One seat later, one player fewer to get through, and the range widens by about a third. The chart, the range in text, and what changes.
| High card | A | K | Q | J | T | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 2 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A | AA — Open-raise | AKs — Open-raise | AQs — Open-raise | AJs — Open-raise | ATs — Open-raise | A9s — Open-raise | A8s — Open-raise | A7s — Open-raise | A6s — Open-raise | A5s — Open-raise | A4s — Open-raise | A3s — Open-raise | A2s — Open-raise |
| K | AKo — Open-raise | KK — Open-raise | KQs — Open-raise | KJs — Open-raise | KTs — Open-raise | K9s — Open-raise | K8s — Fold | K7s — Fold | K6s — Fold | K5s — Fold | K4s — Fold | K3s — Fold | K2s — Fold |
| Q | AQo — Open-raise | KQo — Open-raise | QQ — Open-raise | QJs — Open-raise | QTs — Open-raise | Q9s — Open-raise | Q8s — Fold | Q7s — Fold | Q6s — Fold | Q5s — Fold | Q4s — Fold | Q3s — Fold | Q2s — Fold |
| J | AJo — Open-raise | KJo — Open-raise | QJo — Open-raise | JJ — Open-raise | JTs — Open-raise | J9s — Open-raise | J8s — Fold | J7s — Fold | J6s — Fold | J5s — Fold | J4s — Fold | J3s — Fold | J2s — Fold |
| T | ATo — Open-raise | KTo — Fold | QTo — Fold | JTo — Fold | TT — Open-raise | T9s — Open-raise | T8s — Fold | T7s — Fold | T6s — Fold | T5s — Fold | T4s — Fold | T3s — Fold | T2s — Fold |
| 9 | A9o — Fold | K9o — Fold | Q9o — Fold | J9o — Fold | T9o — Fold | 99 — Open-raise | 98s — Open-raise | 97s — Fold | 96s — Fold | 95s — Fold | 94s — Fold | 93s — Fold | 92s — Fold |
| 8 | A8o — Fold | K8o — Fold | Q8o — Fold | J8o — Fold | T8o — Fold | 98o — Fold | 88 — Open-raise | 87s — Open-raise | 86s — Fold | 85s — Fold | 84s — Fold | 83s — Fold | 82s — Fold |
| 7 | A7o — Fold | K7o — Fold | Q7o — Fold | J7o — Fold | T7o — Fold | 97o — Fold | 87o — Fold | 77 — Open-raise | 76s — Open-raise | 75s — Fold | 74s — Fold | 73s — Fold | 72s — Fold |
| 6 | A6o — Fold | K6o — Fold | Q6o — Fold | J6o — Fold | T6o — Fold | 96o — Fold | 86o — Fold | 76o — Fold | 66 — Open-raise | 65s — Open-raise | 64s — Fold | 63s — Fold | 62s — Fold |
| 5 | A5o — Fold | K5o — Fold | Q5o — Fold | J5o — Fold | T5o — Fold | 95o — Fold | 85o — Fold | 75o — Fold | 65o — Fold | 55 — Open-raise | 54s — Fold | 53s — Fold | 52s — Fold |
| 4 | A4o — Fold | K4o — Fold | Q4o — Fold | J4o — Fold | T4o — Fold | 94o — Fold | 84o — Fold | 74o — Fold | 64o — Fold | 54o — Fold | 44 — Open-raise | 43s — Fold | 42s — Fold |
| 3 | A3o — Fold | K3o — Fold | Q3o — Fold | J3o — Fold | T3o — Fold | 93o — Fold | 83o — Fold | 73o — Fold | 63o — Fold | 53o — Fold | 43o — Fold | 33 — Open-raise | 32s — Fold |
| 2 | A2o — Fold | K2o — Fold | Q2o — Fold | J2o — Fold | T2o — Fold | 92o — Fold | 82o — Fold | 72o — Fold | 62o — Fold | 52o — Fold | 42o — Fold | 32o — Fold | 22 — Open-raise |
This chart is authored, not solved: a deliberately simplified 6-max baseline — 100bb, no ante, a 2.5bb open, raise-or-fold from the small blind. It is not solver-derived, and it does not claim that every boundary hand is pure in every rake structure. The code that expands and tests this notation is public; the ranges themselves are a teaching choice, and the lessons are checked against them rather than the other way round.
Middle position, the hijack in a six-handed game, has four players behind instead of five. That sounds like a small change and it is worth about five percentage points of range: from roughly a seventh of the deck to a fifth.
The hands that arrive are the ones the extra seat was costing. Small pairs come in all the way down to 22, because a set is worth the same whoever is behind and there is now one fewer stack likely to have a bigger one. Suited kings and queens widen a couple of gaps, and 65s joins the suited connectors.
What does not change is the shape. Middle position still plays out of position against the cutoff and the button, so the range stays built on hands that flop something rather than hands that merely look good preflop. Offsuit trash gains nothing from one fewer opponent.
Real hands from the trainer where you are sitting in this seat. Each one shows the solver-verified answer before it asks you to trust anything.
About 20% of hands in a 6-max cash game, roughly a third wider than under the gun. That is all pairs, ace-x suited, the better suited kings, queens and jacks, suited connectors to 65s, and offsuit broadways from ATo, KJo and QJo.
One player fewer to get through, worth around five points of range. Concretely, MP adds the small pairs below sixes, a couple of gaps in the suited kings and queens, 65s, and the offsuit broadways KJo and QJo that under the gun leaves out.
In a six-handed game, yes: the seat two off the button is called both. At a nine-handed table there are several middle seats and the hijack is specifically the one before the cutoff, which opens wider than the ones before it.