Recently, players have started realizing how crucial it is to aggressively protect their big-blind position.
It used to be widely accepted that the right strategy was simply to fold avoid playing a large portion of hands from the big blind, primarily due to our disadvantage post-flop. If we could rewind several years and ask about the average defense strategy range
against a Button open from the Big Blind, we’d typically encounter a response resembling this:
Only about 10.56% of poker hands hands were deemed defensible against the Button. Even marginal hands like KTo were considered too weak for defense due to the risk of being dominated. It was a universally acknowledged truth that suited-connectors should never be played from the blind positions.
Table of Contents
Modern Cold-Calling
Looking back, the tight play style of the average poker player blind defence range seems almost amusing. Most players today wouldn’t even think about defending so narrowly simply due to being out of position. While position is indeed significant, it doesn’t mean we should blindly fold everything.
In reality, it’s advantageous to defend with a moderately broad range of hands from the Big Blind big blind, even with the positional setback. This is because:
- We get a better price to call (already 1bb invested)
- We complete the action (eliminating the risk of being squeezed or facing multiple callers),
- When against late-position players, they could be opening with a much wider array of hands.
Let’s briefly explore a contemporary perspective on blind defending the Big Blind against the Button. cold-call .
The contrast is quite striking. This chart demonstrates a 31.5% flatting range, which is approximately three times wider than what was previously deemed appropriate.
It’s worth remembering that as we look back in time, players often made significantly larger open-raises compared to today's norms. There was a period when a 4bb open was typical from any position, including from the button. Nowadays, if someone were to make a 4bb opening raise from the button, we’d likely conclude they’re an inexperienced player, as it has become standard to see 3bb, 2.5bb, 2.2bb, or even minimum raises.
Thus, the size of raises must be considered when evaluating the changes in modern defending ranges. The cold-calling range mentioned earlier is tailored for a 2.5bb open. Variations in open-raise sizes significantly influence what is seen as the correct defending frequency.
Now, let’s hypothetically consider a 2bb open raise from the Button; our cold-calling range might resemble something like this:
Our defending rate is around the 50% mark. A mere adjustment of 0.5bb in the sizing of the opener has shifted the range we need to defend by nearly 20%! This illustrates why formulating a comprehensive pre-flop defense strategy can be quite complex. We must make significant adjustments to our poker strategy based on the size of the open-raise.
Postflop Play
The increased frequency of cold-calling can lead to some challenges post-flop, particularly if we are not accustomed to managing a wider range than before.
Being aware of the various potential lines available post-flop and knowing when to employ them offers us a significant edge. Let’s delve into a few
Check-Raising
To balance out a wider cold-calling range, we should adopt a somewhat tougher approach with our post-flop actions. If we were to use a fit-or-fold strategy post-flop, it would no longer be appropriate to defend such a wide range pre-flop. This would result in unnecessarily risking many additional chips for our opponent to claim.
One effective method of defending our expanded range preflop range is to execute aggressive check-raises on flops where we have potential. It’s advisable to bluff-check-raise on twice as many flops compared to check-raising for value. In other words, most of the time when we check-raise on the flop, we should be bluffing.
The ideal hands to use for this play are those with the potential to develop into a strong five-card hand by the river, as well as those with advantageous backdoor draws. We’ll explore check-raising in more depth later in this article. Straight-draws , flush-draws This strategy also provides us with an alternative defense option on the flop against a
Floating
In terms of made hands, we can adopt a strategy akin to the following: cbet Two Pair or Better – Check-call for three streets (assuming we don’t check-raise),
Second Pair with a Good Kicker – Call for two streets, then fold on the river,
Top Pair – Call 2 streets, fold river
Second Pair with an Average or Weak Kicker – Call for one street, then fold on the turn,
Bottom Pair – Call for one street, then fold on the turn. (At times,
while paired with a draw, it's crucial to grasp the reasoning behind this. Picture this scenario: check /raise bluff if good backdoors)
Assuming we float UTG folds, MP folds, CO folds, BTN opens to 2.5bb, SB folds,
UTG (100 big blinds)
MP (100 big blinds)
CO (100 big blinds)
BTN (100 big blinds) Villain
SB (100 big blinds)
BB (100 big blinds) Hero
Hero is dealt Jh9h
. Therefore, calling in this situation is almost always the right move. But why? Are we even receiving the appropriate pot odds? Hero calls 1.5bb in the BB.
Flop (5.5bb)
KcQc 5d
BTN cbets 4bb, Hero calls 4bb
We have the lower end of a gutshot In reality, not really. We’re investing 4bb into a total pot of 13.5bb, meaning we need to connect on the turn.
So, what are the odds that we’ll actually connect? We have four outs (ignoring for the moment that some of them are tainted), giving us approximately an 8% chance (4% * 2) of hitting our gutter on the turn.
4/13.5= 29.6%
Hmm.. We don’t have the direct pot odds, so we must depend on our implied odds. Let’s examine how our implied odds stack up? Actually, they’re not particularly favorable either. Firstly, we have only about a 16% chance of hitting by the river, and even if we do, we won’t have the nuts.
We’d have the lower end of the straight, and some of our outs are tainted due to being clubs. Even if we hit a clean out on the turn, there remains the risk of a third club appearing on the river, jeopardizing our implied odds.
Alright, so our pot odds are poor, and our implied odds aren’t great either. Why are we even considering a call?
To better understand this, let’s define what a “float” is in poker.
Calling with a marginal hand, intending to seize the pot on a subsequent street.
Many may not realize this, but the primary reason we should call is that this hand can make a reasonable bluff on later streets. The possibility of hitting a semi-strong hand during the turn or river is merely an added benefit. Let’s observe how the hand proceeds.
UTG folds, MP folds, CO folds, BTN raises to 2.5bb, SB folds, Hero calls 1.5bb from the BB.
UTG (100 big blinds)
MP (100 big blinds)
CO (100 big blinds)
BTN (100 big blinds) Villain
SB (100 big blinds)
BB (100 big blinds) Hero
Hero is dealt Jh9h
Hero checks, BTN continuation bets 4bb, Hero calls 4bb.
Flop (5.5bb)
KcQc 5d
Having established a path to win the hand without needing to improve, our check-call on the flop begins to carry positive expected value. If we float a marginal hand and fail to capitalize on the corresponding
Turn (13.5bb)
3c
Hero checks, CO checks back.
River (13.5bb)
7d
Hero bets 8bb, CO folds.
opportunity when it arises, it would be wiser not to have floated the hand in the first place. bluffing We’re not suggesting that we must always transform our hand into a bluff on later streets; however, our opponent demonstrated weakness by checking the turn, presenting us with a clear chance to snatch the pot away from them. This kind of maneuver is termed a river probe . Similar tactics can also be utilized on the turn.
It’s essential to note that we earn most of our profits, not when our opponent makes a continuation bet, but when they opt to check back. If we call from the blinds OOP and our opponent refrains from firing a continuation bet, we should immediately scout for favorable spots to seize the pot.
Turn Probes
Let’s explore a comparable hand, but with a critical twist. Our opponent chooses not to cbet the flop at all.
UTG folds, MP folds, CO folds, BTN raises to 2.5bb, SB folds, Hero calls 1.5bb from the big blind.
UTG (100 big blinds)
MP (100 big blinds)
CO (100 big blinds)
BTN (100 big blinds) Villain
SB (100 big blinds)
BB (100 big blinds) Hero
Hero is dealt Jh9h
In this instance, we can spot what’s referred to as a turn probe . Our opponent hints at weakness by checking back the flop, and we capitalize on this by leading the turn as a semi-bluff. Note that, although we picked up a gutshot in this example, against many opponents at lower limits, it’s often unnecessary to possess equity to employ this line. Betting with any two cards can be advantageous.
Flop (5.5bb)
Kc 7h 5d
Hero checks, BTN checks back
Turn (5.5bb)
Td
Hero bets 4bb, CO folds
But what happens if our opponent responds to our turn probe?
In lower limit games, we can frequently secure automatic profit by simply betting two streets as a bluff whenever our opponent checks back the flop. This doesn’t mean we should always act blindly. It's crucial to consider our opponent's range and our specific hand.
UTG (100 big blinds)
MP (100 big blinds)
CO (100 big blinds)
BTN (100 big blinds) Villain
SB (100 big blinds)
BB (100 big blinds) Hero
Hero is dealt Jh9h
Hero checks, BTN continuation bets 4bb, Hero calls 4bb.
Flop (5.5bb)
Kc 7h 5d
Hero checks, BTN checks back
Turn (5.5bb)
Td
Hero bets 4bb, CO calls
River (13.5bb)
3s
Hero bets 9bb, CO folds
In such situations, there are several draws that can now be easy folds for our opponent on the river. Some of these
draws can even beat our holding, like QJ high, which developed an OESD. busted Our opponent possesses hands in their range that they can fold
As such:
- We have limited showdown value
- Turning our hand into a bluff here typically makes the most sense.
Naturally, there are alternative strategies to consider when defending our big blind post-flop, but we have highlighted the primary ones.
Putting it Together
The check/call flop followed by a check/raise on the turn can be an approach worth experimenting with, both as a bluff and for value.
Additionally, the somewhat atypical check/call flop and donk-bet turn can be incredibly impactful when employed in the right circumstances.
As a further extension, we can also utilize a check/call on the flop, check/call on the turn, and then donk-bet on the river as both a bluff and for value.
These tend to be slightly more advanced strategies, thus it’s advisable to first master our pre-flop defending ranges and the three initial post-flop strategies previously mentioned:
Chad Holloway is a 2013 WSOP Bracelet winner who has a background as a managing editor and live reporter for PokerNews.
Check-Raise Flop
Probe River
Probe Turn