MTT preflop strategy

CO range vs BTN 3-bet at 10 bb (4-max)

When you open from CO and BTN 3-bets you, with an effective stack of 10 bb in a 4-max tournament, the solver plays 54.8% of its hands (call 54.8%) and folds 45.2%. These frequencies come from Exploit It's full preflop tree: a chip-EV equilibrium with antes, computed for every position at the table.

Fold 45.2%Call 54.8%

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 54.8% of the hands that reach this spot, about 37 combos out of 68.
  • Call is the main action for 53.1% of hands: from AA down to 76s, the weakest hand played this way.
  • Surprise: the solver folds some top-50 hands here, such as KTo, A7o, K8s, QJo.
  • Conversely, the solver plays hands ranked outside the top 100, such as 76s.

What changes at 8 bb (39 hands change action)

  • KTo: fold here, call at 8 bb
  • A7o: fold here, call at 8 bb
  • K8s: fold here, call at 8 bb
  • QJo: fold here, call at 8 bb
  • A6o: fold here, call at 8 bb
  • K7s: fold here, call at 8 bb

What changes at 12 bb (13 hands change action)

  • KJo: call here, fold at 12 bb
  • K9s: call here, fold at 12 bb
  • A8o: call here, fold at 12 bb
  • QTs: call here, fold at 12 bb
  • Q9s: call here, fold at 12 bb
  • A5o: call here, fold at 12 bb

Frequently asked questions

Which hands should you play from CO, facing a 3-bet, at 10 bb in 4-max?

The solver plays 54.8% of the hands that reach this spot, about 37 combos out of 68. Call is the main action for 53.1% of hands: from AA down to 76s, 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 call, 44 call, 55 call, 66 call.

What should you do with weak suited aces (A2s to A5s) in this spot?

The solver's main action with each hand: A2s call, A3s call, A4s call, A5s call.

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

The same spot at other depths
Related spots

Equilibrium computed by the Exploit It solver in chip-EV, antes included, open size 2 bb, a little more at deep stacks (up to 2.5 bb on the button at 100 bb), 2 to 3.5 bb from the SB. EVs of actions the equilibrium does not play are indicative: play the frequencies.