progressBB defense vs HJ open at 23 BB
8-max MTT · ante 12.5 % · Hijack opens, small blind folds · chip EV
How the BB defends at 23 BB
Facing a Hijack open to 2 BB (small blind folds) with 23 big blinds, the big blind folds only 21% of hands, calls 66%, 3-bets to 6.5 BB with 2.2% and goes all-in with 11%. The big blind already has one blind in the pot and closes the action, so it gets a good price.
Always 3-bet: ATs.
Always all-in: AKs, AKo, AQo, AJo, A5o, QQ, Q9o, JJ, 99, 88, 77, 66.
Folded: K2o, Q6o, Q5o, Q4o, Q3o, Q2o, J3o, J2o, T5o, T4o, T3o, T2o and 9 more.
Against other openers at 23 BB the big blind continues with: vs BTN 88%, vs CO 84%, vs LJ 77%, vs UTG+1 74%, vs UTG 73%. The later the opener, the wider its range, and the more the big blind defends.
Closest decisions (the book continues with them only part of the time): J4o 48%. These are the hands worth drilling, because a small change in the opponents or the stack flips them.
What changes around 23 BB
The book continues with 79% of hands here, 80% at 22 BB and 79% at 24 BB. These leave it: K3o, J4o. With the extra chips some former all-ins become small raises: AA, KK.
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Numbers come from the progressGTO solution book (v14, chip EV, 8-max, ante 12.5 %): our own equilibrium computation with a modelled postflop. It is an approximation, not an exact solution, and it keeps improving. Hover or tap a hand to see its exact frequencies.
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