Stand Up Game poker strategy: the last two standing
We solved one five-handed No-Limit Hold’em table without a side game, with two players left standing and with all five standing, then solved one river exactly with and without the penalty at stake. Every frequency and EV on this page comes from those solves. The penalty payments come from the rules.
What the solve says
- With two players left standing, the button, still standing, opens 100.0% of its hands (44% without the side game).
- The big blind, the other one standing, folds less than one percent against any open: it calls or 3-bets 100% of its hands against a button open (57% without the side game).
- Facing the big blind’s 3-bet, the button folds less than one percent and calls 92% of the time. Without the side game it folds 48%.
- The seats already sitting keep their opens close to a normal game: the hijack opens 23% and the cutoff 26% (22% and 29% without the side game). The small blind, sitting, calls a button open 51% of the time (11% without).
- On Q♥9♣4♦2♣7♠ after the line below, the big blind bets pot about as often as without the side game (54% against 56%), and the button folds only 25% to it (75% without).
- On the first hand of the night, with all five standing, every seat opens far wider: the hijack 46%, the cutoff 60% and the button 82% (22%, 29% and 44% without the side game). The small blind folds less than one percent first in and limps 89% of its hands.
The table we solved
- Game
- No-Limit Hold’em, five-handed: hijack, cutoff, button, small blind, big blind
- Stacks
- 100bb each, blinds 0.5 / 1, no rake
- Bet sizes
- The Tree Wizard’s NLH 6max Cash - 100bb profile: opens to 2.5x (3x from the small blind). Flop half pot, turn three quarters, river pot.
- Stand Up
- Penalty 5 bb per player. Two left standing: the button and the big blind. The hijack, cutoff and small blind have sat down.
- Ranges
- Every seat starts with every hand. The solves find the ranges.
- Rules as solved
- Every seat starts standing. Winning any share of a pot, at showdown or when everyone folds, sits a seat down. When one seat is left standing, it pays the penalty to every other seat.
Two left standing: how wide does each seat open?
The button and the big blind are still standing. The pot folds to each seat in turn.
| % of hands | No side game | Two left standing |
|---|---|---|
| Hijack opens | 21.8% | 23.0% |
| Cutoff opens | 28.7% | 26.1% |
| Button opens | 43.8% | 100.0% |
| Button folds to a cutoff open | 79.9% | 0.0% |
| Small blind calls a button open | 11.3% | 50.6% |
| Small blind 3-bets a button open | 11.6% | 0.3% |
With two left standing the button opens every hand, so the small blind is never first in.
If the button or the big blind wins a pot, the other one is the last one standing and pays 5 bb to each of the four other seats: 20 bb in all. A pot won by a seat already sitting changes nothing.
Two left standing: how wide does the big blind defend?
Folded to the button, who opens to 2.5x. The small blind folds.
| Big blind against | No side game: defends | No side game: 3-bets | Two left: defends | Two left: 3-bets |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hijack open | 35.4% | 6.7% | 100.0% | 16.0% |
| Cutoff open | 42.6% | 8.6% | 100.0% | 15.8% |
| Button open | 57.3% | 13.0% | 100.0% | 25.9% |
Defends: calls or 3-bets.
Against each open the big blind folds less than one percent, and it 3-bets 26% against a button open (13% without the side game). Facing that 3-bet, the button folds less than one percent.
Two left standing, one river: who bets, who folds?
The button opens and the big blind calls. Q♥9♣4♦: the big blind checks, the button bets half pot, the big blind calls. 2♣ checks through. River 7♠, 11.1 bb in the pot.
| River decision | No side game | Two left standing |
|---|---|---|
| Big blind bets pot first | 55.7% | 53.7% |
| Button folds to that bet | 74.7% | 25.5% |
| Button calls that bet | 20.0% | 65.4% |
| Button raises that bet (any size) | 5.3% | 9.1% |
| Button bets pot after a check | 19.4% | 37.7% |
| Big blind folds to that bet | 50.8% | 31.3% |
| Big blind raises all-in against that bet | 0.8% | 20.9% |
Each solve brings its own ranges to this river: the big blind arrives with 630 combos by weight with two left standing and 227 without the side game, the button with 152 and 159.
Whoever wins this pot sits down and leaves the other one as the last one standing. The big blind bets about as often as without the side game. What changes is the button’s answer: it folds 25% instead of 75%.
Everyone standing: does the first hand of the night change anything?
All five seats standing, the first hand after the game starts.
| % of hands | No side game | Everyone standing | Two left standing |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hijack opens | 21.8% | 45.8% | 23.0% |
| Cutoff opens | 28.7% | 59.7% | 26.1% |
| Button opens | 43.8% | 82.0% | 100.0% |
| Small blind folds first in | 33.2% | 0.0% | — |
| Small blind limps first in | 45.1% | 89.2% | — |
| Big blind defends against a button open | 57.3% | 100.0% | 100.0% |
With two left standing the button opens every hand, so the small blind is never first in.
With all five standing, winning this pot sits the winner down and is worth about 5 bb to it. The small blind folds less than one percent first in (33% without the side game), and the big blind folds less than one percent against any open.
What each seat wins per hand
Seat EVs from each preflop solve, the side game included: chips won or lost in the hand plus what this pot changes in what the side game pays the seat. With two left standing, the button and big blind are standing and the hijack, cutoff and small blind have sat down.
| Seat | No side game | Everyone standing | Two left standing |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hijack | +0.13 bb | −0.16 bb | +0.40 bb |
| Cutoff | +0.18 bb | +0.03 bb | +0.44 bb |
| Button | +0.27 bb | +0.27 bb | −0.26 bb |
| Small blind | −0.22 bb | −0.24 bb | +0.15 bb |
| Big blind | −0.37 bb | +0.10 bb | −0.75 bb |
What barely moves: with two left standing, the hijack opens 23% of its hands, against 22% without the side game.
At the table
- With two left standing, on the button and folded to you: raise any two cards. The solve raises 100.0%.
- With two left standing, in the big blind against any open: call or 3-bet your whole range. The solve folds less than one percent against each.
- Already sitting, with two left standing: open as you would without the side game. From the small blind, call a button open wider: the solve calls 51%, against 11% without the side game.
How this solve was created
How to Solve the Stand Up Game in HydraSolver, Step by Step
Watch on YouTube
Every step on this page, filmed as it was done: the tree, the Stand Up settings, the solves, Compare, the river and the first hand of the night.
How it was solved
- HydraSolver 1.2.04. Solve Detail Standard for the preflop solves, each run until Volatility stayed at or under 1 (Auto-Stop, 5 checks in a row). The river solves are Exact.
- Accuracy reached: 0.03–0.13 bb/100 without the side game, 0.08–0.29 bb/100 with everyone standing, 0.05–0.21 bb/100 with two left standing. Both river solves: 0.000% of the pot.
- Seat EVs include the side game: what this pot changes in what the side game pays each seat.
- One open size per seat and one bet size per street. Read how we measure accuracy on the No-Limit Hold’em proof.
Study it yourself
- Open these spots free
The Stand Up solves from this page, preflop and river, as HydraViewer files. Open them in your browser and click through every hand.
Free HydraViewer pack → - Solve your own table
Build the tree with the Tree Wizard and its NLH 6max Cash - 100bb profile at five players. In Settings, leave Solve Detail on Standard and Configure side game: pick Stand Up (Nit) Game, click each seat that has sat down, and set the penalty. In Auto, tick Volatility at 1 for 5 checks. Then Start.
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