Defending the Blinds
Small blind and big blind strategy against steals
You post the blinds every orbit, so blind defense is one of the biggest contributors to your overall results. Two forces pull in opposite directions in PLO5: hands have more equity, which encourages defending, but the out-of-position player realises less of that equity and faces more domination. The solution is a strategy that defends a little wider than 4-card PLO but 3-bets less.
Big blind: approximate frequencies
| Facing an open from | Fold | Call | 3-bet |
|---|---|---|---|
| Early position | ~73% | ~25% | ~3% |
| Middle position | ~70% | ~26% | ~4% |
| Cutoff | ~67% | ~28% | ~5% |
| Button | ~59% | ~33% | ~8–9% |
| Small blind | ~33% | ~56% | ~11% |
Two things stand out. First, the big blind still folds most hands against early and middle position opens — "equities run close" is not a licence to defend 80% or 90%. Second, the 3-betting frequency is low: against an early position open the big blind 3-bets fewer than one hand in thirty, and only about half of its aces 3-bet. Out of position against a strong range, many aces prefer to see a flop.
Which hands defend the big blind
- Double-suited hands with connectivity form the core. Single-suited versions of the same ranks are frequently folds.
- Pairs with set value, including double-paired hands, defend widely because you close the action at a good price.
- Avoid low-suited, gappy hands with danglers. JJ632 double-suited is a fold even in the big blind; JT98 with a deuce dangler defends only when double-suited.
Small blind: tighter, but more calling than you think
The small blind is the hardest seat. You are out of position for the whole hand and a player behind you can still squeeze. Typical patterns:
- Against a button open, the small blind 3-bets around 8% and cold calls around 7–8% — noticeably more calling than in 4-card PLO.
- Hands that defend need nut potential: you will often have to check-raise or check-call multiple streets, and only nutted draws and made hands handle that well.
- Broadway pairs are among the hands the small blind 3-bets more than the button would, because lowering the SPR helps them out of position.
- Many hands that defend the big blind are folds in the small blind, for example TT887 single-suited against a button open.
Blind versus blind
When the small blind opens, the big blind is in position for the whole hand and the small blind's range is wide. Here the big blind defends roughly two thirds of hands and 3-bets about one in ten — the most aggressive 3-betting spot in the game. The small blind, in turn, folds a surprisingly large share (roughly 28%) to that 3-bet.
Adjustments
- Rake: in high-rake games, defend less from both blinds. The rake eats into marginal calls.
- Min-raises and small opens: you are getting a better price, so defend more — but keep the quality requirements for hands that will face multiple streets out of position.
- Very loose openers: 3-bet more for value with hands that dominate their range (high cards, nut suits), but don't start 3-betting middle rundowns; they are exactly the hands loose openers have too.
- Squeeze-happy players behind you: in the small blind, tighten your flatting range further.
After the flop, a big part of good blind play is having a leading range and knowing your defense thresholds.
Frequencies are approximate values from 100 big blind, 6-max solver studies with typical online rake.