SPOT PRINCIPLE
Facing a positional 3-bet 500bb deep, the opener's plan is patience: flop equity or fold, never inflate.
4-betting narrows to the very top; suited hands with nut potential call more. The question on every street becomes: which hands are happy getting 500bb in?
Your hijack steal ran into the cutoff's 3-bet – position against you, and a range that knows your open was wide.
Assumes a standard 3-bet; 4-bet to ~2.2–2.5x the 3-bet. Deep, favor calls over 4-bets – a 4-bet pot at 500bb+ commits you with range disadvantage.
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.