Jacob Topley

Naturally, as I spend a lot of my time coaching poker, I can see the benefits that my students receive. I'll be bias and suggest that all players should receive coaching to some degree. It's also important for me to explain how a good poker player operates and exactly what poker coaching is. I'll also explain more about...

Have you ever wondered how you should play out of position in a 3bet pot? What about when you’ve missed one of the many draws that you could have in the hand? Today we will be analysing a bluff made over 3 streets in a 3bet pot. In the following hand I’ll be discussing my decision making preflop, on the flop, turn, and...

You can’t pay poker without losing a hand. Similarly, you can’t get through your poker career and always take home a win. This is something that you can’t control, no matter the form of poker that you play, tournaments or cash, from hold’em to razz. We will all have losing poker sessions. What separates the good from bad poker players, is how well...

It's tougher than you'd think...You need to walk...

“Should I ever straddle in poker?” is a question several friends and students have asked me over the past few years. Every time I answer, it is some form of no. A straddle is a voluntary blind raise normally from the UTG position (see Mississippi Straddling for another variation), it acts as a 3rd blind. On the surface straddling is a highly -ev...

“Should I ever straddle in poker?” is a question several friends and students have asked me over the past few years. Every time I answer, it is some form of no. A straddle is a voluntary blind raise normally from the UTG position (see Mississippi Straddling for another variation), it acts as a 3rd blind. On the surface straddling is a highly -ev...

When you’re sat at a live table, you shouldn’t throw GTO out of the window. Exploitative poker is normally going to be the best thing to do against most of the players you will come up against live. However, what...

When you’re sat at a live table, you shouldn’t throw GTO out of the window. Exploitative poker is normally going to be the best thing to do against most of the players you will come up against live. However, what...

There are several things you should be doing both on and off the table to get ahead of the competition. Here are my top 10 cash poker tips to help you get better at poker, faster. Range Charts Preflop Bet Sizings Basic Math Overbetting Calling with Draws Slow Playing 3betting and 4betting Stop Losses...

There are several things you should be doing both on and off the table to get ahead of the competition. Here are my top 10 cash poker tips to help you improve at poker, faster. Range Charts Preflop Bet Sizings Basic Math Overbetting Calling with Draws Slow Playing 3betting and 4betting Stop Losses...

GTO Trainer is a must-have piece of poker software for any mid to high stakes player. It’s simplicity and speed are its greatest assets; however, the high cost and the slightly incomplete dataset could be a reason to wait. GTO Trainer is an in-browser poker solver offering access to 100,000’s of solved poker situations for the user. Poker solvers are complex and advanced...

GTO Trainer is a must-have piece of poker software for any mid to high stakes player. It’s simplicity and speed are its greatest assets; however, the potentially high cost and the slightly incomplete dataset could be a reason to wait. GTO Trainer is an in-browser poker solver offering access to 100,000’s of solved poker situations for the user. Poker solvers are complex and...

GTO Trainer is a must-have piece of poker software for any mid to high stakes player. It’s simplicity and speed are its greatest assets; however, the high cost and the slightly incomplete dataset could be a reason to wait. GTO Trainer is an in-browser poker solver offering access to 100,000’s of solved poker situations for the user. Poker solvers are complex and advanced...

If you want to master cash games, you need to be self-critical and analyze your game. You need to find which areas you’re doing well in and find the parts of the game you are playing significantly poorly in. The most efficient way of studying is by first understanding what you’re doing incorrectly. Database analysis is a tool that can be used to...

The term “bankroll” in poker refers to the amount of spare money you use to play poker with. There is a right way and a wrong way to manage your roll. Good bankroll management would mean you always have enough money to play poker, even if you have to drop down to a lower stake for a while. Bad bankroll management...

The term “bankroll” in poker refers to the amount of spare money you use to play poker with. There is a right way and a wrong way to manage your roll. Good bankroll management would mean you always have enough money to play poker, even if you have to drop down to a lower stake for a while. Bad bankroll management...

Despite both having the same ruleset, tournament poker and cash poker are two quite different forms of the same game. Cash poker relies on you being able to make the most money in each situation in the long run. Each cash situation is imagined in the context of a game with fixed blind levels and the ability to always top up your stack....

Putting your opponent on a range of hands is an essential part of being a winning poker player. By understanding what hands your opponent is most likely to have in a situation, you can use your knowledge of pot odds and equity to make the most optimal play. When you become a master in range...

In the modern age of poker, there has been less of a focus on live tells and physical reads in games - and for a good reason. The reality is that reading players' emotions is difficult. The chance that you misread or misunderstand your opponent is too high and not worth the risk. Making the wrong read will cause you to lose more...

If you want to become a better poker player, the higher you progress through the stakes, the more heavily you will need to implement a GTO strategy. One thing that all poker solvers will suggest is to randomize several aspects of your game. You will find solvers rarely want you to make an...