This is going to be a collection of poker hand reviews to analyze some important poker hands and concepts. It’s so important that we spend some time studying poker well, that I thought it would be beneficial to share some of my own analysis. I will be adding more hand reviews here over time, so make sure to check back often. Good luck.
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The Best $1/$2 Poker VLOG
While poker vlogging has blown up over the years, the vloggers with the highest viewerships tend to play higher stakes ($5/$10 and above) with some bigger buy-in tournaments thrown in. But what about vlogs for the $1/$2 and $1/$3 players? Look no further! While I personally play higher ($2/$5 and some $5/$10), […]
Folding Top Two Pair Against A TAG Reg
Playing live $2/$5, you flop top two pair against a TAG regular. But when the action gets heavy and stacks are heading into the pot, is it time to think about folding two pair against a likely set?
Facing A River Donk (Hand Analysis)
Many players get confused when facing “odd” actions, such as donk bets. So I wanted to analyze a spot where I faced a river donk bet and had to make a decision. A donk bet is a bet made into the previous street aggressor. Since I had bet the turn and he […]
Playing Bad Poker (& Still Winning!)
Poker is such a unique game in that good plays can lose money, and bad poker plays can end up winning money. At the end of the day, our goal is to make the most profitable plays and minimize our mistakes. But sometimes, a bad line can still result in the chips […]
Hero-Folding AA On A Special Board?
Aces are such a strong hand, but they can find themselves in some tricky situations postflop. Especially if the board texture gets ugly and the action gets weird – it can be tough to figure out what the best line is. Today we will review a hand where AA gets a great […]
Playing AK Against A Strong Range
Two thirds of the time with AK we flop Ace-high and little more, but a fairly common draw with this hand is the broadway gutshot. The following hand was sent in by MiamiConfusion and illustrates some common themes when playing Ace King against a strong range. MiamiConfusion gives us this information to […]
The Best Play With Top Pair
Top pair can be confusing. Do you play it fast, slow, cautiously, or balls to the wall? In this video we’ll explore which play is best with top pair. I’ve you rarely check-raise TPTK in your games, this is a must-have skill that you need to add into your playbook.
Folding Top Pair With AK?
It really seems that Ace King creates more nightmares for players than any other hand. Today, we’ll explore a hand where AK flops top pair/top kicker that needs to decide whether or not to put it all-in. This spot was played in a live $1/$2 cash game and exemplifies how a results-oriented […]
Playing Top Pair + A Gutshot
In today’s video, we’re going to review a hand sent in by Dan. This is a hand from $1/$3 live and Dan goes pretty aggressive with 86os. So let’s check out the hand and see if it was any good.
Hero-Folding AK In A 3Bet Pot
Ace King creates more issues for players than seemingly any other hand. Today, we’ll explore the question “can we fold top pair/top kicker with AK postflop?” And to spice it up, we’ll explore it through the lens of a 3bet pot. A special thank you to ‘M’ for sending in this 50NL […]
Should I Check Or Bet Second Pair?
Second pair is always tough. It’s pretty strong, it’s ahead quite often, but is it worth a bet? Should second pair always go into your check-behind and try to get to showdown range? In this hand we’ll explore these questions through the lens of a single hand: King Queen on AQ3. Our […]
Playing Nut Flush Draws With Deep Stacks
Nut flush draws are super powerful, but they can be confusing. Do you pile a bunch of money in early? Do you slow-play your draw and wait until it improves? Was your preflop line best? Today we’ll explore this question through the lens of a $2/$5 hand. Our hero, Andrew, ends up […]
When Can You Fold AK Preflop?
Folding AK (Ace King) preflop is not something I typically advise doing. But, there are some correct spots to do so which can help you avoid spewing money on nitty players. In this video, we’ll break down a hand from $2/$5 and see if making a big fold preflop was actually a huge […]
Ace King All-In Preflop Quiz + Answers
Ace King is a tricky hand, and even more so when you are deciding when and how to get it all-in preflop. Awhile back I created this quiz to test your knowledge of AK and the lines you’d take with it when facing committing decisions preflop. In this video, I breakdown the […]
A Sick Bluff With Ace-King High
Today we are going to review a hand from $1/$2 where Tony ran a huge bluff with Ace-King high. What began as an innocent 3bet preflop, turns into a ton of aggression when hero misses the flop and decides to get it all-in with just Ace-high. Concepts include hand reading, floating vs […]
More Free Poker Hand Histories
Building Precise Ranges At 6max
Hand reading is the lifeblood of poker. Good players are always working to assign correct ranges throughout a hand, and the best players can narrow their opponent’s range with great precision. If you are not already working to hand read better in your 6max games – you are leaving heaps of money […]
Building Live Poker Ranges
To help you improve your range building process I created this mini-series where we dissect a hand together – going street-by-street and action-by-action to assign precise ranges. This is the actual process I use when studying poker off-table and exactly how my brain processes information in real-time…and you will get stronger with […]
Should I Call With Weak Hands From The Big Blind?
You’re in the big blind facing a raise and a couple calls – do you call and close the action with a weak hand? Of course you should give action with a lot of hands here given the pot odds, that you are closing action, and that you should be able to […]
Should We Ever Fold A Flush?
There are times to make big folds, but is this the right spot to fold a flush? Hero ends up flopping a HUGE hand not only spiking the nuts – but also having a straight-flush draw to go with it. But when the flush draw fills on the river and villain gets […]
How To Play Top Pair + A Flush Draw
There are times when you know you are behind – but you still have a hand that sucks to fold. In this hand we’ll explore that exact kind of situation. Hero ends up flopping top pair + a nut flush draw – but when facing escalating action in a multi-way pot it […]
Playing Pocket Queens – Value Bet Or Check To Induce?
This hand is from 100NL where hero has pocket Queens against a tilting player. Knowing when to hold-on for dear life with a big pocket pair is crucial when playing vs these players – and in this case we need to make a +EV decision on a nasty river card. In this […]
Facing A Check-Raise With Top Two Pair
Top two pair is normally a monster – but how strong is it after facing a check-raise on a flushed board? In this hand we dissect an uncomfortable hand where Hero has to make some big decisions with Ace Queen on AQ65.
How To Play 2 Pair In A Multi-Way Pot
In this hand, we’re in the big blind with T6s. There’s a limp, another limp, another limp. And hero decides to check his option. In the write-up, Jay says this: “People here know I play really tight. If I make a decent size raise, most fold. So I wanted to mix it […]
Folding Huge Hands On The River. Should You?
In this hand we flop top pair and end up improving to trips on the river. Knowing when to fold deceptively strong hands is an important skill that all players need – but is this the RIGHT time to fold? Let’s find out… This is a hand from 200NL where Benjamin has […]
What To Do On The Worst River Card?
In this $1/$2 hand hero gets a free-play from the blinds and has to figure out what the best play is on one of the worst river cards. Getting counterfeited on the turn/river always sucks – but we still need to make a decision and this video will help you choose the […]
How Should I Play The Nuts?
Today we’re going to review a hand sent in by Matthew. This is a hand from 100NL 6max online where Matthew has AQ and finds himself in a pretty interesting spot because he picks a pretty a-typical line. This hand is from Bovada Zone Poker, so there are no HUDs. And he […]
Make Your Opponent Think You Are Bluffing
In this article James reviews a hand played with QQ’s in a $1/$2 game home game. In this hand we need to decide on how to represent a bluff based on an A-typical button incentive created in this home game. However we quickly discover how important it is for us to hand read […]