DECISION POINT: In a Tournament a Middle Position player raises and it folds to you in the Big Blind. You 3-Bet with Q♥Q♦ and get a call. On the 8♠A♥J♣ flop you bet and MP2 calls. You check the 4♦ turn, MP2 bets, and you call. The river is 5♠ and you check. Your opponent goes all-in and action is on you. What do you do here?

PRO ANSWER: We are dealt pocket queens in the Big Blind. It is folded to MP2 who raises to 2.5 BBs. It folds to us and we reraise to 10 BBs and our opponent flat calls. The flop is 8sAhJc. With a stack to pot ratio (SPR) of just under 2 here it’s very difficult to get away from our hand. So the question is: how we can extract the most value out of our Pocket Queens?

A pure GTO solution to this situation involves a mixed strategy of checking to induce bluffs as well as betting extremely small (around 5.5 BBs). Both of these strategies keep our opponent’s range extremely wide and allow them to either bluff with much of their range (when we check) or call with worse hands than ours (when we bet small). In this situation we elect to make a small bet of 5.5 BBs and our opponent calls.

The turn is the 4d, which changes very little. Given our small bet on the flop we have encouraged our opponent to float (a float is when someone calls the flop to take the pot away on a later street) with a wide range. This means checking to them makes a lot of sense here to potentially encourage bets from many of the back door flush draws, weaker hands, and pure air that is in our opponent’s range. We check and our opponent bets 8 BBs.

Against tougher opponents who are capable of fighting for pots in this spot it is very important that we call here or else we have set our opponent up to be able to float us VERY profitably in this spot with their entire range. Against very straightforward opponents who are not capable of floating or bluffing with the correct frequencies we could make an exploitative fold here, but against tougher opponents we must call and we do.

The river is the 5s which changes very little given neither of our ranges rarely connect with it. We check and our opponent moves all-in. This is an extremely difficult spot versus a tough opponent. We’re getting nearly 3:1 on our money so before considering any other tournament factors, we need our opponent to be bluffing here around 25% of the time as we should only beat a bluff. If you use a GTO solver on this problem, it actually recommends a mixed strategy of calling and folding.

This is one of the real benefits of GTO solvers. It shows us how to optimally play against the very toughest opponents who are fighting hard for every last chip. Against the absolute toughest opponents who are capable of bluffing in this spot we should absolutely be calling some percentage of the time.

So the question we have to ask ourselves is: Is our opponent capable of floating and bluffing in this spot? In most regular tournaments where the field isn’t as tough and doesn’t play as optimally as the computer does in these spots, most players simply aren’t bluffing in these spots for all their chips often enough to justify calling here against all but the absolute toughest opponents.

Knowing the optimal way to play a situation and then adjusting for opponent tendencies is essential to adapting to the field in a post solver world.

Folding is the best play.

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Fearless River Instructor Tony Dunst recently broke down a hero fold he made on the bubble of the WPT Montreal $5000 CAD No-Limit Hold'em High Roller Event that helped add $95K to his already impressive Tournament winnings.

Check out Tony's blog where he breaks down his thought process with big pressure and big money on the line...

Learn more about Tony and how he can help improve your game by clicking here: Meet Fearless River Instructor Tony Dunst

DECISION POINT: At a 6-handed Tournament final table where blinds are 6,000/12,000 the Middle Position player limps and the Cutoff raises. It folds to you in the Small Blind with T♠T♥. Action is on you, what do you do here?

PRO ANSWER: At the final table of a daily local casino tournament the blinds are 6,000/12,000 with a 12,000 big blind ante we are dealt pocket tens in the Small Blind. The MP2 player limps and it folds to the Cutoff who raises to 35,000. The Button folds and action is on us.

Play has been a little tight and players have still been limping with some regularity. The first thing we need to do here is put our opponents on estimated hand ranges. Normally the open limper would be a bit concerning as they have only around 8 big blinds to begin the hand and most players are aware that with a short stack they should be either pushing all-in or folding a vast majority of the time. Given that limping is going on with some regularity, we can assign a range of some premium hands and some hands our opponents want to “see a flop” with such as mid pocket pairs and connectors or broadway hands such as QJo.

The Cutoff player, if they are aware of players limping fairly wide ranges, should be raising quite wide here. With the Hijack only having 65,000 chips and it being the final table, pay jumps should be fairly significant at this point. This means MP2 should be very wary of busting prior to the Hijack without a decent hand so they move up the pay scale.

Given both of those factors, our pocket tens are likely well ahead of both ranges. Another factor to consider is how important is it for US to not bust before the shorter stacks and move up the pay scale. Certainly if our hand were a bit more marginal like pocket sevens we would have to seriously consider folding here.

Pocket tens is a premium hand and even though we are unlikely to generate a huge amount of fold equity when we move all-in, our chip stack does potentially hurt Villain and take away many of their opportunities to abuse the shorter stacks in this way. This means we will generate some folds which will give us an additional 77,000 chips. In other instances we will be playing a pot with a significant equity edge over our opponent’s range of hands that if we win, will make us the chip leader and give us opportunities to abuse these same concepts against the rest of the table.

While this decision is closer than it may seem on the surface, our hand is still far too strong versus our opponent’s ranges in this situation to fold.

Moving all-in is the best play.

Whether you are a tournament or cash game player, looking to advance your move arsenal, or ready to master the game, attending a Fearless River Live Strategy Workshop is the quickest and most effective way to expand your No-Limit Hold’em game plan and get you on a path to success.

For the current schedule of 2-Day and 3-Day interactive training events taught by winning Professional Players and world-class Instructors click the button below:

Have a question about Fearless River Live Workshops? Contact us at [email protected] or (888)600-5593 and we’ll be happy to help!

Fearless River Students Scott and Lisa Roberts have been on a tear at the poker tables in recent months adding on to their impressive combined $125,000 in tournament winnings.

The World Poker Tour recently interviewed and featured Team Roberts in an article highlighting their phenomenal summer.

Click here or read more about Scott and Lisa's poker journey below

By Sean Chaffin

The couple that plays together, stays together. At least that’s the case for Scott and Lisa Roberts. This poker-playing pair have been married 37 years and is affectionately known as Team Roberts. The recreational players from Atlanta, Georgia, have been on a tear at the poker tables in recent months – and credit much of their success to strategies and techniques they’ve learned attending several Fearless River events.

The Roberts have apparently been good students. Scott, 62, works as a real estate investor and has more than $89,000 in live tournament winnings. Lisa, 63, is a retired personal trainer and has $35,000 in tournament winnings.

For Scott and Lisa, working with Fearless River has definitely transferred to the tables. They now hope to keep that mojo going.

Poker Power Couple

It was an especially nice September for Team Roberts at the WSOP Circuit stop at Seminole Coconut Creek in Florida where Scott won a $400 event for $6,994. Lisa notched a runner-up finish in a $250 seniors event for $5,284 and took sixth in a $600 turbo for $2,100.

“It was very frustrating coming in second,” she says laughing. “But I was very happy.”

At the turbo final table, Lisa was also joined by Scott and he took runner-up for $8,096. He followed up the runner-up finish with yet another second-place finish in a $250 DeepStack event for $4,486.

In total, Scott finished with four cashes for $20,182 and was named the player of the series. His background as a Fearless River student certainly helped, he says, and everything seemed to come together.

“It was one of those times where I was using moves to make moves and running well too,” he says. “When those two go together you can be unstoppable. It was just a really good trip.”

The couple, who have two grown children and a grandchild on the way, have family in the area and spent some time with them during the trip. Scott didn’t even realize he was in contention to be casino champion.

“We didn’t play a lot of the events just because we were seeing family,” he says. “We skipped several events, but if I had known I was in contention I definitely would have played a few more.”

Scott began playing poker in 2005 with some friends and online. He cashed in smaller tournaments and then won a $235 event in Las Vegas in 2017 for $20,108 followed by another big win a year later for $11,348.

Lisa wasn’t into the game like her husband however, and it took her a while to appreciate poker.

“I’d sit behind him when I was done playing Blackjack after losing money,” she says. “The TV was always on the poker channel [the WPT included], and I wasn’t really watching him play, but I started knowing all the players because of all the little vignettes they ran about them. Scott would come over while he was playing online and say, ‘Look I have such and such hand. What do you think the nuts would be right now?’”

Lisa would answer and often would be correct. She didn’t have much interest in the game but seemed to be picking it up. To her, the game just looked boring with the people looking “all serious and unfriendly.”

One night at a casino, Lisa planned to play Blackjack but her husband convinced her to take a seat at the tables. That first night she played Limit Hold’em holding a card with the ranking of hands.

“I won four hands in a row at one point,” she says. “I couldn’t even stack them fast enough because I didn’t know how to handle chips. I was so excited.”

She left the tables with some winnings, and some confidence. Her poker life took off from there – and that hand ranking card hasn’t been needed since.

Hitting the Books and Crushing the Tables

The Roberts figured out early that working on their game with some outside help would be a good idea. Team Roberts has attended several Fearless River events, spending many hours with instructors Nick Binger and Andrew Lichtenberger.

“I took a couple classes and realized how much I didn’t know,” Scott says. “Then we took one together with Nick and it just kind of opened our eyes up. It was just incredible how different the pros play from how we were playing.”

“After the first day, I was thinking, ‘This guy’s nuts. This is not going to work. Why did we take this class?’”

However, they stuck it out for the second day of training. The concepts Binger was presenting began making more sense. They headed to the Venetian that night and used some strategies they’d been taught at the tables. One thing Binger told the couple to practice in a tournament or two was raising on the button every time action folded to them, no matter what cards they had. If one of the blinds three-bet, he told them to four-bet. This overly aggressive strategy would take them out of their comfort zone of passive play.

“I told him I was going to need a few drinks before I played the tournament,” he says.

The coaching worked and Lisa made the final table that night and they won $10,000 playing tournaments that week.

“I was very unaggressive,” Lisa says of her play before attending Fearless River events. “I didn’t know what to do with anything. I’d limp, call, and maybe I’d raise. For me, I learned when to be aggressive and when to feel okay with being aggressive in the right situation regardless of your cards sometimes. I didn’t have any of that in my arsenal – I had no arsenal.”

For Scott, opening hand ranges was an idea he had never much considered. He may have put a player on a certain hand but had trouble adjusting his game to those kinds of scenarios.

The new concepts made his game more complex. Team Roberts also learned more about playing in position to maximize profits. They’ve gone on to take more advanced classes with each session building on others. The lab days are a particular favorite of theirs, where a group plays at a table and break down hands played with instructors.

“It ties everything together from what you learned the two days before in the class,” Scott says.

Would they recommend Fearless River to other players?

“If they’re people we play against, definitely not,” Scott says laughing.

Lisa adds: “I think it is the best poker money that we’ve ever spent. I know we were hesitant the first time, but it made major changes for us as far as winning. It’s an incredible class. You don’t really know what you don’t know until you take it.”

As recreational players, they try to find events that fit in Scott’s schedule running his real estate business. He plans to retire within the next five years and then the Roberts will play even more including some WPT tournaments. In the meantime, they plan on keeping their recent success going, and continue working on their game with Fearless River sessions.

As Lisa notes: “There’s always more to learn.”

Sean Chaffin is a freelance writer in Crandall, Texas, and his work appears in numerous websites and publications. He also writes feature stories and tournament coverage for WPT.com. Follow him on Twitter @PokerTraditions. For story assignments, email [email protected].

Whether you are a tournament or cash game player, looking to advance your move arsenal, or ready to master the game, attending a Fearless River Live Strategy Workshop is the quickest and most effective way to expand your No-Limit Hold’em game plan and get you on a path to success.

If you are ready for better results at the tables it’s time for you to take action and get a proven winning game plan to help get you there.

Hey, maybe you’ll be our next success story just like Scott and Lisa 😉.

Questions? Contact the Support Team (888) 600-5593 or [email protected] and we’ll be happy to help.

Ever wish you had a Poker Pro looking over your shoulder, helping you to decide whether to call a big raise or fire that third barrel?

What if you had the chance to get personal advice and feedback on YOUR play from Nick Binger, Andrew "LuckyChewy" Lichtenberger, and Eric "Rizen" Lynch?

Would you seize the opportunity to be 1 of 30 students who are given intimate access to proven advanced techniques and decision-making processes that help top professionals thrive in today’s competitive games?

Attend the Fearless River Live at Bellagio Advanced Tournament Strategy Workshop + Lab Day Session May 23rd - 25th, 2020 in Las Vegas and:

• Transform your preflop and postflop play through a deeper understanding of concepts and techniques used by top players
• Discover the process that the world’s best players use to maintain a cycle of constant improvement and keep their edge
• Get in-depth feedback regarding your play and learn the keys to real-time hand analysis directly at the table during Lab Day

ARE YOU READY?

Click below for schedule of upcoming events:

Questions? Contact the Live Support Team (888) 600-5593 or [email protected] and we’ll be happy to help.

Ahhhhh the River…

It’s only one card however it can drastically change the outcome of a hand, not to mention there’s usually a pretty sizable pot at stake.

The world’s best players know how powerful the River can be. They are masters at analyzing key factors, including preflop hand ranges, stack sizes, and how an opponent’s actions through the hand can help figure out what kind of story they are trying to tell us.

They have an arsenal of moves designed to maximize value and cause doubt in an opponent when there are no more outs to come.

Do YOU have trouble making raises, calling big bets, or folding big hands on the River?

Put your decision-making skills to the test against our Pros using the scenarios below and be ready to make the best decision possible the next time you are on the River:

• Top Pair on the River vs an All-in
• 2-Pair vs a Straight Draw
• Trip Aces on the River
• A River Decision with K♠Q♥
• Q♣Q♠ vs a River All-in

Deliberate application of key concepts at the table and consistent practice of your decision-making skills is essential for success in No-Limit Hold’em.

Remember… Amateurs play, Pros practice!

That’s why we ask that you read these scenarios and keep practicing… even if you don’t always agree with our analysis.

See you online,
-Fearless River

PS: a Membership with Fearless River is the easiest and fastest way to add more levels of complexity and nuance to your game. Members have access to over 250+ scenarios like this to practice their decision-making skills!

When we created Fearless River.com our goal was to provide a place that empowers players to ask questions, help get them focused, and provide a solid game-plan to bring to the table every time they sit down.

Some of the ways we accomplish this is by:

• Teaching and presenting examples of proven, winning concepts through our Strategy Episodes (short 10-15 minute instructional videos)
• Providing a place where Members can send questions to receive answers and guidance with the Ask a Pro feature and Fearless River Community Forums
• Giving Members the ability to record, save, and send real hands they’ve played to receive expert analysis of their play using the Hand Input Tool

Not a Member? Click below to join (just $5 your first month) and start improving your game today.

Yesterday Fearless River had not one but TWO Instructors battling it out under the bright PokerGO lights.

Take a look at how LuckyChewy and Tony fared….

LuckyChewy competed for his second WSOP bracelet and an impressive $1.4 million first prize at the World Series of Poker 50K buy-in High Roller.

Chewy started out third in chips against this tough final table line up:

Final Table Line Up:
Seat 1: LuckyChewy – 5,615,000 (47 big blinds)
Seat 2: Nick Petrangelo – 4,100,000 (34 big blinds)
Seat 3: Ben Heath – 7,630,000 (64 big blinds)
Seat 4: Chance Kornuth – 5,000,000 (42 big blinds)
Seat 5: Sam Soverel – 7,540,000 (63 big blinds)
Seat 6: Dmitry Yurasov – 3,660,000 (31 big blinds)

After many creative and interesting plays, Chewy and Ben Heath got heads-up for the bracelet.

The final hand began with a Button raise from Chewy and Heath three-betting his A♣J♠. Chewy four-bet shoved for 56 big blinds with A♦K♥ and Heath called.

Heath flopped a pair on the J♥5♦3♣ flop to take the lead in the hand. The T♥ turn made things a bit iffy for him, but a blank T♦ on the river guaranteed Heath the bracelet and Chewy walked away with a whopping $917,232 payday and a great start to the summer tournament season!

To learn more how LuckyChewy can help elevate your game click here: Meet Fearless River Instructor LuckyChewy

Tony Dunst competed to add WPT TOC victor to his resume along with a $440K first prize during the Baccarat Crystal WPT Tournament of Champions Final Table at the HyperX eSports Arena.

Tony started 3rd in chips against this group of WPT Champions:

Final Table Line Up:
Seat 1: Simon Lam – 359,000 (45 big blinds)
Seat 2: Nick Schulman – 239,000 (30 big blinds)
Seat 3: Ole Schemion – 1,871,000 (234 big blinds)
Seat 4: Griffin Paul – 308,000 (39 big blinds)
Seat 5: Ryan Tosoc – 549,000 (69 big blinds)
Seat 6: Tony Dunst – 475,000 (59 big blinds)

After a grueling final table, Tony and Ole Schemion were heads-up for the Champions Cup.

The final hand began with Schemion raising to 60,000 from the Button, Tony 3-betting to 250K, and Schemion calling. Tony checked the T♠J♥K♥ flop and Schemion bets 200,000 and gets called. Tony check-raised all-in on the 4♣ turn, Schemion snap-called.

Tony put himself at at risk with his K♣5♦ hand and was unfortunately drawing dead against Schemion’s flopped straight and flush draw with Q♠9♠. The meaningless T♦ lands on the river and Tony is eliminated in second-place with a $250,265 payday.

To learn more how Tony can help improve your game click here: Meet Fearless River Instructor Tony Dunst

It was an exciting day of poker and we couldn’t be more proud to have these great players and ambassadors of the game as part of the Fearless River Team.

Thank you to everyone who helped to cheer on Chewy and Tony at the Rio and HyperX eSports Arena, on social media, and sending in emails. Your support was greatly appreciated!

We can’t wait to watch Tony and Chewy breakdown and analyze the action from these exciting events in their upcoming Fearless River Strategy videos 🍿.

P.S. Missed any of the action? You can watch a reply of these exciting Final Tables anytime with a PokerGO subscription.

What an exciting weekend for Fearless River Instructors, Andrew “LuckyChewy” Lichtenberger and Tony Dunst!

Both Tony and Chewy are playing Final Tables against some of poker’s toughest opponents TODAY, Monday June 3rd and YOU can watch the action LIVE!

Chewy finished 2nd place in the WSOP 50K High Roller and added $917K to his lifetime tournament winnings!

We can’t wait to see what the rest of the summer brings 🎉

LuckyChewy is competing for his second WSOP bracelet and an impressive $1.4 million first prizeat the World Series of Poker 50K buy-in High Roller. Chewy is third in chips and up against these tough pros:

Final Table Line Up:
Seat 1: LuckyChewy – 5,615,000 (47 big blinds)
Seat 2: Nick Petrangelo – 4,100,000 (34 big blinds)
Seat 3: Ben Heath – 7,630,000 (64 big blinds)
Seat 4: Chance Kornuth – 5,000,000 (42 big blinds)
Seat 5: Sam Soverel – 7,540,000 (63 big blinds)
Seat 6: Dmitry Yurasov – 3,660,000 (31 big blinds)

Watch Chewy’s Final Table action with a subscription starting at 1 p.m. Pacific Time (4 p.m. ET).

If you don’t have a PokerGO subscription you can follow LuckyChewy’s quest for his 2nd bracelet on WSOP.com Live Updates.

Tony finished 2nd place in the Baccarat Crystal WPT Tournament of Championsand added $250K to his lifetime tournament winnings!

We can’t wait to see what the rest of the summer brings 🎉

Tony Dunst is competing to add WPT TOC victor to his resume along with a $440K first prize at the Baccarat Crystal WPT Tournament of Champions playing out at the HyperX eSports Arena. Tony is 3rd in chips against this group of WPT Champions:

Final Table Line Up:
Seat 1: Simon Lam – 359,000 (45 big blinds)
Seat 2: Nick Schulman – 239,000 (30 big blinds)
Seat 3: Ole Schemion – 1,871,000 (234 big blinds)
Seat 4: Griffin Paul – 308,000 (39 big blinds)
Seat 5: Ryan Tosoc – 549,000 (69 big blinds)
Seat 6: Tony Dunst – 475,000 (59 big blinds)

Watch the action with a PokerGO subscription starting at 4:30 p.m. Pacific Time (7:30 p.m. ET).

If you don’t have a PokerGo subscription you can follow Tony’s quest for his Championship on World Poker Tour’s Live Updates.

PS We can’t wait to watch Tony and LuckyChewy breakdown and analyze the action from these events in upcoming Fearless River Strategy videos 🍿.

Fearless River Instructor Andrew “LuckyChewy” Lichtenberger sat down with WPT’s Executive Tour Director Matt Savage to talk about his successes and experience teaching Fearless River Students.

LuckyChewy is one of the most respected and successful all-around poker players in the game today. Chewy’s experience and success make him a powerful resource and asset for Fearless River Members and Students.

W e are excited to have Chewy as part of the Fearless River Team!

Train with LuckyChewy LIVE during our upcoming Workshops!

You’ll send the weekend learning advanced cash game and tournament strategies from LuckyChewy while getting real-time answers and feedback on your game.

For information on the curriculum and what you can expect see the current schedule below including:

• Fearless River Live at Bellagio 3-Day Advanced Tournament Strategy Workshop + Lab Day Session May 23rd - 25th, 2020 in Las Vegas with Nick Binger, Eric "Rizen" Lynch, and Andrew “LuckyChewy” Lichtenberger. This event is limited to only Students!

• Fearless River Live at Commerce 2-Day Advanced Tournament Workshop February 15-16, 2020 in Los Angeles with Nick Binger and Andrew "LuckyChewy" Lichtenberger. This event features a freeroll satellite with a $3500 WPT Main Event seat as 1st prize! This event is limited to 32 Students!
  
  

Have Questions? Contact the Live Support Team at (888) 600-5593 or email [email protected] and we’ll be happy to help.

Thousands of poker players from every corner of the world are ready to descend on Las Vegas to test their skills and chase the fame (and cash) that comes with winning a high profile event.

Like many of these poker players, you’re happily counting down the days to the summer tournament season and preparing for glory. You’ve got your backpack, headphones, comfortable sweatshirt, and a few buy-ins to go along with all your dreams of success on the felt.

Your dream of being a champion begins…

You sit down in your 1st event and you are dealt A♥K♥ in late position(yes!).

You raise and get one caller. The flop is a dry T♦6♠2♣ and you fire out a continuation bet.

Your opponent wastes little time and puts in a continuation raise.

You fold.

A few hands later, it’s the same story…. raise first-in with a premium hand, c-bet, get floated. Turn card is no help, you have to check fold.

Sound more like a nightmare? It doesn’t have to be.

That’s why we’re giving you this exclusive access to a full Fearless River Strategy Episode where Fearless River Lead Instructor, Nick Binger outlines the adjustments you need to make when C-betting against Tough Opponents.

This is your opportunity to plug a leak in your game and to chase away those fears that may keep you up at night.

You’ll be back to sweet dreams of becoming a champion in no time!

Good luck and good playing!
-Fearless River

P.S. Ready for more? Join Fearless River for just $5 your first month of Membership and get full access to more content from Nick Binger and the Fearless River Team of Pros.