Everything the trainer grades against. Normal pre-flop and flop decisions use deterministic basic-strategy rules; Shared cards applies pre-flop rank-blocker tables. The river is graded by exact dealer-hand enumeration, with the dealer-out rule shown as a human-speed heuristic when no extra cards are exposed.
Raise 4× with any of the following, otherwise check. Raising 3× is never correct.
Take every qualifying 4× opportunity; pre-flop Play bets account for much of the strategy’s value.
With the Shared cards add-on enabled, every other player’s hole cards are visible in any practice module. For a borderline starting hand, count exposed cards matching either of your ranks. These are described as rank blockers so they are not confused with the river’s dealer outs.
Later streets retain the trainer’s existing strategy; visible cards are removed from live dealer outs and exact odds.
If you checked pre-flop, bet 2× with any of the following, otherwise check:
“Two pair or better” misleads in two spots where most of the hand is the board’s, and the trainer grades them by exact EV instead:
The trainer uses the rules above and treats the third-best trips-board kicker as a close decision instead of falsely grading it as universal.
Normally bet 1× with a hidden pair or better. Otherwise count the single cards (“outs”) that would let the dealer beat you, and bet when fewer than 21 outs beat you; fold at 21 or more. When you can’t even out-kick the board (you play the board), use the tighter cutoff of fold at 18+ outs. Exact EV remains authoritative on dangerous boards and with exposed cards.
Counting quickly. Every unpaired board rank gives the dealer 3 pairing cards, and every rank above your kicker adds 4 more (3 if it’s on the board). The board pattern sets the base:
| Board texture | Base outs | Kicker that plays (no higher card showing) |
|---|---|---|
| Unpaired board | 15 | King |
| One pair | 11 | Queen |
| Two pair (5th card above the low pair) | 7 | Jack |
| Trips | 7 | Jack |
| Two pair (5th card below both pairs) | 4 | Ten |
| Four of a kind | 3 | Seven — and see the exception below |
Succession rule: each board card that outranks the listed kicker moves the requirement down one — on an unpaired board a King plays; with an Ace showing a Queen plays; with Ace and King showing a Jack plays, and so on.
Important exceptions:
Equivalent kicker shorthand: unpaired board — 2nd-nut kicker (nut kicker if a flush is possible); one-pair board — 3rd-nut kicker; two-pair board — 5th-nut if the top pair is 7s or better, else 4th-nut; trips board — 4th-nut; quads board — 8th-nut suffices.
Folding costs 2 units (Ante + Blind). Calling risks 1 more to win 1–2. With N single-card outs, the chance the dealer hits one is roughly
p = N/45 + (45−N)/45 × (N+4)/44
— first card an out, or first card whiffs and the second hits an out (the +4 covers the dealer pairing their own first card, plus runner-runner). Calling beats folding when p < 3/4, i.e. when you win at least 25% of the time. Solving the quadratic N² − 85N + 1305 > 0 gives N ≤ 20.1 — so you call with 20 or fewer outs, fold at 21+.
The dealer needs a pair or better to open (qualify). If the dealer doesn’t open, the Ante pushes; Play and Blind still have action. Ante and Play pay 1:1. The Blind pays only when your winning hand is a straight or better, otherwise it pushes on a win:
| Winning hand | Blind pays |
|---|---|
| Royal flush | 500 to 1 |
| Straight flush | 50 to 1 |
| Four of a kind | 10 to 1 |
| Full house | 3 to 1 |
| Flush | 3 to 2 |
| Straight | 1 to 1 |
| Anything less | Push |
House edge: 2.19% optimal (≈0.53% element of risk); the simple strategy gives up little — about 2.43% house edge, 0.58% element of risk. The trainer’s bankroll figure is in units of one Ante.