Opening when it’s folded to you is the easy part of preflop play. Most tricky decisions happen when someone has already raised. You can fold, call (a “cold call”), or re-raise — a 3-bet. And when your own open gets 3-bet, you face the same choice again, plus the option to 4-bet. This lesson gives you a clear, solid framework for all of those spots.
Key takeaways
- Against a raise, your range should be much tighter than when you open.
- 3-bet for value with hands that beat the hands that call you; 3-bet as a bluff with hands that play well if called and block strong hands.
- 3-bet to about 3x the open in position and about 4x out of position.
- From the small blind, prefer 3-betting or folding to calling.
- Facing a 3-bet, continue with fewer hands — fold the bottom of your opening range.
Why ranges tighten against a raise
An opening raise tells you something: the raiser has chosen to play. An early-position raise in particular usually means a strong hand. That’s why hands you’d happily open — K-J offsuit, A-9 offsuit — become trouble against a raise. When they hit, they’re often dominated: you make top pair and lose to a better kicker.
KJ AKK-J against A-K wins only about a quarter of the time. You’d much rather have folded, or have held a hand that doesn’t share a card with the raiser’s best hands.
Your three choices
| Option | When it’s good |
|---|---|
| Fold | Weak and dominated hands; out of position with marginal hands |
| Call | Hands that play well after the flop and aren’t dominated, especially in position (pairs, suited connectors, suited broadways) and in the big blind, where you get a good price |
| 3-bet | Your strongest hands (for value) and some well-chosen bluffs |
The big blind is special: you already have a big blind in the pot and you close the action, so you can call a lot more hands. You’ll study this in Check-Raising and Big Blind Defence.
3-betting for value
A value 3-bet wants to be called by worse hands. Against most opens, that means:
- Always: AA, KK, QQ, AK.
- Often: JJ, TT, AQ — more against late-position opens, which are wider.
Don’t slow-play these by calling. Calling lets several players in cheaply and gives up the chance to build a big pot with your best hands.
3-betting as a bluff
If you only 3-bet premium hands, observant players will fold everything but their best hands and you’ll only win the blinds. Adding some bluffs keeps them honest. Good bluffing hands:
- Suited aces (A5s–A2s): they block AA and AK (fewer combinations for your opponent to continue with) and can make flushes and wheel straights.
- Suited connectors and suited broadways that play well when called.
A sample button 3-bet range against a cutoff open:
BTN 3-bet vs CO open (illustrative)86 combos · 6.5% of hands
How big to 3-bet
| Situation | 3-bet to | Example vs a 2.5bb open |
|---|---|---|
| In position (you’ll act last after the flop) | ~3× the open | 7.5–8bb |
| Out of position (from the blinds) | ~4× the open | 10–11bb |
| Each caller already in the pot | +1 open size | Squeeze bigger |
Out of position you go bigger because you’ll be at a disadvantage after the flop — you want to win more pots before it, and make it costlier for the opener to call.
A squeeze is a 3-bet after one player raises and another calls. The caller has shown they don’t have a premium hand, and the raiser has to act with a player still behind them, so squeezes succeed often. Size them larger: about 4× the open plus one open for each caller.
When your open gets 3-bet
Now the roles reverse. Your options are fold, call or 4-bet.
- Fold the weakest part of your opening range. If you opened a wide button range, most of it should fold to a 3-bet.
- Call with hands that play well and aren’t dominated: medium pairs, suited broadways, some suited connectors — especially in position.
- 4-bet for value with the top of your range (QQ+, AK), plus a few bluffs with blockers such as A5s. A 4-bet is usually about 2.2–2.5× the 3-bet in position, and a little bigger out of position.
The pot is already large, so these decisions matter. Remember that the 3-bettor’s range is strongest when they’re a tight player or when they 3-bet from early position.
A simple framework to start with
- Facing an open: 3-bet QQ+ and AK every time. Add JJ, TT and AQ against late-position opens.
- Add a few bluff 3-bets with suited wheel aces (A5s, A4s), mostly in position.
- Call in position with pairs and good suited hands that aren’t dominated.
- From the small blind: mostly 3-bet or fold.
- Facing a 3-bet: 4-bet QQ+ and AK; call good suited hands and pairs in position; fold the rest.
Next up: once the flop is out, how do you judge it? Board Texture.
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