First in (RFI) · full-ring table, 8–9 players · 40 big blinds or more
With antes — the standard in today's tournaments and what the Pokwise app shows for this spot. Without antes: 47%.
With a deep stack, in the small blind only one opponent is left — that's why the small blind plays the widest ranges in the game, with numbers that surprise anyone seeing them for the first time. As a result, the SB opens 52% of hands — a wide range: with few players left to act, even mediocre hands make money just from the chance of taking the blinds.
Sizing matters as much as the cards: the standard raise here is 3 BB (bigger than from the other positions — you'll play the whole hand out of position, so you make it more expensive to defend). Just calling the blind (limping) with 40 BB+ is the most common way to turn a good hand into a messy pot.
What about a short stack? From around 10 BB the math changes completely: small opens disappear and the decision becomes shove or fold — check the SB push/fold chart.
Everyone plays the obvious hands the same way — the edge of a player who studies shows up exactly in this grey zone.
🎯 Would you get it right? Test yourself with K7o in this spot — free on PokwiseCharts by hand, position and stack · a quiz that explains every answer · no card required