When to squeeze in poker.

When to squeeze in poker

One player has raised the blinds. There is one or more callers in front of you. 3-betting in this situation is called squeezing or the squeeze play, because it puts the initial raiser in the middle. It is a powerful move, because the initial raiser is in a tricky position and because the callers are unlikely to have a strong hand. Calling is also an option, as discussed below. Continue to read to learn how to squeeze in poker.

Squeezing

Bet sizing

It is recommended to raise to 4 times the open raise in position and 5 times the open raise out of position. For more information, see Preflop bet sizing.

When to re-raise (3-bet)

A good starting point is to use the same range you use when there is no caller (but with a bigger raise size). This is fairly close to the GTO solutions.

When to call

A rule of thumb is to call with the same range you use when there is no caller. This is fairly close to the GTO solution in most scenarios. An exception is the big blind is blind that is calling a bit tighter than if there was no caller.

It is challenging to memorize all the different charts just by looking at them. It is also hard to know if you remember correctly. We strongly recommend practicing preflop ranges in the preflop exercise to help you commit them to memory and get feedback on mistakes.

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