SPOT PRINCIPLE
At 1000bb the small blind tightens back toward its 100bb shape – but suited. Out of position mega-deep, every marginal open is a future crisis.
Only hands that can make the nuts – or fold without regret – belong in the range. Offsuit big cards win small pots and lose enormous ones.
Folded to you in the small blind: raise or fold. Completing invites the big blind to realize equity for free with position – a habit that gets expensive as stacks deepen.
Assumes a live-standard open to ~4bb, raise-or-fold. In straddled games, halve your effective big blinds and read the chart at that depth.
Baseline assumptions: 9-handed · no ante · no straddle · 4bb opens · low-rake live structure · cold-calling allowed. Charts reduce low-frequency mixes to a single default action; adjust live for opponents and rake. Baseline v1 · updated 2026-08.