Intermediate Poker Strategy Articles

Popular Intermediate Articles

5 Situations Where C-Betting Will Burn You

By Dan B.

C-betting is a fundamental part of playing good, solid, winning poker. There are many situations where c-betting frequently is the…

Top Pair, Bad Kicker? Here’s the Right Way to Play It

By Dan B.

This article shares strategic advice from Uri Peleg on how to play top pairs with a weak kicker. The insights…

Where does the EV come from in poker?

By Dan B.

Continuing on the idea from the article I wrote recently (Should You Play Like a Nit Preflop?), in this article,…

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All Intermediate Poker Articles

The Biggest Mistakes Hold’em Players Make in PLO Tournaments (and How to Fix Them)

By Chad Burgess

PLO tournaments have one of the biggest edges in poker. Prize pools are growing, fields are soft, and on the…

Sneak Peek Inside Crushing PLO Tournaments with Dylan Weisman

By Duncan Smith

PLO tournaments are still one of the softest formats in poker. The fields are weak, the prize pools are huge,…

Play More Hands, Win More Pots: 5 Tips for PLO MTT Success

By Duncan Smith

Pot-Limit Omaha (PLO) tournaments are a completely different animal from No-Limit Hold’em. If you try to carry over your standard…

Push Fold Charts for Poker Tournaments, Plus More Advanced Strategies

By Leo Song-Carrillo

Note: Updated February 2026. For the original article and charts scroll to the bottom. In the mid-2010s, the emergence of…

How to Play the Turn After Range Checking the Flop (Part 1)

By Dan B.

Some time ago, I wrote about a few spots where checking your entire range on the flop is the right…

3-Bet Preflop Strategy with Updated Range Charts

By Dan B.

3-betting preflop is a fundamental strategy for winning at poker. Getting it right is also easier than ever, thanks to…

PR0DIGY vs Riggedeck: A $35,000 Hand Breakdown from the Cash Game World Championship

By Dan B.

As we steam ahead with the 2025 Cash Game World Championship (CGWC), I am going to break down a hand…

We’re Cutting Prices for Cyber Monday (25% Off Everything)

By Mike Brady

The 2025 Black Friday / Cyber Monday Sale is over. We’ll see you 2026 with more sales and more killer…

Unleash Your Potential with Lucid Poker

By Duncan Smith

This will change your poker game for the better. Lucid Poker Version 3.0 launches on November 10, offering a faster,…

Deep vs Shallow Study: The Key to Rapid Poker Improvement

By Uri Peleg

Uri Peleg is arguably the best poker coach in the world. He just released a game-changing course called Upswing Lab…

(Sneak Peek) Lab 2.0 is Your Path to Poker Mastery

By Duncan Smith

Ready to destroy weaker recreational players and come out on top against your fellow regulars? Upswing Lab 2.0 will teach…

LLinusLLove vs. AbsoluteTopUp: A Masterclass in Flush Draw Dynamics

By Dan B.

I’ve got a hand straight from the Cash Game World Championship hosted by CoinPoker. This one features Linus “LLinusLL0ve” Loeliger…

Top Pair, Bad Kicker? Here’s the Right Way to Play It

By Dan B.

This article shares strategic advice from Uri Peleg on how to play top pairs with a weak kicker. The insights…

Where does the EV come from in poker?

By Dan B.

Continuing on the idea from the article I wrote recently (Should You Play Like a Nit Preflop?), in this article,…

3 Preflop Exploits That Work in Live Championship Events

By Leo Song-Carrillo

The biggest live tournament of the year is underway. Whether you’re in the mix or just railing the action, there’s…

Should You Play Like a Nit Preflop?

By Dan B.

A player recently asked: “If only a minority of preflop hands make the majority of the money, why should I…

How Elite Poker Pros Play Pocket Kings Postflop

By Dan B.

Everyone gets a nice hit of dopamine and adrenaline when they’re dealt pocket Kings. Your unconscious mind expects a big…

5 Tips for Improving Your Skills with PokerTracker

By Dan B.

In this article, I’m going to share five ways you can use PokerTracker to improve your game. I’ve been a…

Limps in Poker: The Ultimate Guide to Crushing Open Limpers

By Dan B.

Think of limpers as your most valuable customers. Every time you see someone limp into the pot, you’re being handed…

5 Preflop Tips to Help You Crush on ClubWPT Gold

By Dan B.

In case you haven’t heard, there’s a new poker site available to most residents of the USA. It’s called ClubWPT…

3 Tips to Make Your Opponents Regret Raising Your Big Blind

By Dan B.

Playing well out of the Big Blind (BB) is essential. The pots you play after defending your BB might be…

3 Money-Making Exploits That Work in 99% of Poker Games

By Dan B.

Whether to attempt to play a game theory optimal (GTO) strategy has been a hot topic in the poker world…

3 Pro Tips for Playing Overpairs (via Lucid Poker)

By Dan B.

Are you maximizing your winnings with overpairs? Playing them correctly can mean the difference between extracting max expected value (EV)…

5 Tips For Check-Raising The Flop (via Lucid Poker)

By Dan B.

Check-raising is an essential skill to master. In this article, I’ll share 5 key tips for check-raising on the flop…

How to Exploit Maniac Poker Players

By Cameron Dhaliwal

Note: The new Lucid Poker channel will be posting helpful videos like this regularly. Click here to subscribe! Once again,…

What Top Poker Pros Already Know About 4-Betting

By Mike Brady

You’re about to learn how professional poker players approach 4-betting. You’ll find the answers to these key questions in this…

Quads vs Full House in High Stakes Poker Game

By Dan B.

Even the best poker players in the world deal with brutal bad beats. This hand features two powerhouse players going…

How To Play Underpairs in Cash Games

By Dan B.

It sucks when your pocket pair misses the flop, especially when you’re looking at three overcards. But you shouldn’t always…

Top Poker Pro Borrows Common Low Stakes Tactic ($99,136 Pot)

By Dan B.

Let’s visit the top of the poker food chain! The following hand took place in an online nosebleed $500/$1,000 ($200…

Nightmare for Pocket Aces! Huge Hands Collide in Massive Pot

By Dan B.

Sometimes losing a massive pot is avoidable; sometimes it isn’t.  Let’s take a look at a huge pot from a…

3 Tips to Help You Profit With Draws (Via Lucid GTO)

By Dan B. | August 23, 2024

Learning to play draws aggressively is one of the most important concepts that new poker players can learn. When you’re…

3 Pro Tips for Overbetting On The Flop (ft. Lucid GTO)

By Dan B. | April 12, 2024

The overbet (betting more than the size of the pot) is a powerful play. If you use this tactic at…

The Wild Tactic Poker Pros Use to Make More Money in Cash Games

By Dan B. | March 29, 2024

New poker strategies are always emerging. One wild tactic that has risen in prominence is 4-betting all-in in cash games…

How to Practice Ranging Your Opponents (Cash Game Example)

By Geoffrey Fisk | March 8, 2024

Putting your opponent on an accurate range of hands is arguably the most valuable skill in poker. In this video/article,…

Millionaire Poker Pro Gets Tricky With Pocket Aces in $116,668 Pot (Analysis)

By Dan B. | March 5, 2024

There’s not much better than watching two of the world’s best poker players battle it out at high stakes. The…

Doug Polk’s Wild Poker Session is a Whirlwind of Emotions

By Geoffrey Fisk | February 23, 2024

The high-stakes livestream game at The Lodge Card Club this past Sunday was epic, to say the very least. Upswing…

Trapping Top Pair with $751,073 On The Line (Final Table EPT London)

By Geoffrey Fisk | February 15, 2024

You’re at the final table of the EPT London Main Event. You’ve already outlasted over 700 players in the 5K…

Can You Exploit These 3 Poker Players?

By Geoffrey Fisk | February 13, 2024

Ready to test your exploitative poker skills? Upswing Poker’s newest course, titled Precision Poker, comes from the mind of chess…

How to Exploit Weak 3-Bettors (AKA Most Poker Players)

By Geoffrey Fisk | February 9, 2024

Upswing Poker’s newest course presents a fresh approach to poker from chess champion turned poker pro Alex Vuilleumier. In this…

3 Things That Shocked This Chess Master Turned Poker Pro

By Geoffrey Fisk | February 2, 2024

The newest course in the Upswing Poker library comes from a chess master turned high stakes poker pro. Alex Vuilleumier…

How to Play Five-to-a-Straight Boards Like a Pro

By Dan B. | January 26, 2024

Boards with five cards to the straight can be quite confusing to play. But fear not! In this article, I…

Sneak Peek: The End Boss System with Doug Polk & Fabian Adler

By Geoffrey Fisk | October 9, 2023

Are you a serious poker player who wants to elevate your game to the highest level? Doug Polk’s brand new…

Doug Polk Bets 3 Times the Pot & His Opponent Has Top Pair!

By Mike Brady | October 3, 2023

Doug Polk’s Bold Bluff Versus a Top Pro’s Pocket Aces

By Mike Brady | September 21, 2023

Preflop The blinds are $200/$400 and Doug starts the hand with $90,900 in his stack (Kevin covers). Doug raises to…

Straight Flush Draw vs Daniel Negreanu ($100,000 Duel Hand Analysis)

By Mike Brady | September 15, 2023

Doug and his longtime heads-up coach Fabian Adler have been working on a new course called The End Boss System…

(Sneak Peek) Road to Victory: The Ultimate Poker Tournament Course

By Mike Brady | May 9, 2023

If you’re a serious tournament poker player, read on. Two of the world’s best poker pros have combined forces to…

$10K Buy-In Super Millions Review (ft. Darren Elias & Nick Petrangelo)

By Mike Brady | May 5, 2023

Darren Elias Uses Bet Sizing Tell to Win $127,680 (Analysis)

By Geoffrey Fisk | April 28, 2023

Four-time World Poker Tour champion Darren Elias is a master of catching on to opponents’ tendencies and exploiting that information…

Poker Site Owner Double Check-Raises In $100,000 Buy-in Tournament (Analysis)

By Geoffrey Fisk | April 14, 2023

The text below is based on the video above. Sebastian Gaehl found himself in quite a juicy spot at the…

Should Tom Dwan Fold Pocket Queens In This $1 Million Buy-In Hand?

By Geoffrey Fisk | April 7, 2023

The text below is based on the video above. Imagine playing a €1 million buy-in tournament with 300 big blinds…

Upswing’s New Poker Strategy Advisor Won $1M+ Playing Cash Games

By Geoffrey Fisk | February 7, 2023

Doug Polk calls him “the greatest poker mind I’ve ever met.” And that’s why Upswing Poker has hired Fabian “Frabb”…

3 Spots to Use Tiny Bet Sizes in Cash Games

By Dan B. | November 11, 2022

The best poker players in the world have a seemingly unlimited amount of weapons in their arsenal. One of those…

How to Play Nut Flush Draws in Cash Games

By Dan B. | November 1, 2022

I freaking love flopping the nut flush draw. It’s such a strong draw and you can expect to win pretty…

Sneak Peek Inside Smash Live Cash with Nick Petrangelo (ft Brad Owen)

By Mike Brady | October 12, 2022

Want to maximize your winnings at the live cash game tables? Read on. Taught by elite poker pro Nick Petrangelo,…

Doug Polk Does The Thing He Said To Never Do (Analysis)

By Mike Brady | August 19, 2022

Doug once said “don’t fold sets” in No Limit Hold’em… …but apparently he was being hyperbolic because that’s exactly what…

Why You Should NOT Chop When Deep In A Tournament

By Patrick Harvey | July 22, 2022

If you have ever made a deep run in a tournament, you may have been asked “Do you want to…

Play Like a Pro When The Turn Pairs The Middle Card

By Dan B. | June 28, 2022

When the turn card pairs the board in a heads-up pot, the dynamic between the players changes greatly. This article…

How to Conquer Aggressive Poker Players (5 Exploit Tips)

By Jake Godshall | April 20, 2022

(Note: Video not loading? Click here to watch it on YouTube or read on for a written version.) Have you…

How You Should Play Four Flush Boards (But Probably Don’t)

By Jake Godshall | April 15, 2022

(Note: Video not loading? Click here to watch it on YouTube or read on for a written version.) Boards with…

How to Crush the Guy Who Always C-Bets

By Jake Godshall | April 8, 2022

Have you ever played against a player who seems to continuation bet (c-bet) every hand? This article will help you…

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Poker Training Course: Upswing Lab 2.0

Enjoying the free strategy articles, but want to take your game to the next level? Upswing has a poker training path for you in the new Lab 2.0 to move from intermediate to advanced as you work beyond the Launch Pad and into the Mastery Path. Lessons are from some of the world's best coaches including Uri Peleg, Gary Blackwood, and Qing Yang. Lab 2.0 gives you a clear path to sharper and more profitable play.

Enjoying the free strategy articles, but want to take your game to the next level? Upswing has a poker training path for you in the new Lab 2.0 to move from intermediate to advanced as you work beyond the Launch Pad and into the Mastery Path. Lessons are from some of the world's best coaches including Uri Peleg, Gary Blackwood, and Qing Yang. Lab 2.0 gives you a clear path to sharper and more profitable play.