Poker Strategy: Why Solvers Push QJs and Call with K6s

Цин Ян, a prominent figure in the poker community, is currently creating content for GTO Wizard. He has abandoned his old YouTube channel, Poker Giraffe, but his contributions to the platform remain valuable. This article summarizes two of his engaging videos, focusing on advanced poker strategies.

The solver recommends pushing 100 BB with QJs if the button raises (2.5 BB) and receives a 3-bet from the small blind (12 BB). This move is strategic for several reasons. Firstly, it knocks out dominating hands like AQ, AJ, and KJ, which might call a small 4-bet. Secondly, it avoids the scenario where you hit a valet or dame on the flop and lose your stack to a top pair with a better kicker.

However, the solver does not push AJ because many weaker hands will fold, making it more profitable to call and leave them in the small blind's range. QJs has good equity against AK, which is a significant part of the 3-bet call range, giving it about 30% equity. The solver also recommends pushing AK with a certain frequency to make the opponent fold AQ and AJ, and to burn the equity of many hands. Adding JJ and TT to the pushing range makes the opponent think twice about calling with lower pocket pairs, as they will often face domination.

The solver prefers to call with K6s in various situations, including against 4-bets, due to its ability to cooler Ax hands. This strategy is particularly effective against aggressive players who have a lot of middle hands in their 3-bet range, making the push with AK even more profitable.