BB defense vs BTN open at 20 bb (3-max)
When BTN opens, everyone else folds and you're in the BB, with an effective stack of 20 bb in a 3-max tournament, the solver plays 69.8% of its hands (call 50.3%, raise 6.40 bb 3.9%, all-in 15.6%) and folds 30.2%. These frequencies come from Exploit It's full preflop tree: a chip-EV equilibrium with antes, computed for every position at the table.
Each cell: the share of each action for that hand, left to right. Gray cell: hand not in the range at this point.
Key takeaways for this spot
- The solver plays 69.8% of the hands that reach this spot, about 926 combos out of 1,326.
- Call is the main action for 51.6% of hands: from KQs down to 32s, the weakest hand played this way.
- Raise is the main action for 3.2% of hands: from AA down to 22, the weakest hand played this way.
- All-in is the main action for 14.5% of hands: from TT down to Q2s, the weakest hand played this way.
- Conversely, the solver plays hands ranked outside the top 100, such as J2s, 96s, T5s, T4s.
What changes at 17 bb (14 hands change action)
- A9s: raise here, all-in at 17 bb
- A8s: raise here, all-in at 17 bb
- A7s: call here, raise at 17 bb
- QJs: call here, all-in at 17 bb
- A5s: raise here, all-in at 17 bb
- A8o: call here, all-in at 17 bb
What changes at 25 bb (13 hands change action)
- A8s: raise here, call at 25 bb
- A9o: all-in here, call at 25 bb
- A5s: raise here, all-in at 25 bb
- A3o: all-in here, call at 25 bb
- K5s: call here, all-in at 25 bb
- A2o: all-in here, call at 25 bb
Frequently asked questions
Which hands should you play from BB, facing an open, at 20 bb in 3-max?
The solver plays 69.8% of the hands that reach this spot, about 926 combos out of 1,326. Call is the main action for 51.6% of hands: from KQs down to 32s, the weakest hand played this way.
What should you do with small pairs (22 to 66) in this spot?
The solver's main action with each hand: 22 raise, 33 all-in, 44 all-in, 55 all-in, 66 all-in.
What should you do with weak suited aces (A2s to A5s) in this spot?
The solver's main action with each hand: A2s all-in, A3s all-in, A4s all-in, A5s raise.
How do you train on this spot?
Exploit It's free quiz deals you random hands in this exact spot and shows you the solver's answer after each choice.
Short stack: the push/fold chart, from 5 to 20 bb
Equilibrium computed by the Exploit It solver in chip-EV, antes included, open size 2 bb at 25 bb or less and 2.2 bb deeper. The model's range-width caps can make some EVs of unplayed actions optimistic: play the frequencies.