Glossary

Texas Hold'em Strategy Terms

Translate GTO, EV, SPR, MDF, blockers, and range language into hand-review thinking.

GTOA balanced strategy baseline that is difficult for strong opponents to exploit.EVExpected value: the long-run average value of a decision.EquityYour hand or range's share of the pot based on showdown winning chances.Pot OddsThe price offered by the pot compared with the amount required to call.SPRStack-to-pot ratio: effective remaining stack divided by the pot size.MDFMinimum defense frequency: a theory baseline for how often a range should continue.RangeThe set of hands a player can have after a given action line.Range AdvantageWhen one player's overall range performs better on a board.Nut AdvantageWhen one player has more combinations of the strongest possible hands.BlockerA card that reduces the number of strong combinations an opponent can hold.C-BetA continuation bet by the player who had the betting lead on the previous street.Check-RaiseChecking first, then raising after another player bets.3-BetA re-raise after an open raise.4-BetA raise made after a 3-bet.ICMIndependent Chip Model, used mainly in tournament payout decisions.KickerA side card used to break ties between similar made hands.Value BetA bet made hoping to be called by worse hands.Thin ValueA value bet with a medium-strength hand against enough worse calls.Bluff CatcherA hand that usually beats bluffs but loses to value bets.Set MiningCalling preflop with a small pair mainly to flop three of a kind.