Opening From the Blinds in Straddle + Ante Games
Opening From the Blinds in Straddle + Ante Games No-limit Hold‘em has not traditionally been played with…
Introducing Quantal Response Equilibrium: The Next Evolution of GTO
Today we are proud to introduce GTO Reports, a game-changing addition to our training suite. This innovative…
When To Just Shove Post Flop in ICM Spots
When To Just Shove Post Flop in ICM Spots The general trend for bet sizing, when ICM…
Watch & Learn: Replay Legendary Final Tables!
Our new Events feature recreates iconic WSOP and SCOOP final tables, precisely solved with exact chip stacks…
The Theory of Bounty Tournaments – Part 3: Key Calculations
Parts 1 and 2 in this bounty theory series describe how total risk premiums are lower across…
The Learning System That Separates the Best From the Rest
As an avid strategy game enthusiast, I’ve spent a large portion of my life trying to analyze…
The Fish Were Right All Along
In a recent conversation with Andrew Brokos, he made the comment, “The fish were onto something,” when…
How to Use Practice Mode in GTO Wizard to Improve Your Game
GTO Wizard provides a wide variety of tools to help you become a better player, from perfecting…
Should You Ever Bluff with a Pair?
Turning a made hand into a bluff might initially sound counterintuitive. In the pre-solver days, holding a…
Major Upgrade: GTO Reports Have Arrived – Plus Tons of New Features!
Today we are proud to introduce GTO Reports, a game-changing addition to our training suite. This innovative…
ICM Strategy: Playing IP Against the Chip Leader on the Final Table
The good news is you’ve made the final table (FT). Better yet, you’ve made it with a…
ICM Survival Guide: How To Play OOP vs. a Covering Stack at the Final Table
Contesting a pot against a player who covers you at a final table (FT) is one of…
We’re At The River. Our Hand Can’t Win. Now What?
You’re in a heads-up pot and you’ve made it to the river. Your opponent has check/called two…
When Is Bluffing Profitable? The Key Factors You Need to Know
When is bluffing profitable? When you expect your opponent to fold! That’s not a joke, and I…
Blockers & Unblockers: The Secret to Picking Great Bluffs
Blocker/unblocker was a concept my coach, Dara O’Kearney, showed me in relation to bluffs. It is one…
The Art of Game Selection for MTTs: Finding Soft Fields & Extra Value
Game selection is not something immediately associated with tournaments because the seat draw is random. In a…
AI and the Future of Poker
Over the last decade, the world of poker has witnessed a systemic change, not just in the…
How To Get the Most out of Your Hand Reviews
I don’t spend much of my study time checking whether specific hands I played are “solver-approved.” After…
The Art of Turn Probing: Exploiting Checked Flops
After calling a 3-bet as the out of position (OOP) player, you should expect to see a…
How To Respond to Large Preflop Raises in Poker
Solver-derived preflop charts for both cash games and tournaments have historically assumed small raises on the part…
Mastering Postflop ICM: Avoid These Common Mistakes
The new postflop ICM feature from GTO Wizard is a game changer. Previous incarnations of postflop ICM…
What Happens When Playing Chip EV and ICM Is Significant
Just how costly is it to play a Chip EV style when ICM is significant? We always…
How To Become a Winning Poker Player in 2025 – Part 2
Welcome back to part 2 of our series on how to become a winning poker player in…
How To Become a Winning Poker Player in 2025 – Part 1
I fell in love with the game of poker when I saw the best players outplay their…
IP 4-Betting in Deep-Stacked Cash Games
4-betting in position (IP) is a totally different phenomenon from 4-betting out of position (OOP). 4-betting reduces…
OOP 4-Betting in Deep-Stacked Cash Games
4-bet pots (4BP) can be scary because the stakes are high, but with 100bb stacks, they are…
Fixing a Poker Leak Part 2: The Mental Game
In the first part of my series on fixing leaks, I looked at the many technical ways…
Fixing a Poker Leak Part 1: Spotting and Correcting Errors
In this two-part series, I am going to look at how we can identify and fix leaks…
How Significant Is ICM During Late Registration?
One of the many valuable aspects of GTO Wizard’s new postflop ICM feature is that we can…
The Many Faces of Balance in Poker
When you think of balance in poker, what comes to mind? Most likely, you were introduced to…
Unwrapping GTO Wizard’s Hidden Gems for 2025
A new year is upon us, which is classically the time that most people start thinking about…
The Theory of Bounty Tournaments – Part 2: ICM and Equity Drops
In part 1 of “Introduction to Bounty Theory,” we analyzed how the structures of bounty tournament prize…
Kick Off 2025 With New Cash Game and ICM Solutions for MTTs
New Year, New Poker (Re)Solutions! As 2025 approaches, we are setting the stage for an incredible year.…
The Theory of Bounty Tournaments – Part 1: Prize Pool Fundamentals
Bounties are a significant new variable to take into account when studying tournament theory and ICM. This…
Responding to Donk-Bets at Final Tables
It’s scary to contest a pot against a covering stack when you have a high risk premium,…
Donk-Betting As the Covering Stack in MTTs
Tournament poker generally incentivizes stack preservation and more conservative play than cash game poker, and this is…
Dominate the River in 3-Bet Pots OOP
Playing the river may seem scary. Pots, on average, have been swelling up big time at this…
Exploiting BBs Who Never Donk-Bet
In a single-raised pot (SRP), a BB caller should almost always check when out of position (OOP)…
Picking the Right Semi-Bluffs
As I often like to remind readers, I am not a professional poker player; I am just…
Playing Calls From the Button in Cash Games
When first beginning to study cash game poker strategy, there is a common refrain that you might…
Redefining Precision: Introducing HH Analyzer 2.0 & Much More
Hello Wizards, today we’re excited to introduce innovative updates designed to transform how you study and play…
Bringing It All Together: PKO Review
Throughout the past year, our writers have presented nine unique articles and videos outlining how and when…
What Factors Impact Ranges the Most in PKOs?
In our article “How Does ICM Impact PKO Strategy?“, we contrasted how PKO and Classic preflop strategies…
PKO vs Classic: Postflop Play
In our previous articles comparing PKO and Classic tournaments, we reviewed how to adapt our preflop strategy…
How Do Bounties Impact Our Flop Ranges When Covering?
The previous articles in our PKO series showed how preflop ranges that are adjusted for bounties vary…
Short Stack Stealing on the Bubble
Open-raising on the bubble into players who cover you is scary. Savvy opponents will recognize how dangerous…
Maximizing Monsters in Deep-Stacked Scenarios
Why did Dracula quit the game when Wolfman insisted on a mandatory straddle? — Why? — Unlike…
Confronting Monsters Under the Bed in Poker
Do you hide from things that go bump in the night? Does the sight of a monotone…
Bullying the Blinds With Continuation Bets
A big stack in No Limit Hold‘em does not always carry a license to steal. In a…
A Comprehensive Guide to Playing Satelites
One of the most important inventions in poker that contributed to the growth of the game was…
A Comprehensive Guide to Playing Mystery Bounties
The Mystery Bounty format looked like a novelty event at first, but swiftly became a mainstay of…
Leading Hands That Should Check-Call
The most consistent leak I have encountered live and online, and at a variety of stakes, is…
Mastering Turn Play in 3-Bet Pots OOP
Playing the flop OOP in a 3-bet pot can be challenging. Turn play, however, is what gets…
PKO Versus Classic: Responding to 3-Bets
One of the keys to adapting to new game formats, such as Progressive Knockout (PKO) tournaments, is…
PKO Versus Classic: Responding to a Preflop Open
One of the keys to adapting to new game formats, such as Progressive Knockout (PKO) tournaments, is…
Preflop Range Morphology
Morphology in poker is the study of shapes/forms of ranges. This domain of poker study is particularly…
The Five Imbalances of Exploitative Poker
One of the great modern debates in poker is GTO vs Exploitative strategy. It can be a…
PKO Versus Classic: Preflop RFI Range Comparisons
One of the keys to adapting to new game formats, such as Progressive Knockout (PKO) tournaments, is…
Introducing GTO Wizard Play Mode: Play Poker, Study Effortlessly
Get ready to experience the next evolution in poker with GTO Wizard Play Mode—a new way to…
Why So Much? An Exploration of Larger-Than-Geometric Bet Sizing
Via toy games, it is easy to demonstrate that a player betting a perfectly polarized range maximizes…
Slow-Playing
Slow-playing, like running a big bluff or making a heroic call, feels great when it works. It…
MDF vs ICM: Rethinking Bluffing & Defense Strategies in MTTs
Minimum Defense Frequency (MDF) is, strictly speaking, the calling (and/or raising) frequency that makes your opponent’s 0%…
The Magic of Equity Buckets
One of the most daunting aspects of learning the modern game of poker, especially with solver technology,…
Preflop Strategy in Straddled Pots
Many games allow “straddles,” where a player who is not in the blinds voluntarily posts a blind…
The 5 Levels of Trainer Mastery for MTTs
Studying poker can be a challenge to both new and seasoned players. Tournament poker, in particular, presents…
4-Bet Pots OOP as the Preflop Caller
4-bet pots are often uncomfortable to play. Some of the reasons include: — A lot of chips…
Bounty Models Explained: Solving Knockout Tournaments
We’ve just rolled out a revolutionary update! You can now find optimal postflop ICM strategies tailored for…
Revolutionizing MTTs: The Ultimate ICM Solver Upgrade
The most monumental advancement to MTT study in the history of poker solvers is now here. GTO…
Theoretical Breakthroughs in ICM
Today, we’ll share one of the most significant theoretical breakthroughs in tournament poker since the invention of…
The Limitations of Nash Equilibrium in ICM Spots
In the complex world of poker tournaments, the Independent Chip Model (ICM) plays a pivotal role in…
Rake & Rakeback Explained: Optimize Your Poker Earnings
Rake is one of the main things that allows poker to distinguish itself as a skill game…
From Gutshots to Airballs: Choosing Your Bluffs
Whenever you’re running a bluff, it’s reassuring to have a backup plan like some draw equity that…
Crush 3-Bet Pots OOP in Cash Games
Did you know that 3-bet pots out of position (OOP) as the preflop aggressor make up roughly…
The Math of Multi-Street Bluffs
Bluffing is a fundamental skill in poker, blending deception with strategic calculation to sway the outcomes of…
The Mechanics of C-Bet Sizing
What factors influence c-bet sizing on the flop? Is it fold equity, SPR, draw equity, polarity, protection,…
Poker Insurance: Reducing Variance or Wasting Money?
Variance is what makes poker great. Without it, recreational players would not keep playing. Most players say…
Money Bubble vs Final Table Bubble
Is one bubble the same as another? Should we play more conservatively on the money bubble of…
Facing 3-Bets From Covering Stacks at the Final Table
The last thing you want when you have a nice stack at the final table of an…
Poker Staking Essentials
One of the great ‘through the looking glass’ moments for any poker player is when they learn…
A Poker Player’s Guide to Conquering Cognitive Biases – Part 2
In the past, I’ve written about gambling biases that can affect how you play and how confirmation…