Introducing, Crazy Eights Poker, interactive preflop GTO study decks. We've taken GTO solutions and presented them in a way that better emulates how you actually play the game.
Our new study decks contain 169 cards, one for every starting hand in NLHE. Each card breaks down how to play that hand correctly preflop, according to Game Theory Optimal (GTO).
The included instructions and study tips guide you through the many ways to use these cards to study, improve your game, and increase your win-rate at No-Limit Texas Hold'em.
Our Interactive GTO Study Decks are intended to work for anyone that already plays NLHE. We aren't teaching the rules of the game, we are simplifying some of the same, powerful information that top level pros study in a format that is easier to understand. Each deck contains instructions on how to read the cards, as well as the GTO concepts necessary to understand them.
If you play with friends occasionally in a friendly home game, this deck can be the perfect introduction to what GTO is, and how to start using it to make better preflop decisions. You can even use the deck with friends to study together.
If you're a grinder, already making a living on the felt, these cards give you new ways study preflop that are not currently possible with traditional GTO range charts. These study decks can help you sharpen your existing edge and supplement other methods of study.
With our study decks, you get out of them what you put in to them. Unlike other methods of studying PREFLOP poker, no subscription is required. It's a one time purchase for a high-quality, collectible reference that you keep forever. Makes the perfect gift for any poker player.
THESE STUDY DECKS ARE CONSIDERED REAL TIME ASSISTANCE OR RTA. THEY SHOULD NOT BE USED IN AN ACTUAL GAME OR WITHOUT THE KNOWLEDGE OF ALL OTHER PLAYERS INVOLVED. WE BELIEVE IN STUDYING, NOT CHEATING.
Position at the poker table is of utmost importance. Hands become stronger as fewer people are left to act. The player ‘IN POSITION’ has a strong advantage. (Positional advantages shift POSTFLOP when the BLINDS become first to act.)
GTO takes into consideration the hands that should be in both your and your opponent’s RANGES to determine what your next optimal decision should be vs. their actions.
Start by identifying which position at the table you are seated, from the top of the chart. Moving down that column simulates the order of actions at the table. Find the seat your opponent is in to find the cell with the correct GTO actions to take.
Part of playing optimal poker is mixing how often you take an action with your particular hand. This ensures that your decisions are unpredictable, so that you can’t be exploited by your opponent. Within each cell is a color-coded representation of how often you should take each action.
Whenever an opponent raises, you will face a new decision of how to respond. If they OPEN, you have an option to 3-BET. If you 3-BET, they can 4-BET. Both your and your opponent’s RANGES will narrow as more hands fold and less hands continue.
Follow the column down, to find your response to every raise your opponent makes. The colorful divider lines indicate a new type of decision and a change in positional advantage based on who is last to act.
GTO solutions incorporate ALL hands you should be playing PREFLOP so that you arrive at POSTFLOP with proper board coverage.
No starting hands should be excluded when studying. But, not all hands are created equal.
With these cards, it is possible to study the most important hands in greater detail.
(i.e. Learning how to correctly play J-J PAIRED according to GTO will likely improve your win rate more than mastering 9-6 OFFSUIT.)
Use an established method of studying, known to be effective in promoting active recall and strengthening memory.
Flip through these shuffled cards to test your knowledge of PREFLOP RANGES. You can go through the cards with specific prompts in mind to get better at particular scenarios.
(i.e. “Is this hand part of my 3-BETTING range from the BIG BLIND?” Or, “Should I open this hand from the CO?”)
On each card, there is a legend identifying the STUDY GROUPS this hand is a part of. By gathering all the cards within a group, you can study the related hands as a family.
This is a powerful shortcut to categorizing your starting hands and understanding the relative strengths and weaknesses of each hand within that family. Try studying thresholds of actions within each STUDY GROUP as a whole.
(i.e. “Which AX SUITED hands should I call a 3-BET with, from Under The Gun?”)
If you are ever unsure of how to play a hand or situation preflop, flip to the right card and instantly discover what actions to take, the next time it gets dealt to you.
(i.e. “Should I ever 3-BET KJ SUITED from the BUTTON vs. an OPEN from EARLY POSITION?”)
This study deck is a permanent reference you can use at any time in the future without having a subscription or internet connection.
Shuffle up and deal ‘em out.
Because each STUDY CARD represents one starting hand, you can emulate game play with yourself or with others by dealing a card to each seat and then comparing how different hands react to each other based on their possible GTO actions.
(i.e How would 9-9 PAIRED in the SB play
against A-J SUITED in the BB?)
Each STUDY DECK is designed for a specific EFFECTIVE STACK SIZE measured in BIG BLINDS. This is the amount of chips that one player can win from another when both are ALL-IN.
Collect STUDY DECKS designed for different effective STACK SIZES, so you can compare how the same starting hand adjusts for when your effective stack size is higher or lower.
(i.e. Should I raise more or less OFFSUIT BROADWAY cards from the BUTTON when my stack size gets to 2X my buy-in?)
HI, my name is Chris, the founder and inventor of Crazy Eights Poker. I've spent over 20 years as a creative in graphic design. For fun, I play poker every chance i get. Crazy Eights Poker is the meeting point between those two passions. At Crazy Eights Poker, we aim to simplify and create new ways to study poker theory.
GTO or Game Theory Optimal has become a huge part of playing No-Limit Hold'em. But it can be complicated and expensive to learn. Crazy EIghts Poker wants to simplify those concepts and present them in new, innovative ways that make studying poker more accessible to players at any level.
Crazy Eights is one of the simplest card games to learn, often taught to children as an introduction to playing cards. We strive for that level of simplicity in how we present advanced poker concepts. Is that so crazy?
We've got a lot of big ideas about more ways to innovate. Please help us launch our flagship Preflop Study Decks and then stay tuned for what we come out with next. Have ideas for something you want to see? Drop us a line and let us know.