MTT preflop strategy

HJ range vs CO 3-bet at 30 bb (8-max)

When you open from HJ and CO 3-bets you, with an effective stack of 30 bb in a 8-max tournament, the solver plays 55.3% of its hands (call 35.3%, raise 11.55 bb 0.8%, all-in 19.1%) and folds 44.7%. These frequencies come from Exploit It's full preflop tree: a chip-EV equilibrium with antes, computed for every position at the table.

Fold 44.7%Call 35.3%Raise 11.55 bb 0.8%All-in 19.1%

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 55.3% of the hands that reach this spot, about 212 combos out of 384.
  • Call is the main action for 37.0% of hands: from JJ down to 76s, the weakest hand played this way.
  • All-in is the main action for 17.2% of hands: from AA down to A2s, the weakest hand played this way.
  • Surprise: the solver folds some top-50 hands here, such as ATo, A9o, KJo, K9s.
  • Conversely, the solver plays hands ranked outside the top 100, such as 76s.

What changes at 25 bb (19 hands change action)

  • JJ: call here, all-in at 25 bb
  • 99: call here, all-in at 25 bb
  • AQs: call here, all-in at 25 bb
  • AJs: call here, all-in at 25 bb
  • AQo: call here, all-in at 25 bb
  • KQs: call here, all-in at 25 bb

What changes at 40 bb (24 hands change action)

  • AA: all-in here, raise at 40 bb
  • KK: all-in here, raise at 40 bb
  • QQ: all-in here, raise at 40 bb
  • JJ: call here, raise at 40 bb
  • TT: all-in here, raise at 40 bb
  • 99: call here, raise at 40 bb

Frequently asked questions

Which hands should you play from HJ, facing a 3-bet, at 30 bb in 8-max?

The solver plays 55.3% of the hands that reach this spot, about 212 combos out of 384. Call is the main action for 37.0% of hands: from JJ 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: 44 fold, 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 all-in, A3s all-in, A4s all-in, A5s all-in.

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.

The same spot at other depths
Related spots

Equilibrium computed by the Exploit It solver in chip-EV, antes included, open size 2 bb up to 25 bb, 2.1 bb at 30 bb and 2.3 bb deeper. EVs of actions the equilibrium does not play are indicative: play the frequencies.