ATo from UTG, first in — fold, call or raise?
The answer
Raise
open-raise
The math: The six-max UTG chart opens ATo+. Ace-ten offsuit is the boundary hand.
Why
ATo is not a powerhouse, but first in at a six-player table it has enough high-card strength and blocker value to open. Better aces can still dominate it, so keep the pot controlled when called; that postflop caution does not turn a charted preflop raise into a fold.
The spot
- Your seat
- UTG
- Stakes and stacks
- $1 / $2 · 100bb
- Your hand
- A♦ T♣
- Board
- Preflop — no board yet
- Pot
- POT · $3
- Action on you
- You’re first to act
Every option
Foldgive up the hand
Why not: Ace-ten offsuit is the six-max chart’s lowest UTG offsuit ace. Folding the boundary hand would make the range tighter than the model you are practising.
Calllimp in
Why not: Limping first to act surrenders the initiative and invites dominated hands to realise equity cheaply. ATo clears the opening line, so raise it.
Raiseopen-raiseCorrect
2bb · $4 · 2.5bb · $5 · 3bb · $6
The idea behind it
Boundary hands are profitable but close. Open them first in, then avoid overplaying one-pair hands when stronger ranges continue.
Concept: Range edges
Terms in this spot
Play it instead of reading it
The trainer deals this hand with hints, grading and spaced repetition — and randomized variations of it once you have seen it.