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…
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%…
Preflop Strategy in Straddled Pots
Many games allow “straddles,” where a player who is not in the blinds voluntarily posts a blind…
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…