Poker Pro Bond18 Shares Insights on Positional Play in MTTs

Bond18, a seasoned poker player, highlights one of the most common mistakes in poker: not understanding the role of position in the hand. This mistake is prevalent at all levels of MTTs and can significantly impact a player's performance.

One crucial aspect of positional play is knowing when to call raises. If your stack is less than 40BB, calling raises from the small blind is only possible in exceptional cases. The recommended calling range from the big blind against a raise from a late position includes KT/KJ/KQ, QT/QJ, JT, AJ/AT, T9s, and possibly some suited Ax. Against a raise from an early position, the range narrows to AQ, AJs, KQ, QJs.

When playing in position, Bond18 raises with a wide range of hands. For example, with stacks of around 30BB, the author raises with hands like 22+/A2o+/43s+/65o+/any two cards higher than 8. This aggressive strategy forces opponents to adjust their play, often leading to more calls than 3-bets. Bond18 advises paying attention to who 3-bets, who calls, and who folds, adjusting the strategy accordingly. Against opponents who do not 3-bet, continuing to raise with the entire range is beneficial because even if they call, the chances of winning the pot in position are on your side.