or check-call than check-raise th is flop
because those hands have li ttle equity when behind.
Thus, when Villain check-raises, b is range is
consists o f33, 66, AK, AQ, AA, 45s, 67s, and some
random hands.

Since solid regulars don't o fien defend w ith small su ited connectors out o f the b linds against an
LJJ'(j open, he won't have a straight draw that o tlen. Additionall y, more p layers are s tart ing to
flat raises from the BB w ith AK and a lmost always with AQ so it's poss ib le for V illain to
slowp lay those hands pre-flop and decided to p lay them fast on such a dry board.
PokerStove shows that A~J~ has 24.3% equity against a range consisting of33, 66, AK, AQ,
45s, and 67s. \Ve didn't include AA since it is high ly un likely AA c heck-raises on the flop.
However, Vil lain rarely has 45s or 67s here, and we're drawing dead if we're behind. lfwe
remov e 45s and 67s from V illai n's range, our equ ity p lummets to I 0% . So, even if our opponent
adds a few random b lu ff.~, we shou ld fold here.
Now, let's move your posit ion to the button, where your perceived range is w ider. You shou ld
call a check-raise more o fien because p layers are more like ly to check-raise with b lu ff.~ and
drawing hands. V illain also has more AX hands in h is range. However, if he bets ihe turn and
a lso the river, you shou ld fold 10 the rive r bet since it is obvious you have at least a pair ofac.e s
with a decent k icker at that point anJ no one is going to try 10 move you off AJ+.
If you find h im 3-barreling you two or three times, he's likely gett ing out o f line so you shou ld
be ecstatic to call a r iver bet w iih AX.
Important Note: \ Vh ile V illai n could be exp loit ing us on th is flop by getting us to fold a hand

- 44 -

that is near the top of our range, we can safely fold it the first time around since rarely does
anyone exp loit th is particular spot lfwe are being exp loited, considering V illain's check-raise
range, fo lding is merely a small mistake that prevents us from potent iall y making more costly
mistakes on later streets.

- 45 -

Problem 3: S3/S6 6-Max

SB: $556
Hero (BB): S649
UT G: S80
MP: S l 40
CO: S900
BTN : S723
Pre-flop: Hero on BB with K T
4 f nlrl.<, SR open~ tc'l S I 8, Hem '?

- 46 -

Problem 3: S3/S6 6-l\1ax

SB: $556
Hero (BB) : S649
UTG: S804
M P: Sl 40
CO: S900
BTN: S723
Pre-flop: Hero on BB with KYTY
4 f olds, SB opens to S 18, Hero ?
'--~~~~~~~~~~~~-'

Answer 3: You should never fold here.

The questi on is do you call or re-raise? \Ve give our
opponents too much credit fur 4-betting in th is
situation, resulting in our not 3-betting enough. You
should 3-bet at least 75% of the time here.
You dcm't mind takjng down the pot before the flop,
and 3-betti ng also di scourages your opponent from
opening light in the SB, giving you a walk in future
hands.

In the event that he does call, since it's a bli nd-versus-blind situation, his range cons ists of
hands that you domi nate, such as JT, 9T, K9 and T8. He will probably 4-bet with hands such as
KK, .AK, KQ, in whjch case you can safel y fold.
Alternative Line: If you feel comfortable playing post-flop and you are confident you can
outp lay your opponent in later streets, calling is better. The only exception is if you feel your
opponent calls 3-bets too wide out-of-position and is un likely to 4-bet you. In th is case, 3bett ing is far superior.

- 47 -

Problem 4: S3/S6 6-Max

SB: S484
BB: $654
UTG: S ISE
'.\llP: S4 70
Hero (CO}: S870
BTN: S731
Pre-flop: Hero on CO with 7 6

2/olds, He:o niises 10 S2-I. 2/olds, BB calls

Sl8
Flop: (S5 l) K T +6 (2 players}
BB checks, Hero bets S46, BB ca ll s S46

Turn: (S!L3} K T+63+ (2 players}

BB checks. Hero checks
Ri ver: (Sl~3) K T+6t3+J+ (2 players)
BB checks. Hero ?

- 48 -

Answer 4: Th is is k ind ofa tricky quest ion

because it depends heav il y on how good your
opponent is and whether he fights for pots .

Problem 4: S3/ S6 6-M ax

SB: S484
BB: $654
UT G : S l 88
M P: S470
Hero (CO) : S870
BTN : S73 1

Against bad regu lars who fo ld a lot on the river,

we s hou ld tum our hand into a b lu ff a nd bet
around S 11 5 .

P re-flop: Hero on CO w ith 7 6

2/olds, Hero raises to 524, 2/olds, BB
callsS 18

Although we don't expect to fold out any Kx that

often, they w ill fold Tx, middl e pocket pairs such
as 99, and QQ a good amount o f the t ime.

Flop: (S5 1) KT~6 (2 p layers}

BB checks, Hero bets 546, BB calls S46

Agai nst good regu lars who read hands we ll and

can call down li ght, we shou ld check beh ind on
the r iver.

T urn: (S l 43) KT~6 3~ (2 p layers)

BB checks, Hero checks

A good regu lar expects us to be t any Kx or better

on the turn. \Vhen we are betting on the river, we
River: (S l 43) KT~6 3~J~ (2 p layers)
are also represent ing a small value range, i.e., JT,
BB checks, Hero?
QJ, AQ, A l, Q9, and JJ. The problem w ith
~--------------~ representi ng th is range is that our opponent
expects us to bet the tum w ith gutshots. Thus, on
the r iver, our va lue range consists mostly ofTJ and JJ hands that wanted to control the pot on
the tum. \ Vith such a na rrow range on the ri ver, a good regu lar can call our r iver bet w ith a ha nd
as weak as Tx.
For th is part icu lar spot, if you can't decide whether your opponent is a regu lar who is capab le of
check-ca lling w ith a marginal ha nd, betting is bette r than checking beh ind because there is dead
money out there and you rare ly w in the pot at showdown. Additionall y, we often gi ve our
opponent more credit than deserved, wh ich means our fold equ ity is actuall y h igher than we
thought it wou Id be.

- 49 -

Pr oblem 5: S3/S6 6-Max

SB: S583
BB: S668
UTG: S764
MP: Sl 59
Her o (CO): S784
BTN: S818
Pr e-Oop: 'iero on CO with A+Q +
2folds, He~o raises to S14 , 1fold, SB reraises to S30, Hero calls S56
Flop: (S 166) 9~83+ (2 players)
SB bets S 124, Hero ?

- 50 -

Problem 5: S3/ S6 6-!v!ax

SB: $583
BB: S668
UT G : S764
M P: S l 59
Hero (CO): $784
BT N : S818

Answer 5: Players often fold or call a flop bet in th is

situation.

Pre-flop: Hero on CO w ith A~Q~

2/olds, Hero raises to S24, I/old, SB
re-raises to S80, Hero cal Is 556

By holding AQ, we remove a lot of hands that he can

call a shove w ith. T o be specific, we remove 17% of
hands. lfwe hold 230, V illain's range usuall y has at
least 36 combinations of .t\ _t\-88 to call our shove
with. By removing one ace and one queen, we
remove 6 hands from that range.

Flop: (S 166) 9<!>8'13~ (2 players}

SB bets S 124, Hero ?
~-------------~

The best play is shoving aga inst the flop bet when
stacks are around I 00 88, especially i fyour
opponent has a high 3-betting percentage and a high
continuat ion-bet percentage in 3-bet pots.

lf he call s, it's not the end of the wor ld and we have

18% equity.

According to the fold equity equat ion (http://dail vvariance.com/ fe-calculator.php), Villain only
has to fold 55.22% of the time for the play to break-even. If our opponent 3-bets from the SB
with any regu larity, it's a profi table play.
Although not likely, opponents might fold TT and JJ in th is spot to a flop shove.

Exercise 3: Figuring out how regu lars play TT and .JJ will do wonders for your win rate. Go
through your database, look at your AA and KK hands and see if any regular shows up w ith TT
and JJ when you check-shove the flop. !fyou rarely see it, that means regulars are giving you a
lot of credit for your flop range. To take advantage of th is image, check-shove more often w ith
hands such as QJ, KQ, AQ, etc. Of course, once you get caught, ytmr folding equ ity goes way
down in future pois. By then, you can revert to your nonnal game and don't check-shove light
as sem i-bluffs but w ith QQ+.
Another way to figure oui on whether the regu lars at your stakes call or fo ld TT and JJ in th is
spot is to look at their TT and J J har.ds. See if they ever get to showdown in a 3-bet pot for a
huge pot w ithout hitting a set. It's important 10 remember that post-flop play is required. Going
all-in pre-flop w ith TT and JJ do not count. If you don't find many pots like th is, that means
they are folding a lot of TT and JJ in 3-bet pots.

- 51-

Problem 6: S3/S6 6-Max

SB: S539
BB: S632
UTG: $937
MP: S239
00: S387
Hero (BT'.'i) : S7 l 0
Pre-nop: Hero on BTN witli T ~9<!>
UTG raises to 518, 2folds, Hero re-raises to S63,
2folds, UTG calls S45
Flop: (S 135) .1~8~3 (2 players)
BB checks, Hero ?

- 52 -

P roblem 6: S3/S6 6-M ax

SB: S539
BB: S632
UTG: $937
tv!P: S239
00: S387
Hero (BT N) : $7 10
Pre-flop: Hero on BTN w ith T~9~
LffG raises to S 18, 2folds, Hero re-ra ises to S63,
2folds, UTG calls S45

Answer 6: Th is situat ion occurs

frequent!y and many smal I- and m idstakes players misp lay it. On the surface,
it is easy to see we have an open-ended
straight t!Iaw in a 3-bet pol. Assunung
IOOBB stacks, it is never too bad to bet
and get it all- in if we're check-raised. \Ve
always have some equity in the pot and
are rarely draw ing slim. B ut it's usuall y
better to check back the flop in th is
situati on or any t ime we have the same
amount of outs against a pol arized range.

flop : (S l 35) J~8~3 (2 players)

BB checks, Hero ?

Players tend not to check back th is !lop in

th is situation; they feel the need to bet to
continue representing strength. A fier al I,
that's what one does w ith strong hanJs such as AA-QQ, AJ, J8, and .tU. Thus, when check ing
back th is !lop, players are afraid that their range is face-up and opponents are going to take the
pot away from them by betting the tum. But th is is not the case. You can w in the pot w ith a
delayed tum bluff
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

\Vhen we bet the flop, we want a fo ld since ten-high isn't going to win at showdown. The hands
that are going to fo ld are ace-high, suited connectors, and some random sma ll pocket pairs.
Against these hands, they are going to check-fo ld the tum a good amount of the time anyway. If
not, they w i LI fold to a bet on a tum queen, king or ace since those cards hit the major ity of our
flop check-back range. On a tum 9 or T, we can call a turn bet and evaluate the river.
\Ve are calli ng a bet on a rag turn such as 2, 4 or 5. Vill ain w ill bluff sometimes <1nd give up on

the r iver because our range appears to cons ist mainly of99-TT, 8X, and AK/AQ. V illain w ill be
afraid to bluff against those hands. We also have fairly well disguised nut outs on the river and
are going to get paid off when V illa in has a big hand. If V illain bets the r iver and we don't
improve ttl a straight, barring any specific reads, it's a fold even if we make a pair.
\Ve w ill also call most turn bets on

a tum 7 or Q. A turn raise is very strong in th is s ituat ion and

most hands that are giving us acti on on th is tum are goi ng to give us act ion on the river.
Additionall y, call ing al lows Villain to continue bluffing if he was bluffing the tum. A call also
protects our tum calJjng range deters our opponents from firing multiple barrels in future hands
by putt ing us on hands such as AK, AT and KQ.
Another reason we don't want to bet the !lop too often is that hands that are go ing to call the
!lop bet w ill frequently check-raise all- in, forci ng us to play for stacks w ith the worst of it. And

- 53 -

if we get it in on the flop, we are rarely, if ever, getting it in good because there are no draws
that we can dominate.
Of course, th is situation is player-dependent. If a player check- folds a lot and only calls the fl op
most of the time, then betting the flop is fi ne. But for the most part, you should check back the
flop.
Variation: \Ve should almost always bet the flc>p if it comes J~8<!>3+ instead of J~8~3 . There
are Jess flush draws to check-shove the flop and force us to fold since we are gett ing incorrect
odds to ca ll. Additionall y, strong hands such as AA-QQ, JJ, and 88 are Jess likely to slowp lay
because the board is drawy and those hands want to get as much money in as possible before a
scare card comes and slows down the action.
Once we bet the flop, a common line to take is to size the turn bet so that we can make a potsized shove on the river. After a ll, that's what we do if we have AJ beat in this spot. Betting the
flop and barreling on the turn also allows us to pick up money from loose flop call s that cannot
call a turn bet. These hands are 89, 9T, TT, 99, and even JT-KJ.

- 54 -

Problem 7: S3/S6 6-Max

SB: S648
BB: SI 149
UTG: S740
NIP: $992
Hero (CO): S972
BTN: S582
Pre-flop: Hero on CO w ith 6+5+
!YfP raises to 5 18, Hero calls $ 18, 4/ olds
Flop: (S45) J~53+ (2 players)
!YfP bet>; S39, Hero calls S39

Turn: (S l23) J~53+2+ (2 players)

tvfP bets S96, Hero calls $96
River: (5315) J~53+2+A (2 players)
MP bets S248, Hero ''

- 55 -

Answer 7 : If there is ever a spot to b lu ff-raise

the river, th is is it.

P robl em 7: S3/S6 6-M ax

SB: S648
88: SI 149
UTG: S740
~IP :

A r a ise on the r iver is legitimate for a straight

since that's how you wou ld p lay w ith 54 a nd
44. Sometimes, this line works w ith 64 and A4
as well.

'$992

Hero (CO): S972

BTN : S582

The great th ing about th is spot is that the A

increases Villain's b lu ffin,g frequency because
he's trying to move you off JX. It a lso
incTeases his va lue-betti ng range s ince he
m ig ht have A J, A5, A3, and A2. He can also
hav e AA .

Pre-flop: Hero on CO w ith 6"'5"'

i\ i!P rai ses to S l 8, Hero calls $ 18, 4/ olds

Flop: ($45) J~53+ (2 players)

l\!ff' b ets S39, Hero calls S39
T urn : (S l 23) J~53"'2"' (2 p layers)
MP b ets S96, H~ro calls S96
River: (S3 15) J~53"'2"'A (2 p layers)
M1' b ets S248, Hero ?
'--~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~__,

A lthough those hands are strong, they are on ly

b lu ff-catchers in th is spot since you are rarely
sho ving w ith worse for va lue. Thus, if you
hav e a so I id image, you c a n o ften get away
with this.

If you' re known as a great aggTessive p layer, then yo u won't likel y get peop le to fo ld A5 or
betier, since those hands are at the top of your opponent's range by the river.
Lastly, make s ure the stack s]ze.s are correct when sh oving the r iver. You d on't want ttl o ffer
your o pponent 4-to- I odds and sigh in di sbe lief w hen he calls you off w ith a marg inal ho lding .

- 56 -

Problem 8: S3/S6 6-Max

SB: S522
BB: S600
UTG: 5605
MP: S73 l
00: S687
Hero (BT:"<) : 5700
Pre-flop: Hero on BTN with KQ or 7 5
UfG raises to Sl8, I f old, Hero re-raises to S63,
2/olds, UTG calls S45
Flop: (S 135) T 3 2~ (2 players)
BB checks, ~ ero does what with each hand'?

- 57 -

Problem 8: S3/S6 6-lv!ax

SB: S522
BB: S600
IJTC: : $60'i
M P: S73 1
CO: S687
Hero (BTN): $700
Pre-flop: Hero on BTN w ith K+Q+ or 7+5+
UTG raises 10 S18, I/olds, Hero re-raises to
S63, 2/olds, UTG calls S45

Answer 8: \Vith K+Q+, you can happil y bei and

get it in on the flop.Your hand is a favorite
against a pai r ofjacks or worse. There is a good
chance your hand dominates a lower fl ush draw.
Overall, your equity is great against any range
that gets it in on this flop.
\Vith 7+5+, you shou ld consider checking back a
Jot of the times. The reason is if you get it in,
yo u rarely, if ever, have great equity.

P layers often mindlessly bet and get it in

because ii's a 3-bet pot and you have a flush
Flop: (S J35) T+3+2+ (2 players)
BB checks, Hero does what w ith each hand? draw. Afier aJJ, it can'i be that bad. But there are
defi nitely better alternati ves.
Checking back al lows you ltl continue on a Jot of iurns such as A, 4, 5, 6, and 7. You can
legi timately float on a tum .I, Q, K since JX, QX, and KX make up a huge part of your range.
You can bet the river if he checks. Addit ionall y, if a diamond hits on the tum or the r iver, you
can stack Vi ll ain s ince he'll expect yo u to bet the flop with a flush draw a 101 of the times.
Variation: Assuming we check back w ith both hands, we should call a bet on tum 9+. I fwe
don't improve on ihe river (such as a r iver 4h), we should give up. The reason is ihe 9+
increases a lot of drawing hands such as 78, QJ, and J8 in our range. \Ve also have '' lot of club
draws. Thus, it's best 10 give up and check back on the river.
On a tum 6Y, we should call a bet. However, on a blank river such as 2'', we should bluff the
river if check to. The reason is the tum doesn't increase many draw ing hands in our range. ii is
reasonab le for us to check back the flop w ith hands such as 9Tand TJ. \Ve can also have small
pocket pairs or a hand li ke 45. For1hese reasons, we should bet the river.
Important Note: Pre-flop re-raise wiih KQs shouldn't be standard in th is spot and against mtlsi
opponents, it is bad. You should re-raise with KQo in ihis spot way more often than KQs. The
reason is KQs plays well post-flop and has a lot more value than KQo. Another reason is
players don't call re-raises very wide ou1-o f-posi1jon so re-raising fold out a lot of hands that
KQs dominated and it would be bad if we have 10 fold to a 4-bet.
KQs was used in !he example to illustrate the huge djfference between a king-high flush draw
and a seven-high fl ush draw .

- 58 -

Problem 9: S31S6 6 ~ax

SB: S583
BB: S608
Hero (UTG) : 690
MP: Sl27
CO: S350
BTN: S573
Pre-flop: Hero is at UTG with A~ K
Hero raises to S2~, 3/olds, SB calls S21, BB
calls SIS
Flop: (S 72) 8+ A'1o .I (3 players)
SB checks, BB checks, Hero bets S64, SB
check-raises 10 St98, I/old, Hero ?

. 59 .

Answer 9: Th is is a spot where you should

fold a lot o f the time even though it's tough to
do so because cur hand Iooks so good.

Problem 9: S3/ S6 6-Max

SB: S583
BB: S608
Hero (UTG) : S690
M P: S l2 7
CO: S350
BTN : S573
Pre.- flop: Hero is at UTG with A+K
Hero raises to S24, 3 fold~, SB calls S2 l, BB
calls S l 8

Against a range of.JJ, 88, K+ Q+, Q+ J+, J+ T+

and T + 9+, we have 21. 5%. The hand is much
closer if Villain can show up w ith AQ in th is
spot because then we have 50% equ ity against
that range. However, Villai n probably re-raises
pre-flop with AQ and i f he didn't, it's unlikely
that he's go ing crazy post-flop with it on th is
board.

Flop: ($72) 8+ A+ 1 (3 players)

SB checks, BB checks, Hero bets S64, SB
check-mi ses to SI 98, I f old, Hero?

- 60 -

Problem 10: $3 $6 6-:vlax

Hero (S B): 675

BB: $304
UTG: $440
MP: $800
CO: $300
BT:'ll: 5732

Pre-flop: Hero on SB with 6 6+

3 folds, BTN raises 10S 18, Hero calls S15,
fold
Flop: (S42l K+4 2+ (2 players)

Hero checks, BTN bets S34, Hero calls S34

T urn: (SI 10) K+4 2+ 8+ (2 players)

Hero checks, BTN checks

River: (S 110) K 5 2+8+ Q (2 players)

Hero checks, BTN bets S78, Hero ''

. 61.

Answer 10: Th is is a good spot to check-raise

the river since Villain rarely has two pairs or
better. He is bett ing the tum wiih KQ the
maj ority of the time.

Problem 10: S3/S6 6-!v!ax

Hero (SB) : S675
BB: S304
UT G : S440
MP: S800
CO: S300
BTN: $732

The only legitimate hands that he can call the

river check-raise w ith are QQ and Q8.
H is range for betting the r iver might inc lude
an.y KX that goes for pot contro l on the tum.
He would also bet AQ and QJ a good amount
of the time, putting you on small pai rs sinc.e
you are likely betting the river w ith KX. Both
KX and QX are going to fold a Joi to a river
check-raise. After all, your line is consistent
w ith what you are trying to represent. You can
easil y have sets and KQ.

Pre-flop: Hero on SB with 6 6+

3/olds, BTN raises to S18, Hero calls S IS,
f old
Flop: (S42) K~42+ (2 players)
Hero checks, BTN bets S34, Hero calls S34
Turn: (S 11 0) K~42+8+ (2 players)
Hero checks, BTN checks

There is also a chance he decided to tum a

small pair into a bluff Of course, we beat his
bluffs anyway but check-raisi ng is a better
play than calling since he's going to fold a lot

River: (SI 10) K~52+8+Q (2 players)

Hero checks, BTN bets Si8, Hern ?
.___ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __J

of his range on the river after his tum check.

Lastly, don't worry about gett ing caught. Ii happens to everyone and very o ften to the best
players in the wor ld because they are playing against ihe other best players in the wor ld.

- 62 -

Problem I I : S31S5 6- Max

SB: S839
BB: 5200

UT G: S723
MP: S477
Hero (CO): S678
BT N: $593
Pre-flop: Hero on CO with QT
Hero raises to S24, BTN calls S24, 4/ olds
Flop: (S57) Q+4 5~ (2 players)
Hero bets S48, BTN culls S48

Turn: (S l 53) Q+L+ 5~" (2 players)

Hero bets S 133, BTN ca lls S 133
River: (S4 l 9) Q+45~49 (2 players)
Hero?

- 63 -

Problem 11: S3/S6 6-M ax

SB: S839
BB: S200
UTG: S723
~1P : S477
Hero (CO) : S678
BTN : S593
Pre-flop: Hero on CO w ith QT
Hero ra ises w S24, BTN calls S24, 4/ olds
Flo p: (S57) Q~45+ (2 players)
Hero bets S48, BTN calls S48
Turn: (S l 53) Q~4 5+4 (2 players)
Hero bets S 133, BTN calls S 133
River: (S4 I 9) Q~45+49 (2 players)
Hero ?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Answer 11: Th is is a spot where players like to

bet-fold a Jot even though the y rarely get called by
worse hands. Even for the times they do get called
by hands such as 88-H, that's not a reason to bet.
88-JJ has a total of I 8 combinations. Since we
account for 88-JJ gett ing io the r iver, we should
account for 99 as well. KQ and Q.J w ill call our
river bets as well and that's a total of 16
combinations. Additionall y, there's 3 more
combinati ons o f99. This alone makes the river a
bad bet. \Ve haven't accounted for hands such as
Q9, 44, 55, and 45 .
Thus, the r iver is a clear c heck. The question is do
we check-call or check-fo ld? Conside ring that 88JJ w ill check behind and the tum pai rs the board,
there aren't a lot of hands we can beat. Thus, the
river is a check-fo ld, though it's tough to
recognize th is spoi without a deep analysis
because it is so easy to j ust bet-fold and move on .
lf we get call ed by KQ or QJ on the river, we j ust
move on w ithout putting much thought into it
because if s so standard.

Th is is a spot where people get in a lot o f troub le w ithout know ing they a re in a lot o f trouble.
The reason is it is so easy IC> automaticall y bet-fold here. \Vhat usuall y happens is the major ity
o f ihe time, you bet and get cal led by KQ, QJ, and QT and you move on w ithout not ici ng it.
\Vhen you go over your sessions, you will look ove r ihe big pots that you win or lose. Eve n if
you go over th is hand, you won't notice the mistake that you commiited.
Since we are on the river, there's no need for protection. Thus, the question is do we bet as a
bluff or for value. Obviously, we aren't bluffing in th is spot because no worse hand is going to
fo ld. \Vh icb means we are betting for value. But in order to bet for value, we need worse hands
10 call. \Vhai worse hands a re we expecting people to call w ith here?
lf we bet the river, our line for the whol e hand is bet-bet-bet, which represent tremendous
strength . Lt is too opt imist ic for Vi Ilain to put us on AK or A J and decide to bluff here. Thus,
when we bet the ri ver, V illain is go ing io fo ld hands that we beat. These hands are JJ-44 and
any random suited Qx that he may have.
Thus, on the r iver, ihe correct play is to check. The question now is check-ca ll or check-fold.

- 64 -

Since Villain almost never show up w ith air on the river, his bluffing rreguency is IC>w. The next
question is can he value-bet worse? The answer is no. Because what can he expects us to cal I
with? For these reasons, the river is a clear check-fold.
Alternative Line: Against players who flC>at a lot and like to take stab at pots, check-calling
tum is best.
Important '.'lote: The common li ne to extract the most value on th is type of situa tions is to bet
flop, bet turn, and check-fold r iver i'. we don't improve. Against c urious players who like to
make Hero calls, a river shove is fine because there are times they can call with worse. It's not
out of the ordi nary to see a cur ious player show up w ith TT and .JJ in th is spot.

- 65 -

Problem 12: S3/S6 6-Max

SB: S54 1
BB: S612
UTG: S320
Hero 0 1P) : S73 I
CO: 5533
BTN: 5400
Pre-flop: Hero on MP with Q+T+
I f old, Hero raises to S18, 3/olds, BB calls
5 12
Flop : (S39) 9~65 (2 players)
BB ~hecks, Hero ?

. 66.

Proble m 12: $3/ S6 6-Max

SB: S54 1
BB: $6 12
UT G: S320
Her o (l\olP) : S73 I
CO: S533
BT N : S400

Answer 12: Th is is a spot where some

players feel the need to bet. After all, that's
what they do w ith overpairs so they want to
balance the times they don't have an overpair.
There's noth ing wrong w ith letting ytlur
opponent knows that you don't have an
overpair on a flop that hit his pre-flop range.

P re-flop : Hero on iv1P w ith Q~T ~

I f old, Hero mises to S18, 3f olds, BB call s
Sl2

ln this spot, yo u should check back the flop a

lot. lf you do decide to bet, you should fire
the tum and river as well since his checkcall ing range on the flop and tum is go ing to
Flop: (S39) 9~6,..5+ (2 players)
be pairs plus gutshots. If you don't plan on
BB checks, Hero ?
fir ing mu lt iple barrels, espec iall y w ith a river
~---------------~ bet, you should check beh ind here. Bett ing
the flop and g iving up is burn ing money.
Va riatio n: lf the flop is 9~6"5~, our flop betting frequency increases dramat icall y. fn fact, you
should bet the flop every time. The reason you don't get check-raise very o ften. JV!ost
important ly, there are an extra I 0 spade c ards you can cont inue betting and try to fo ld out ha nds
such as 9T, 98, 88, and i7 that are check-calling the flop but usuall y fold to a tum bet. There are
also a lot of good turn cards for tlur hand. These cards are A, K, Q, .I, and T.

- 67 -

Problem 13: S31S6 6-Max

SB: S639
BB: S408
Hero (UTG) : S930
l'v!P : S248
00: S699

BTN : S722
Pre-flop: Hero is UTG w ith T~T ~
Hero raises to S24, 2folds , BTN re-raises to

S78, 2falds, Hero '?

- 68 -

Problem 13: S3/S6 6-Max

SB: S639
BB: S408
Hero (UT G): S930
MP: S248
CO: S699
BT~: S722
Pre-Oop: Hero is UTG with T~T~
Hero raises to S24, 2/ olds. BTN re-raises to
S78, 2 folds , Hero ?

Answer 13: You open at UTG with TT. A

solid regu lar re-raises you on the BTN. It
folds to you. Your action.
Un less Villain has been playing aggressi vely
or has a tendency to 3-bet your UTG open a
lot, you should fold in this spot. Although it
seems weak to fold here, against a player with
comparable or better ski IIs than you, it's
tough to play TT out ofp()sit ion profitab ly in
this s ituation.

lfhe is in aggressi ve mode, then 4-bening

'--- - - - -- - - - -- -- - - __J and getting it in is fine.
Importa nt .~ote: In these type ofspoL~. players should treat JJ and TT like 99.

- 69 -

Problem 14: S3 S6 6-Max

SB: S I75
BB: S32 I
UTG: S800
Hero (:\I P): 776
CO: S678
BTN: S344
Pre-flop: Hero on MP with A+J+
Hero n1is~s lo S1-1, BTN calls S24, 4/olds
Flop: (S57) 3+8 5 (2 players)
Hero checks , BTN checks

T urn: ($5713+85 2+ (2 players)

Hero bets S4 i , BTN ca ll s S47
River: (S 151) 3+85 2+9+ (2 players)
H~ro ~

- 70 -

P ro blem 14: S3/ S6 6-Max

S8: S l 75
88: 5321
UTG: S800
Hero (~'lP): $776
CO: S678
8T N : S344

Answer 14: You should usuall y check here.

There's no point in bett ing. No pair is going
io fold after the flop action. A lthough there's
a non-zero chance you were slowplaying 1he
Aop, they are go ing 10 put you on an unpai red
hand and call a r iver bet. \Vith pol odds and
your flop play, it's a right river call. Thus,
you shouldn't bet.

Pre-flop: Hero on l\1P w ith A~J~

Hero raises to S24, 8 TN calls S24, 4fold~

The question is now check-call or checkfold?

f lop: (S57) 3~8 5 (2 players)

Hero checks, B TN checks
Turn: (S57) 3~8 52~ (2 playersj
Hero bets S47, 8 TN calls S47
River : (S l 5 1) 3~852~9~ (2 players)
Hero ?

The answer is flip a coin but th is t ime, the

co in is heavier on the call ing s ide. If you
have a sirong hand, you would've bet the
river al ready. Addit ionall y, your opponent
will check back a lot o f his small pairs. The
turn put a flush draw out there. There are also
times V illain is check ing back some straight
draws suc h as 6 7 and 89.

Th is is also a type o f spot where he ;arel y value-bets th in as well. The majority o f the l ime, the
best hand you are going ttl show up with is ace-high and un likely ltl call his river bet. Thus, he's
going lo check beh ind w ith hands such as A2, 44, 66, a nd 56 a lot.
Alternative Line I: \Ve can check-call the tum and hope hands such as KQ and QJ take sta bs
at the pot and g ive up on the r iver. The reason is once we check-call the tum, our hand looks
like a small pair or a pair with a draw maj ority o f the time and it's un likely those hands are
check-fo lding to a river small card.
Alternative Line 2: Against opponents who rarel y call .li ght, we should bet the river after
bett ing ihe tum. \Ve can fold out hands such as 56, 66, 44, and AQ. Against ihe more curious
type who enjoy making Hero calls, we should check the river. The decision is descr ibed above.

- 71 -

P1oblem 15: S31S6 6- Max

SB: S648
BB: S l 49
UT G: S740
~IP :

S492

Hero (CO): S605

BTN : S582
Pre-llop: Hero on CO w ith 9~8~
t->fP raises ta S21, Hero calls S2 1, 4/ olds
Flop: (S48) Q 85 (2 players)

t-1P checks, Hero chec ks

Turn: ($48) Q 8 5K~ (2 players)
NIP bets $42, Hero calls S42
River: (Sl32) Q85 K~T (2 players)
MP checks, Hero ?

- 72 -

Prob lem 15: S31S6 6-Max

SB: S648
BB: S l 49
UTG: S740
~ I P: S492
He ro (CO): $605
BTN : S582
Pre-flop: Hero on CO with 9~8~
l\IP raises to $2 1. Ht!ro calls $2 1. 4/olds
F lop: (S48) Q 8 5 (2 players)
MP checks, Hern ch~cks
Turn: (S48) Q85K ~ ( 2 players)
~P bets S42 , Hero calls S-t~

Answer 15: You should tum your hand into a

bluff on the river. From your opponent 's
perspective, the T must be the worst card in
the deck for him since it completes almost all
the draws. Additiona lly. when Villain checks,
he is un likely to have a strong hand since you
w il I check beh ind on the river a good amount
w ith one-pair hands.
Importan t ~ote: An imponant note
regarding this situation is if every draw Ii lls
up on the river and it is check to you, you
shou ld tum the bottom of your range into
bluffs. In th is particu lar situation, any hand
worse than Kx should be bluffing this river.

River : (S l 32} Q8 5 K~T (2 players)

MP checks, Hero?

- 73

Problem 16: S3/S6 6-Max

SB: S573
BB: S627
UTG: S67 1
~LP:

S294
CO: S589
Hero (BT'i): S734
Pre-flop : Hero on BTN with A+T

UTG raises to S20, 2/olds, Hero re-raises to

567. 2fofds, UTG calls S47
Flop: (S 143) 7~89(2 players)
UT G checks, Hero '?

- 74 .

Answer 16: Th is another spot where you

shou ld check behind in a 3-bet pot.

Problem 16: S3/$6 6-!vfax

SB: $573
BB: $627
UTG: S67 1
MP: $294
CO: $589
Hero (BTN): $734
Pre-flop: Hero on BTN with A~ T +
UTG raises to $20, 2fiJ/ds, Heni re-raises
S67, 2/olds, UTG calls $47

Overpairs are going to check-shove a lot of

the time and you are going to play for
stacks with 32% equity. Of course,
considering that you get some fo ld equ ity
on the occasions that your opponent has
AK, AQ, and AJ, ifs not bad to bet here.
to

flop: ($ 143) 7~8~9(2 players)

UTG checks, Hero ?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

However, those high-cards hands are likely

to fo ld to a tum or river bet anyway. \Vhen
you check back the flop, you have a lot of
pairs in your range that aren't going to fold
to a turn bet so that discourages Villain
from bluffing on the tum, allowing you to
bet.

Another reason why we shou ld check beh ind is if Vil lain check-calls th is !lop, his range is
likely pairs with a straight draw or JT and those hands aren't likely to fo ld to a tum bet.
Lastl y, checkmg back protects your tlop check-back range since we checking back with hands
such as AK and AQ almost always . The stronger hands in your check-back range are 9T and
8T. Those hands aren't vu lnerable on a lot of tum cards and we can call a lot of tum bets. \Ve
wiII also check back QQ-AA some of the times, especiall y when stacks get deep. [ f stacks are
IOOBB, it's be.st to bet and get it in.
[fwe have hands such as TT and JJ, we should almost always bet the flop. The reason is there
are lots of hands such as 66, 9T, 8T, and AT that are check-raising th is flop. Against hands such
a~ QQ-AA, our equ ity is 32% so it's not too bad. But Villai n isn't going to have a lot ofQQ-AA
because he is more likely to 4-bet pre-flop than flatting, especiall y in situati ons where stacks get
pass the I 25BBs level.
Important Note: Pre-El op isn't standard and you should only re-raise 15-20% of the time in th is
spot. Of course, if you are playing an opponeni do doesn't pay much attent ion, it's fine to 3-bei
him as much as you want until he realizes someth ing is go ing on.
A more advance approach is to 3-bet Villain a lot but not to the point where he realizes what is
going on so he won't adj ust and you can continue abusi ng him. Th is is very difficult to balance
so if you find it tough, you can 3-bet him relentlessly until he fi ghts back.

- 75 -

Problem 17: $31$6 6-Max

SB: 5489
BB: 5607

UTG: S200
MP: $380
Hero (CO): S787
BTN: S250
Pre- llop: Hero on CO with A 5 or A K
2 folds, I lcro ra1s~s to $22, 2 folds, BB call s S 16
Flop: (S47) 8f-6 2~ (2 players)
BB checks, II ero does what for each hand?

- 76 -

Problem 17: S3/ S6 6-i\1ax

SB: S489
BB: $607
UT G : S200
M P: S380
Her o (CO): $787
BT N : S250
Pre-flop; Hero on CO w ith A 5 or A K
2/olds, Hero raises 10 S22, 2/olds, BB calls S l 6
f lop : (S4 7) 8~6 2~ (2 players)
BB c hecks, Hero does what [or each hand?

Answer 17: \Vith A5 , yo u shou ld be!

he re. If y ou get check-raised, you can fold
your harnd without much wo rry. Your ha nd
is di fficu lt to improve and rarely has
showdown va lue. Addition all y, the nop is
ve ry dry so it's di fficu lt for V ill a in to
c heck-raise with a h igh eno ugh frequency
to make our continuat ion bet a bad play.
Thus, betting is a lot belier tha n check ing.
'With A K , you shou ld ch eck back some
o f the t imes, espec ia ll y aga inst opponents
w ith a high c heck-ra ising frequency.

You hav e more outs to improve and have

show down va lue against AQ-AT . If your h and improves, you'll dominate hands such as KQ-KT
and AQ-AT and extract two streets of value. On the occasions that you don't imprnve, you'll see
oppo nents show ing dow n w ith AQ-AT sirnce those hands do :ha ve some showdown va lue.
You' ll also get catch some b luffa si nce a tum ace or k ing is the green light for p layers to bluff
The k ey idea here is to c heck w ith hands that have potential to make a reall y strong hand and
are likely to dom inate y our oppcments' made hands. H igh-card hands such as AK-AJ that miss
ilops: are good to check back some o f the ti me.
Alternative Line: \ Vith A"' K , it's more opponent speci fie. A gainst passive an d
straig ht forward players, check ing bac k A K is heller. The reason is the y are rarely w ith worse
and will give you free sh owdowns. Aga inst tricky aggressive p layers, you should bet the flop
with AK. One reason is they are capab le o-f check-calli ng the flop w iih worse aces s uch as AQ
and AJ. Addi tionall y, good aggressi ve p layers who can read h and well know majority o f your
range is ace-h igh and w ill g ive you a hard t ime by va lue-betti ng th in or firing turn and river as
b luffs.

- 77 -

P roblem 18: S3/S6 6-Max

SB: 5325
BB: $570
UTG: 5329
'.\ii P: 590
H ero (CO): Sl 022
BTN: 5780
Pre-flop: Hero on CO with 5~5
2/olds, Hero nllses to $24, 2/olds, BB
calls5 18
Flop: (S51) Q96~ (2 players)

BB checks, Hero ?

- 78 -

Answer 18: [n th is siiuation, yo u should almost

always bet to try taking down the pot.

Problem 18: S3/S6 6-M ax

SB: S325
BB: $570
UTG: S329
!v!P: S90
Hero (CO) : SI 022
BTN: S780

One might wonder why we are betting on th is

nop when no better hands w i II fold and no worse
hands w i II call. More or less, it is a protect ion
bet. \Ve fo ld out hands w ith decent equity such
a~ T8, AT, and sometimes KT and KJ. Betting
also makes the hand easier io play and more
importantly, it prevents us from getting bluffed
on the turn.

Pre-flop: Hero on CO with 5+5

2folds, Hero raises to S24, 2/olds, BB
call s S l 8

Check ing back also causes us to m istaken ly cal l

a tum bet because we will feel we under
represent our hand since our range consisted
mostly of ace-high once we check back th is flop.
However, camng a non-5 tum bet is nol pro fi tab le because we m ight be draw ing dead and if we
are ahead, we wouldn't know what to do against a river bet. Thus, it's best to j ust bet the flop
and try to end the hand.
Flop: (S5 1) Q 9 6+ (2 players)
BB checks, Hero ?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Of course, you don't want to always bett ing on ih is flop and might want to construci a check ing
back range. You should consider checlung back with hands such as Tr, 9x, and 56- basicall y
hands that can call a tum bet because opponents m ight be bett ing ihe tum w ith worse hands and
on the occasions you are beh ind, you'll have more than two outs to improve. To protect your
flop check range, consider check ing back w ith QX sometimes.
[fan opponent has a high check-raising frequency, you should consider check ing back hands
li ke 44 or 66 and trying to get to showdown .

- 79 -

Problem 19: S3/S6 6- Max

SB: S478
BB: S249
UT G: S663
MP: S508
He ro (CO): $620
BT N : $7 15
Pre-flop: Hero on CO with A~9~
2fo/ds, Hero raises to S 18, BTN call s S 18, 2

folds ,
Flop: (S45) K T 6 (2 players)
Hero bets S38, BTN ca lls $38
T urn : (S 121) K~T6~ 71!! (2 players)
Hero bets SI 14, CO cal ls SI 14
River: (S349) K~T6~ 7'1!A+ (2 players)
Hero?

- 80 -

Answer l9 : Betting is worse than checki11g in

th is sp ot. It is rare for a better hand to call you
since Q J got there and you might have AK and
AT.

Proble m 19: S3/S6 6-1'1ax

SB: S478
BB: S249

UTG: S663
M P: S508
Hero (C O) : S620
BT N : S7 15
P re-flop : Hero on CO with A+9+
2falds, Hero raises to S l 8, BTN calls $18, 2

folds,
Flop : (S45) K+T 6+ (2 p layers)
Hero bets S38, BTN call s S38
Turn : (S I 21) K+T +6+ 7+ (2 p layers)
Hero bets S I 14, CO call s S I 14
R iver: (S349) K+T +6+ 7+ A (2 p layers}
Hero ?

Villain's range is like KX or worse. It's hard to

imagi ne him not raising two pairs or belier by
the tum. Thus, on the r iver, he's go ing to have
a lot of KX and pair p lus s traight draws.
A pair p lus straight draw isn't going to call a
r iver bet since you have AX a good amount of
the time. KX w ill fo ld a good amount o f tim es
as well. Besides you having a missed fl ush
draw, Villain isn't go ing to beat you very
o ften. Considering that the board h its your
pre-nop range and you have shown a lot of
strength, he's going to fo ld a lot of worse
hands than AX .

The r iver is probab ly a check- fo ld more often

' - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - ' than a check-call. The reasons are Q J got
ihere. KX isn't going to tum his hand into b luffs. V illa in doesn't have thai many n ush draws in
h is range since you have the nut flush draw. lf he has a hand s uch as J+T+ or .J+Q+, he's likely
ra ising the flop.
There's also a good chance that you ha ve a pair of aces and he's noi going to rry to m ove you off
top pair on such a draw-heavy board. I fhe bets the river, it's to get yo u to fold ihe same draw
thai he has. But since there's a Jot of m iddle cards on board, he's often going to have a pa ir to go
with h is draw. Stl if he puts you on a draw, he's go ing to c heck back the river a lot.
Alternative Line: Against opponents who have a h is wry of making Hero call s, you shou ld
va lue-bet w ith A+9+ on the river. KT and better hands are raising the nop or the ium .. Q J w ill
have a hard bme call ing the tum bet s ince it's a two-tone flop and our bet is b ig. V il lain can
have Q+J+ but that is on ly one combinat ion in h is range and he would p lay ii fast on the nop
almost a lways . Thus, on the river, majority o f our opponent's range is KQ, KJ, K9s, K8s, Q T,
IT, and T9. Against a range where we are ahead so o ften, bett ing is best. Of course, against
some opponents, the river is check-fo ld.
Variation : ff the board is rainbow, river is c lear check-fo ld because Villa in is more likely 10
slowp lay w ith KT and better hands. There's a chance he has 89 and AT as well .

- 81 -

Problem 20: S3/S6 6-Max

SB: S7 17
BB: S20 1
UT G: S634
MP: S789
CO: $ 1508
Hero (BTN): $739
Pre-f'lop: Hero on BTN w ith AQ~
2/olds, CO raises to S l2, Hero re-raises to S30, 2
f olds, CO calls S18
flop: (S69) .1 8 7 (2 players)
CO checks, Hero bets S43, CO calls S43

Turn: (S 155) JY8+7K~ (2 players)

CO checks, Hero ?

- 82 -

Answer 20: Th is is a good spot to overbet

on the tum a nd fo llow through on the river.

Proble m 20: S3/ S6 6-Max

SB: S7 17
BB: S20 1
UT G : S634
M P: S789

Once V ill ain calls our sma ll re-raise, he is

going to have QJ, JT, 89, 99, TT, KJ, and
AJ almost always .

CO: $ 1508
He ro (BT N): $739
Pre-flop: Hero on BTN with A Q~
2/olds, CO raises to S t 2, Hero re-raises to $30, 2
f olds, CO call s S 18

f lop: (S69) J 8 7 (2 players)

CO checks, Hero bets 543, CO calls $43
Turn: (S l 55) J8 7K~ (2 players)
CO checks, Hero?

. __ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ____J

On such a drawy flop, if V illain has A.I+,

he would've check-raised to either end the
hand or charge a lot for a draw. Once
V illain check-calls the flop, his range has a
lot o f flush draws, JT, TT, 99, and 89.
Basicall y hands that look good to checkcall but not strong enough to check-raise.
The turn improves your pre-flop range. By
over betting the tum, we represent all sets,
9T, AK, KJ, and AA. It's common to
overbet w ith QQ on the tum as well. If
Vii lain calls, w ith QQ you get to check
behind on the r iver for a free showdown.

If Villai n ends up check-calling the tum, yo u shou ld always follow through on the river by
shoving. It is such a drawy board that if he has a strong made hand, he would've check-raised
all-in . By check-calling, his range is mostly pairs with draws. !fa draw hits on the river, we
won't know if it hits Villain's draw but we should shove anyway since he m ight have a different
draw.

- 83 -

Pr oblem 21: $3 $6 6-Max

SB: SI023
BB: 889
Hero (UTG): 840
MP: $476
CO: $92 1
BTN: S827
Pre-flop: Hero on UTG with A~K
Hero r.iis~s to S1.l, 3 folds, SB calls $2 1, BB
calls SIS
Flo p: (S72) 9~9 K+ (3 players)
H~ro bets SS.l, I/old, BB check-ra ises to

Sl55, lleroca lls SIOI

T ur n: (S382) 9+9 K+3 (2 players)
BB bets S272, llcro ca lls S272
Rl\'er : (S926} 9~9 K+37~ (2 players}
BB bets al I-in for $492, Hern?

- 84 -

Problem 21: S3/ S6 6-lvlax

SB: St023
BB: $889
Hero (UT G) : $840
M P: S476
CO: S92 1
BT N : S827

Pre-flop: Hero on UTG w ith A~ K

Hero raises to S24, 3.folds, SB calls S2 1, BB
calls S l 8
Flop: (S72) 9~9 K+ (3 players)
Hero bets 554, I/old, BB check-raises to
S l 55, Hero call> SIOl

Answer 21: Your opponent is representing tr ip

nines or better once he check-raises. To fi gure
out what his check-raising range is, check to
see i f his line is congruent with his pre-flop
range. Since he defends from the SB, it is .
Now, what is your range? Your flop range for
bett ing is likely air, TJ, JQ, 9x, Kx, and AA.
You might end up calling w ith all these hands
except for ai r if you don't believe him.
3-betting the flop w ith air or low equity hands
such as TJ or JQ is fine since you 3-bet w ith
9X some o f the t imes as well.
In the hand, you decide to call the flop and call
the tum . On the r iver, V illain shoves .

T urn : (S382) 9~9 K+ 3 (2 players)

BB bets S272, Hero calls S272

T o analyze your river decision, you should

check whether you are at the bonom, midd le,
or top o f your range. At fi rst g lance, it looks
River: (S926) 9~9 K+3 7~ (2 players)
li ke you are at the lop o f your range beca use
BB bets a ll-in for S492, Hero'?
you have top pair, top kicker. However, atter
' - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - ' the llop and tum act ion, your hand is ac tuall y
the bottom o f your range because it's difficult for you to get to the river worse than A~ K . You
can easil y have 99, 9X, K9, and KK. Additionall y, it's also a spot where Villain is un likely to
bluff you since you almost never have air or a draw in your range and your range is very strong
after calling the flop check-raise and the tum bet.
But he takes the check-raise--bet-bet line anyway. And since you are at the bottom of your
range, barring a ny specific reads where he's a moron or a hyper-aggressi ve player, you shou ld
fo ld.
Alternaiive Line: \ Vithout a read that your opponent doesn't triple-barrel bluffs on th is board,
fo ldi ng the tum is fi ne.
Important ~oie; In certain spots, it's OK to play exploitable unti l you not ice your opponent is
beginn ing to exp klil you. On th is hand, although folding AK on the turn seems exploitabl e
because i ~s near the top of your flop ca lli ng range. Additionall y, we have few 9x in our range
versus the combinat ions o f AK, KQ, KJ, and AA tha t we are belling on th is flop. However,
because players rarely bluff and exploit th is spot, it's OK to fo ld AK since you un likely being
exp lo ited.

- 85 -

Th is examp le i ll ustrate an important concept regardi ng balance. It's OK ttl be completely

unbalanced in some spots where your opponent's range is so unbalanced and is heavil y
weighted toward the nuts.

- 86 -

Problem 22: S3/S6 6-Max

SB: S520
BB: S364
UTG: S700
MP: S856
Hero (CO): $728
BTN : S644
Pre-flop: Hero on CO with K~8~
2 f olds, Hero raises to S 18, I f old, SB calls S 15,
I f old
Flop: (S42) 7~8~T (2 players)
BB checks, ~ ero ?

- 87 -

Answer 22: A lthough you have m iddle pair

with a good kicker, you shou Id check back
here on th is flop majority o f the ti me.

P roblem 22: S3/S6 6-Max

SB: $520
BB: S364

UTG: S700
lv!P: S856
He ro (CO): $728
BTN: S644
Pre-flop: Hero on CO w ith K~8~
2folds, Hero raises to S 18, I f old, SB calls S 15,

I/old
Flop: (S42) 7~8~T (2 players)
BB checks, Hero ?

If Villain has a small pocket pair or a hand

li ke 67, he'll be happy to go to showdown
since you likely have ace-high or smal I
pocket pairs. If he has a medium pair, it is
likely that he has a pair with straight draws
to go with it and won't be fo lding the flop
nor the tum. Additionall y, having a king
helps you a little bit in case he has hands
such as KQ and KJ. You'll also have more
outs against AT and .I.I.

For these reasons, it's a spot where you

should check back the maj ority, if not all
the time, and try to get to showdown

~----------------~ cheap l y.

If you check back and there's a tum bet, you should fo ld on non-spades turn 6, 9, and J. You can
call everyth ing else and the river de~is1on 1s based on your oppcmenf s tendencies.
Board Te.xt ure :-.lote: If you don't have a backdoor flush draw, you shou ld consider bet- fo lding
the flop. The reason is you have less turns where you can continue the hand with.

- 88 -

Pr oblem 23: $3/ S6 6-Max

SB: S336
BB: S646
UT G : 5849
Hero (!VIP) : $629
CO: S803

BTN: S416
Pre-flop: Hero on. !vlP with KQ~
UTG raises to S2 l , Hero ?

- 89 -

Answer 23: Some players call here, some

players fo Id here, and some p Iayers reraise here. All three decisions seem close.
Against a loose player, it's a call or re-raise
since Villain is go ing to have a lot ofKX
and QX in his range that we beat. He also
may have other connectors such as T Jo or
T9s.

Problem 23: S3/S6 6-Max

SB: S336
BB: S646
UT G : S849

Hero (NIP) : S629

CO: S803
BT N: S4 16
Pre-flop: Hero on !v!P with K.,Q4
UTG raises ttl S21, Hero?

The interesting part is what do we do

against a solid aggressive player whose
~----------------~ overall stats are 22/1 7 and opens about
14% UTG. Although KQo is a good hand, against that range, calling is not profitab le. Now, we
are left with folding or re-raise. Against a reall y good opponent, fo lding is fine. Against the
maj ority of regu lars, a re-raise is profitable.
Th is situation is a little awkward because we have a good hand. But when we re-raise, we are
often turn ing our hand into a bluff because it's rare for Villai n to call our rai se with a worse
hand. However, due to card removals, KQo takes a lot hands such as AK, AQ, KK, and QQ out
of his 4-betting range, so 3-bei! ing in th is spot is profitab le. For the same reason, KQo is a good
hand to 5-bet all-i n against an opponent who 4-bets light.
\Vithout us holding KQo, Villai n has 18 combinations of AA-QQ and 32 combinations of AK
and AQ. lfwe hold KQo, Villain only has 6 combinations of AA, 3 comb inations ofKK, 3
combinations ofQQ, 12 combinations of AK, and 12 comb inations of AQ. The total is 36
combinations. That's 28% less hands that he can 4-bet or call our all-in with .
Alternative Line: I f the UTG player is a loose aggressi ve player and the players behind ytlu
like to squeeze, it's a great spot to tlat hands such as AA, KK, AK, and QQ and hope that you
get squeezed. On the same note, you should high ly consider turn ing marginal hands such as KQ
and ATo into bluffs in this spot. \Vith card removals, you'll often take down ihe poi pre-flop.
Additionall y, you can get hands such as AQ and TT to fo ld because your line is congruent to
KK + and AK. Of course, don'i overdo th is play. Once you get caught, stop doing th is play for a
while because you will get ca lled by marginal holdings. The reason is it's a type of spot that
opponents remember reall y well if you get to showdown with a marginal hand, especiall y if you
give them a bad beat.
Important .\'ote: \Vhen calling a UTG raise from MP, you should consider the opponents
behind you and whether they are aggressive and squeeze happy. \Vhat may be a marginal call
versus a UTG raise can easily turn inlCl a huge -EV situation. The only game conditions where
you shou ld consider calling a raise in this spot is ifthe UTG player is loose and aggressive and

- 90 -

the opponents beh ind you rarel y 3-bet.

lmportant Note 2: If you feel your opponents are playing t ight against your 3-beis, you should
consider calling their pre-flop UTG raises w ith your premium holdings. For example, a so lid
regu lar opens UTG and you are on the BTN w ith AK, you should consider flailing if you feel
he's going to fold 88-TT, AJ or worse aces, sometimes AQ. You want to keep your opponent
and thei r dominated hands in the pol. O f course, if your opponent isn't folding much, then i ~s an
easy 3-bet pre- fl op.
Extra Question: \Vhat hands would you rather flat w ith pre-flop: AA or KK?
Ext ra Answer: At first glance, you would rather flat w ith AA because ytlu always have the
highest pair and can get value out of a lot of hands post-flop. \Vith KK, it's tough to play when
the flop is ace-high. However, equ ity-wise, it's belier to flat more often with KK and al most
always re-raise AA pre-flop. The reason is w ith AA, you w ill cooler peop le a lot more. Since
majority of solid players only stack off with QQ+/A K pre-flop, you want to get in as much
money as possible w ith A.A since you have a great equity advantage - 84% to be exact. KK
only has 57% equity against ihe same range. Th is is a huge difference and it would be
disastrous if we slowplay w ith AA and fail to get it in pre-flop when our opponent has one of
the premium hands that he w ill stack off pre-flop w ith.

- 91 -

Problem 24: S3/S6 6-Max

SB: 5500
BB: $907

UTG: S677
Hero ("IP) : S J044
CO: S651

BTN: S633
Pre-flop: Hero on MP with T 9
I/olds, Hero rn1ses to s.8, 3/olds, BB calls Sl2
Flop: (S39) ~ 5 3 (2 players)
UTG checks, Hero bets S34, UTG calls S34

Turn: (S I07) KY5+3+8+ (2 players)

UTG checks, Hero bets S97, UTG calIs S97
River: (S30 1) K5+3+8+2~ (2 players)
UTG checks, Hero bets S244, UTG check-raises
all-in ... S5 14 to call, Hero?

. 92.

A nswer 24: The river is a tough s pot.

P roble m 24: S3/ S6 6-Max

SB: S500
BB: $907
llT Ci : '$6 77
Hero (!VI P) : $ 1044
CO: S65 1
BT N : S633

V illain rare ly, if ever, check-raises the river

for va lue w ith worse hands. The ke y
question 1s how o tten is he b lutling when
tak ing th is Iine?

Pre.- flop : Hero on lV! P w ith T .. 9..

I f olds, Hero raises to S 18, 3 f olds, BB call s SI 2
flop : (S39) KY5 .. 3 .. (2 p laye rs)
UTG checks, Hero bets S34, UTG ca lls S34
T urn : (SI07) KY5.. 3 ..8 .. (2 p layers)
UT G checks, Hero bets S9i, UTG ca lls S97
River: (S301) KY~3 ..8 .. 2~ (2 p layers)
UTG checks, Hero bets S:?:44, UTG check-raises
a II- in . .. S5 I 4 to ca ll , Hero ?

H is range a fter the flop and the tum act ion

is sets, n ushes, and pair p Ius fl ush draws.
Sets are un likely to check-raise the river
because it's rare for beiter hands to fo ld a nd
worse ha nds to cal I.
Better hands in h is range are Q..1.., K.. Q..,
K.. J.., A..s... A.. 4... A.. 3 .., and A.. 2...
A.. K.. likely 3-bei pre- flop so we w ill
discount that ha nd from h is range.

Pair p lus flus h draws hands in h is range are

K.. Qo and A.. Ko . If V il lain is exot ic, ifs
poss ib le he has A.. Qo and A.. Jo. However,
~----------------~ that is a li tt le too optimisti c.
Comb ination-wise, there are seven higher n ushes that beat us and seven comb inations o f K.. Qo
and A.. Ko that we beat. However, consider ing K.. Qo and A.. Ko have a pair o f k ings, V ilJ a in
wi ll ca ll some o f times. Add it iona ll y, V illain has to be reall y good to check-raise th is river with
a h igher spade as a b luff. So we fo ld.
Im portant Note: Th is is a s pot where fo ld ing seems e xp loitab le because you're folding a very
strong hand. If your opponent has the A.., he cou ld easil y exp loit you. However, oppone nts
don't exp loit th is spot that often so it's OK to be fo ld. O f course, that is until you not ice your
opponent is beginn ing to put press ure on you in this spot. That's when you need to call w ith the
top o f range.
Just remember not to m ind lessly c li ck the call button because you are at the top o f your range.
You are on ly app ly ing such a concept if you are p lay in g against an opponent who read hands
well and you feel he is exp lo iti ng you in s pots where your range is well. It's a d isaster to app ly
th is concept versus a n it who a lways ha ve the nuts.

- 93 -

Problem 25: S3 S6 6-~lax

SB: S-100
BB: S410
UTG: St 796
Her o p tP): S873
CO: S544
BTN: $245

Pre-nop: !-lero on MP with 8+ 7+

UTG raises to S18, Hero re-raises to S-18, 4
folds, UTG calIs S30
Flo p: (SI 05) T 9+5 (2 players)
UTG checks, 11ero checks
Turn: (SIDS) T9+5+9+ (2 players)

UTG checks, Ilero checks

River: (S 105) T 9+ 5 9 3 (2 players)

UTG checks, Hero '?

- 94 -

Answer 25: \\' hen overbe tting, your range is

polarized the majority of the t ime to a ir or the
nuts. Considering that V ill ain checks three
times, it's difficu lt for h im to show up w ith a
hand better than Tx. Villain will have some
random small pairs some percentage of the time
but will fo Id more o ft en than not. A Iso, sinee
th is is a 3-bet pot and stacks a ren't that deep, it's
difficu lt for Villain m have small pairs anyway.
He's going to have a lot of ace-h igh and kingh igh hands that w i II have a tough t ime ca lling
the river bet.

Proble m 25: $3/ S6 6-!vlax

SB: S400
BB: S4 10
UTG : $ 1796
Hero (i\'I P) : $873
CO: S544
BTN : S245
Pre-flop: Hero on MP w ith 8~ 7~
UTG raises to S 18, Hero re-rais es u S48, 4
f olds, UTG calls S30
Flop: (S I 05) T.,9~5 (2 p layers)
UTG checks, Hero checks

Thus, th is is a great sp ot to overbe t the river,

especiall y a fter the backdoor n ush draw h ii.

Turn: (S 105) T.,9~5+9+ (2 p layers)

UTG checks, Hero checks
River: (S I 05) T.,9~5+9+ 3+ (2 p layers)
UTG checks, H enl ?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

One wou ld reason that we represent ing a reall y

narrow val ue range, basicall y nushes, so it's a
bad bei. \Vh ile th is is true, a lot of regulars at
small- and m id-stakes are incapab le o f doing
anyth ing about it. They j ust pu ll their hair and
fo ld.

Alternative Lille: On the tum, our opponent's range is re lat ively weak. It is a lso a tum where
we rarely get chec k-raise. \Vith these two factors, we are probab ly better off bett ing the tum a nd
continue applying pressure on good rivers. Tak ing th is line w idens our value range on the r iver.
Good r ivers are A, K, Q, J, T , and dia monds. And of course, a six.

- 95 -

Problem 26: S31S6 6-Max

SB: $443
BB: $279
Her o (UT G): $ 102-1

MP: $458
CO: 5562
BT~ : S800
Pre-llop: Hero on UTG with A+Q+
Hero raises to S18, 2folds, BTN re-raise to 566,
2folds, Hero ca ll s $48
Flo p: ($ 141) 2+5+ J+ (2 players)

Hero checks, BB bets SI 02, Heru '?

- 96 -

Answer 26: Th is situaiion occurs

frequently, especiall y when yo u play
against decent regulars on the button. Preflop is a call the major ity of the time,

Problem 26: S3/S6 6-Max

SB : S443
BB: S279
Hero (U T G ): SJ 024
i\ lP : S458
CO: S562
BTN : $800

u11 l e~s V fllai1J is a (:t ay filayer \vl1L1

IJas

been 3-bett ing you a Jot.

P re-flop : Hero on UTG w ith A~Q~

Hero raises to S 18, 2/olds, BTN re-raise to S66,
2/ olds, Hero calls S48

One advice is don't be afraid to call preflop and play post-n a p poker. A ..Q~ is
a head o f his re-rais ing range. Of course, the
question is how do you play post-flop if
you don't hit an ace or a queen?

flo p: (S J 4 1}2+5+J~ (2 players)

Hero checks, BB beis S l 02, Hero 1

The answer is you should check-cal l on

mosi nops and check-fo ld on drawy fl ops
~-----------------~ such as 6 7 8+ or 8~J+7 .
Jn the example, you should c heck-cal l on that flop as well. There are a few reasons for th is . You
are ahead some o f the time. V ill ain is going to continuation bet a Jot on th is flop, and give up a
Jot o f the time once you call the flop bet because your range is fairly strong. The weakest made
hand you have is 99 in this spot.
Basicall y, in th is type o f scenar io, here's what usuaU y happens. A fl op comes X XX and V illain
will continuation bet and he w ill shut down a fterward. Vill ain's sirategy is a good one because
most sma ll- and mid-stakes players -:heck-fo ld post-Aop if they miss or check-raise if they have
a hand like QQ, AJ-KJ.
After the fl op call, the tum usuall y goes check-check.
On the river, it's a game o f chicken and whoever bets usually w ins. You should bluff the r iver if
you don't improve. [ f the river is a queen, you should bet for value. If the river is an Ace, you
should check-call a Jot more than betti ng oui. The reason is Vill ain w ill bet ai that card a lot o f
the t ime, both for value a nd as a blu'.f, since it is such a great card to bei in a 3-bei pot.
By playing w ith AQ in th is manner and not 4-betti ng, you avoid getti ng stacked by AK preflop. Post-flop, you can fold out AK and AQ . Of course, his re-raising range is much w ider than
ihat and some o f the 6 me when you bet the rive r, you actuall y have the best hand. However, it's
much better tel bet the r iver in case he has a small pair that won't call a river bet but beats acehigh at showdown.
It will be scary at fi rst when you first play AQ in th is manner post-fltlp . But with some success,

- 97 -

you' ll feel confident in your play and decision-making abili ty. Start incorporat ing th is type of
play against weak regu lars fi rst. The better and more aggressive regu lars will put you more
pressure on you and you w iJJ get discouraged about playing post-nop. As you improve playing
in th is particular spot, you can start '.l atting with more hands against better regulars.
Don't be afniid to play pms against them. Remember, the better regu lars in your games are only
sli ghtly better than you. They are not that much belier. Or e lse they would be playing at higher
stakes already.
Alternative Line I: Check-fold nop. Jn fact, you should usuall y take th is line ifytmr opponent
is aggressi ve and doesn't play predictably in 3-bet pots.
Alternative Line 2: If V illain is sc r~w ing around, we can 4-bet and fold. Players don't 5-bet
bluff often in th is spot because you are at UTG and your range is very strong once you 4-bet.

- 98 -

Proble m 2?: S3/ S6 6-!v!ax

SB: S634

BB: S20 1
UT G : S687
~IP : S745
CO: S694
Hero (BT N) : S642
Pre-flop: Herci on BTN with Q~Q
UTG raises to S18, lv!P calls S18, I fold, Hero
re-raises to ~72, 3j olds, MP re-raises to 5164,
Hero ?

- 99 -

An s\\ er 27: You should fold here.

P roblem 27: S31S6 6- ~1ax

SB: $634
BB: $201
UTG: $687

Against a range of AA, KK, and AK. you

have 40%. Considering that th is type of play
is more l>llen aces and kings than AK, a fo ld
is belier.

MP: $745
CO : S694
Hero (BTN) : S642
Preflop: Hero on BTN with Q+Q
UTG raises to S18, ~1P calls $18, I fold, Hero
re-raises to $72, 3/olds, ~pre-raises to SJ64,
Hero?

Of course, in the heat of the moment, it's

difficult to fold but after careful
consideration, you will see it's a trivial fold.
Here is some simple math on why we should
folding. The total pot is S l31 I if we gel it in.
Since we have 40% eq uiiy, we w ill w in
S524.4 lm average. Th is is bad because we
are risk ing S570 10 win S524.4. Add itionall y,
when a so lid regu lar does something weird
pre- Oop, he's more likely 10 have AA than

'--~~~~~~~~~~~~~__J AK.

- I 00 -

Problem 28: S31S6 6-Max

SB: S472
BB: S744
Hero (UTG): S928
MP: S622
CO: S804
RTN :

$7.~'l

Pre-flop: Hero on UTG with A.,A~

Hero raises to 524, 2/olds, BTN ca:Js S24, 2
folds
Flop: (S57) 9., 7 7~ (2 players)
Hero bets 545, BTN raises io S 138, Hero calls
$93
Turn: (S333) 9., 7 + 7~3., (2 players)
Hero checks, BTN bets S 195, Hero calls S 195
River: ($723)

97 7~3Q~

(2 ploycrs)

Hero checks, BTN beis all -i n, Hero ?

- 101 -

Problem 28 : S3/S6 6-Max

SB: S472
BB: S744
Bero (UTG): S928
~MP: $622
CO: S804

BTN: S739
Pre-flop: Hero on UTG w ith A"A~
Hero raises to S24, 2/olds, BTN calls S24, 2

f olds
flop: (SS7) 9" 7 7"1- (2 p layers)
Hero bets S45, BTN raises to S 138, Hero calls
S93
T urn : (S333) 9" 7+7"1-3" (2 p layers)
Hero checks, BTN bets S195, Hero ca lls S195
River: ($723) 9"7 7"1-3Q~ (2 p layers)
Herr>r.her.k<, RTN heis ~ II -i n, Herr' ?

Answer 28: Th is spot is tougher than ii

looks. The decision a fter the flop raise
depends heavily on who the opponem is.
Against some, a lthough fo lding here is
exp loitab le and seems extremely weak, it is
probab ly the correct p lay since you are
drawing to two outs. Against others, yo u
a re never fo lding. The main reason is you
a re at the top of your range.
If you p lay a tight solid style, you rarely
ha ve a 7 in your hand, un less it is 78 . You
can have 99 and 77 but that's a total of 4
Ctlmb inat ions. lf he ha ppens to have T9 and
decide to tum it into a b l u ft~ you have fewer
fu ll house combinat ions in your range.
Thus, AA is the top of your range in this
spot. Against anyone you consider good
a nd aggress ive, you can't fold.
The ques tion is how do yo u p lay the tum?

Small- and m id-stakes p layers li ke to

check-shove the tum in th is spot but that is non-optimal. All better hands are calli ng and you
prevent your opponents from b lu ffing the river. \Vhat you shou ld do is check-ca ll the tum and
check-call the ri ver. A river ace or king w il l on ly increase h is b luffing frequency. Additionally,
tak ing th is line with AA. (or KK/QQ) a lso protects your check-calling range on a paired board.
Of course, if your opponent is a n it and rare Iy, if ever, gets out of Ii ne, then you shou Id fo Id to
the r iver bet. Although you a re fold ing the top of your range al the river, he likely has trip 7s or
better.
lmporiant Note: If you are p lay ing against a V illain who you know are capab le o f making
huge b lu ff;; and can value-bet thin, you shou ld call the r iver. The reason is there are a ton of
stra ight draws such as 56, 8T, and JT that V illain can raise the flop w ith . Additionall y, if he
somehow get to the river w ith KQ, he can value-bet that hand in case you have hands such as
TT and JJ .
Agai nst n its who don't p lay KK or .f J th is way, it's a river fold. They j ust don't pu ll tha t trigger
at the end .

- 102 -

Problem 29: S3' S6 6-:vlax

SB: S572
Hero (BB): 864
UTG: S-139
MP: S628
CO: S306
BT:'<: 5778
Pre- nop: Hero on BB with XX
3 folds , BT!\ raises to $24, I fold Hero calls S 18
Flop: ($51) Q 8+3 (2 players)
Hero checks, BTN ra ises ltl S47, Hero ca lls S4i
T urn: (S145) Q+8+ 33 (2 players)

Hero checks, BTN bets S 132, Hero calls $132

Rive r: (S409) Q+8+33 5 (2 players)
H~ro ~ h..:cks, BTN overbets S575 alI-in, Hero?

- 103 -

A nswer 29: \ Vha1 is the best hand that you

w ill call in th is spot w ith?

Problem 29: S3/ S6 6-/\1ax

SB: S572
Hero (BB): $864
UT G : S439
M P: S628
CO: S306
BT~ : $778
P re-flop : Hero on BB w ith XX
3 f olds, BTN raises to S24, I f old Hero calls S 18
Flop: (S5 1) Q~8~3 (2 players)
Hero checks, BTN raises to S47, Hero calls S4i
T urn : (S l 45) Q~8~3 3 (2 players)
Hero checks, BTN bets S 132, Hero call s S 132
River: (S409) Q~8~3+35 (2 players)
Hero chec ks, BTN overbets S57 5 all-in, Hero ?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Befure you th ink o f his range, th ink o f the

best hands !hat you can show up w ith in
th is spot. Your nmge can consists o fAQ,
KQ, QJs, QTs, A3s, 33, and 88 by the
river. Against a solid player, how
comfortable a re you calling a river overbet
shove with anyth ing but A3, 33, and 88?
And you have 2 comb inat ions of A3s, I
comb inat ion o f 33, a nd 3 comb inat ions o f
88. That's only 6 comb inations that you
can comfortab ly call a river shove w ith.
Assuming you are defending with only
I 0% o f hands from the SB, you are folding
over 90% o f hands from the SB posit ion
against the bet-bet-bet line on th is board.
The most important question is do you fo ld
or call'!

Against 98% o f opponents, you che: k- fo ld the river. They don't bluff a 101 here and no one in
his r ight mind is going to try 10 bluff you o ff a hand such as AQ and KQ even though those
hands are only bluff-catchers in this spot. Against the few great players, you close your eyes
and tl ip a coin. Most of the time, l expect you to lose. But in order 10 prevent yourself from
being exp lo ited in future ha nds, you have to call some o f the times.You can't fo ld all the t ime
or else V ill ain w ill take all your money w ithout you know ing.

Of course, if you p Iay lower than 5-1ON L, al most none o f th is is going on and some pet1p le j us1
have the nuts when they take the bet-bet-bet li ne on this board.
Then why am I showing you this example? Because that's the assignment for the next exercise.
Exe.rcise 4: Come up w ith your own boards ttl 3-barrel when yo u raise late position and one o f
the blinds defends. The key is 10 come up w ith boar ds where your opponent cannot have many
strong combinat ions and/or boards where your opponent w ill call the tlop and tum bet w ith
their marginal ho ldi ngs but will fo ld to a river shove.
Hint: think o f what hands he's cal ling w ith against your pre-ilop open. To help you get started, a

- I 04 -

flop such as J~ T 7 is a good fl op 10 bet flop, bet turn, and shove r iver.

- I 05 -

Hand 30 : S3/S6 6-l\1ax

SB: S887
Hero (BB): $724
UT G: S69 1
MP: S906

CO: S595
BTN : S603

Pre-nop: Hero on BB w ith 5 4

2/olds, CO raises to S 18, 2/olds, Hero calls
Sl2

Flop: (S39) A~J3~ (2 players)

Hero checks, UT G checks

Turn: (S39) A~J3~ 7~ (2 players)

Hero?

- I 06 -

Answer 30: This is a good spot to overbet the

turn .

Ha nd 30: S3/S6 6-i\1ax

SB: 5887
Her o (BB) : S724
UT G : S69 1
M P: 5906

After Vi llain checks beh ind, ih e majority o f the

time, he' ll have AX. He can show up w iih KK44 and JX as well. He' ll rare ly :have air because
it's a great nop to cont inuat ion bet.

CO: S595
BTN: 5603

Because h is range is rare ly strong after ihe flop

check, we sh ou ld put a lot o f pressure on his
range by overbetting the tum. V illain wi ll call
ihe tum bei a good amount o f the time because
he felt he un der-represented his hand. But since
we know h is range is weak, we shou ld follow
through on the r iver as we)I.

Pre-flop: Hero on BB w ith 5Y4Y

2/ olds, CO raises to S 18, 2/olds , Hero calls
S l2
f lo p : (S39) A~J3+ (2 p layers)
Hew checks, UT G checks
T urn : (S39) A~J3+7+ (2 p layers)
Hero ?

. __ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __ J

If you don't p lan on firing the river, you should

check- fold the tum instead. Fir ing ihe tum and
check-folding ihe r iver is burning money since
Villain will call your ium bet a good amount o f
the time.

- I 07 -

Problem 31: S3/S6 6-Max

SB: S6 19
BB: S42 1
UTG: S1023
MP: S762
Hero (CO): S600
BTN: Sl22 1
Pre-flop: Hero on CO with 7 5
2folds, Hero raises to S18, 2folds, BB calls S 12
Flop: (S39) T+8 4+ (2 players)
BB checks, Hero checks

Turn: (S39) To!;8Y4<!;3Y (2 players)

BB checks, Hero bets $44, BB calls S44
River: (S l 27) To!;8Y4<!;3 3+(2 players)
BB checks, Hero ?

- I 08 -

Answer 31 : Although a river pair is usuall y

a bad card Hl bet, on such a drawy board,
when Vil lain doesn't bet on the tum or on
the river, he is un likely lo have a made
hand. Thus, the river is a bet because
Villain is going to fold a lot of ace-high or
king-high hands that beat us.

Problem 31: S3/S6 6-M ax

SB: S6 19

BB: S42 1
UTG: S l 023
MP: S762
Hero (CO) : $600
BTN: S l 22 1
Pre-flop: Hero on CO w ith 7 5
2/olds, Hero raises to S 18, 2/olds, BB calls S 12
f lop: (S39) T~84~ (2 players)
BB checks, Hero checks

It's also a spot where we get more credi t

than ace-high because we would've bet
high cards in ear lier streets if we wanted to
bluff at the pot.
The flop check back is good to do once in a
wh il e. You can hit a six for the nuts and
can continue on a turn heart.

T urn: (S39) T~84+3 (2 players">

BB checks, Hero bets S44, BB calls S44

On the river, yo u aren't try ing to fold hands

like 8x or better, you are trying to get high
cards to fold. Thus, a river bet-size of I/2th
~------------------' of the pot should be suiTlcient.
River: (S l2 7) T+84+33~(2 players)
BB checks, Hero ?

Alternative Line: I f the tum is a cl ub and it gets checked to you, you should bet the tum and
give up on a r iver blank. The reason is V illai n's turn check-calli ng range is usuall y a pair plus a
club. l f he has a hand like QJ or KQ w ith a cl ub, he probably bet the turn more often than
check-ca lling. Thus, he's going to have a pair at the r iver a lot. \Vith so many draws out there,
he's going to have a hard time folding the river.

- I 09 -

Problem 32: S3/S6 6-!vlax

SB: S588
Hero (BB): $728
UT G : S379
MP: S257
CO: S670
BTN : S584
P re- flop: Hero on BB w ith 44~
3 f olds, BTN raises to S 18, I f old, Hero calls
S l2
Flop: (S3S) 6 3+ 2 (2 players)
Liem c hecks, OTN bets $34, I lero calh $34
T urn : (S 107) 6 +3+2J~ ( 2 players)
Hero checks, BTN checks
River: (S I07) 6 3+2J~T~ (2 players)
Hero checks, 8 TN bets S80, Hero ?

- I I0 -

Answer 32: This is a good spot to check-raise

the river.

Problem 32: $3/$6 6-/\1 ax

SB: S588
Hero (BB): $728
1JTCi : S179
M P: $25 7
CO: S670
BTN : $584
Pre-flop: Hero on BB w ith 44~
3 folds , BTN raises lo S I 8, I f old, Hero calls
Sl2

Villain would've bet Jx or better on the tum. On

the river, ycmr range 1s likely a smalJ pair and
he's going to try to get val ue by bett ing with
T x. l f somehow he ends up al the river w ith 8899, he's going to be incli ned lo bet them. On an
off tangent, if you have 88-99 in V ill ain's spot
on th is board, please bet and not go for pot
contro l.
The reason for betting is yo u get value oui of
worse hand. You protect your hand. And most
importantly, you get a free river showdown .

Flop: ($39) 6+3~2 (2 p layers)

Hero checks, BTN bets S34, Hero calls S34
T urn : (S J07) 6+3~2J~ ( 2 players)
Hero checks, BTN checks
River : (S I 07) 6+3~2 J~T ~ (2 players)
Hero checks, BTN bets S80, Hero ~

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Let's assume you check ihe ium wiih 88-99 and

plan to call any river bet. Un less V ill ain is
super aggressi ve and is lloating in every pot,
what exact Iy does 88-99 beat on the river on
ih is board? li's unlikely that Villai n decides to
tum his small pair into a bluff on the river by
betti ng oui when your range is like ace-high or
worse.

Back to the hand. T x and 88-99 are go ing to fo ld to a river check-raise since your line is
consistent with a strong hand. But don't be surpr ised if V il lai n calls your check-raise. That's

OK.
Take down a note that he's the type of player who w ill make big calls if he is at the top of his
range, even though the absolute strength of his holding is weak. Then you can proceed to make
a lot of money off him because he won't beli eve you whenever you check-raise him again. After
all, you are tricky enough lo check-raise on the river as a bluff in a mid-stakes game.
[fyou feel the river check-raise in this spot is too aggressive and causes too much variance,
please remember to check- fo ld the r:ver way more often than to check-call. Villai n's bluffing
frequency isn't that high si nce it Jool:s like you have a made hand after the flop check-call.
Additionall y, he's happy to see a cheap showdown w ith ace-high.

- II I -

Problem 33: S3 S6 6-Ytax

SB: S634
Hero (88): 60 I
UTG: 709
MP: S 11-13

CO: S202
BTN: S435

Pre-flop: :lero on BB with 7 7

UTG ra ises to SIS, 4/olds, Hero calls S9
Flop: (S33) 5 #2~ (2 players)
Hero chcc~s . UTG bets Sl4, Hero calls SI-I
T urn: ($61) 54+2~T (2 players)
Hero checks, UTG checks
River: (S61} 542~T.I+ (2 players)
Hero checks, UTG bets S54, Hero 0

- 11 2 -

Problem 33: S31S6 6-Max

SB: $63-1
Her o (BB): 601
UTG: S709
MP:S1143
CO: $202
BTN: $435

Answer 33: Although it looks familiar to

problem 32, river is 'a fold instead of a checkraise. The reason is against a UTG open, we
won't get credit for having 22, 44, and 55 in our
range. Additionally, when Villain is bening
half-pot on the flop, he's expect ing us to checkraise w ith our strong hands to build the pot.

Pre-rlop: Hero on BB w ith 7 7

UTG raises tu $1 5, 4j iJ/ds, Hero call s $9

There are also too many combinat ions of Jx that

Villa in can have. And w ithout a lot of nut h<U1ds
in our range, it's tough to convince V i Ila in to
fo ld Jx.

Flop: (S33) 5 4+2+ (2 players)

Hero checks, UTG bets $ 14, Hero calls $ 14
Turn : (S6 I) 5 -1+2+ T (2 players)
Hero checks, UTG checks

The ranking of options for river play is fold >

call >check-raise.

Ri \'er: ($61 ) 5 4+2+T J+ (2 players)

Hero checks, UTG bets 554, Hero <

- I 13 -

Pro blem 34: S3/S6 6-Max

S B: S ll 27

BB: S724
UTG : 5 1796
MP: S66
CO: S652

Hero (BT:-1): SI 059

Pre-flop: Hero on BTN with T +9+
3/olds, Hero ra ises to $18, I fold, BB r~-raises
to 536, He:-o calls S 18
f lop: (S75) Q'fl 7+ (2 players)

BB checks, Hero checks

T urn : (Si5) Q T 7+A"'(2 players)
BB bets S54, Hero calls SS-I

River: (S2 13) Q T 7+A"'6+ (2 players)

BB bets S l 62, Hero ?

- 114 -

Answer 34: Th is is a good spot tci b lu ffshove the river.

Proble m 34: S3/S6 6-Max

SB: S ll 27
BB: $724
UTG : S l 796
M l' : S66
CO: S652
He ro (BT N): SI 059

On s uch a drawy board, V illain would've bet

the flop i f he has J .I or better. He also bet TX
a good percentage o f the time.

Pre-flop: Hero on BTN w ith T 9

3folds, Hero raises to S 18, l fold, BB re-raises
to S36, Hero ca lls S 18
Flop: (S75) Q TY 7.. (2 p layers)
BB checks, Hero checks
Turn: (S75) Q T 7.. A+ (2 p layers)
BB bets S54, Hero calls 554
River: (S213) Q T 7.. A+ 6 .. (2 p layers)
BB bets S 162, Hero ?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Once he checks the flop, h is range is mostly

ace-h igh and k ing-h igh .
The tum improves h is hand but it's also a
card p layers like to bet at in re-ra ised pots.
\Ve call because we might have ihe best hand
a percentage of the time. Bui the ma in reason
is we can b lu ff on a lot o f cards such as a
heart, king, jack, and eight that comp lete
draws on ihe river.
On the river, Villain bets again. He is
basicall y representing KJ or 98. He rarely
shows up w ith AQ in th is spot. He w ill have
AK n good nmount o f the time but that cannot
call a river shove.

Considering ihat most p layers like to continue io represent strength, they are more likely to bet
on the flop w ith KJ and 98. Thus, we shou ld tum our hand into a b luff and shove.
One interesting note regarding th is hand is V illain shou ld almost always check ihe river w iih a
pair of aces and evaluate. No worse hand is calling and against a good aggressi ve p layer, betiing
just causes a loi of trouble. l fVillain checks, he shou ld check-call more often than check-fold
since there are so many draws out there and h is line is k ind of we ird and weirdness causes
peop le to b lu ff.
Important Note: A lthough ih is is a good spot to shove the river since Villa in has AK a loi in
ih is spot, if Villain's pre-flop re-raise is bigger, ih is becomes a great spot to shove. The reason is
he's more likely to have AK and AJ and cannot call a shove. It also decreases the likelihood that
he has AA since people li ke to do weird flop raise sizes w ith AA.

- I 15 -

Problem 35: S3/S6 6-/\1ax

Hero (SB): S634
BB: S20 1
UT G: S387

M P: S745
CO: S694

BTN: S549

Pre-flop: Hero on SB wiih 8~8~

2 f olds, CO raises to S 18, I f old, Hera calls
S 15, I f old
Flop: (S42) T"52~ (2 players)
Hero checks, CO bets S36, Hero calls S36
Turn: (S I 14) T"52~6~ (2 players)
Hero checks, CO checks

River: (S I 14) T"52~~.J~ (2 players)

Hero checks, CO bets S88, Hero?

- I 16 -

Answe1 35: Th i> is a spot where you should

check-raise more o ften than yo u call. The
reason is Villain rarel y has a better hand than
Jx.

Problem 35: S31S6 6-Max

He ro (SB) : 5634
BB: S20 1
UTG: S387
M P: S745
CO: 5694
BTN: S549

If Villain has an overpair, he would've bet ihe

tum. Thus, his range by the river is probabl y
QJ-AJ. And even those hands will have a tough
time call ing a river check-raise, provided that
you make it S320 to go.

Pre.- flop: Hero on SB w ith 8~8+

2/olds, CO mises to S 18, I fo ld, Hero cal ls
S IS, I/ old

The question is why are we check-raising

instead o f calli ng since there are t imes whe n
our opponent isn't fo ldi ng .Ix on the r iver.

Flop : (S42) T 5 2+ (2 players}

Hero checks, CO bets S36, Hero cal ls S36
Turn: (S I 1 4)T5 +2+6~ (2 players)
Hero check>, CO : hecks
River: (S I 14) T5 2+6~J+ (2 players)
Hero checks, CO bets S88, Hero ?
.___ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ___J

One reason is he may have played T x th is way

and decided to go for thin va Jue on the river.
The second reason is your line is consistent
with two pairs such as T.I or sets. It's not
surprising if you show up w iih 43s, considering
you were closing the action pre-ilop and had a
lot o f odds.

If you feel ihe river check-raise in this spot is too aggressive and causes too much variance,
please remember tv check-fold the river way more o ften than to check-cal L Vil Iain's bluffing
frequency isn't that high since it looks like you have a made hand after the ilop check-call.
Addi tionall y, he's happy to see a cheap showdown w ith ace-high.

- I 17 -

11

Chapter 13: The Final Note

By now, I think you understand that aggression is the key to winning. ~1ost likel y, you are
excited to go out and try the new options presented for you. Don t be discouraged when plays
don't go your way. You are probably misapp lying the aggress ion and using it against the wrong
type of players or you are doing it at a spot where your opponent's range isn't as weak as you
assume.
Don't give up.
Keep working on your game. Keep asking yourself why a play doesn't work for you and why it
does. And one day, everything kind of falls into place and you just "get it." But to get to that
point, you must work hard. All the best playeTS in the world work hard or else they wouldn't be
where they are today.
They had their trial and error" stage. Now it's your tum. Good luck.

- 11 8 -

11

Glossary

BB: Big Blind

BTN/ Button: the dealer position, last to act on all but the fi rst round of betting
CO:

Cutof~

the posit ion immediately before the button

PFR: Pre-F lop Raise Percentage, the percentage of ihe time a player raises or re-raises before
the flop.
SB : Small B lind
TAG : A tight aggressive player
UTG : Under the Gun, the first pos ition after the big blind
VPI P: Vo luntaril y Put S in Pot, the percentage of the time a player puts money in the poi preflop, not counting blind money

- I 19 -