Upswing Poker Level Up

Do you know how to respond when you get check-raised after betting? In theory (and if you're facing tough players), you have to continue with many more hands than you might expect on certain flops. But on other flops, you should actually play quite "A-B-C" versus check-raises by only calling or re-raising with strong, equity driven hands. Mike Brady and poker pro Gary Blackwood walk you through how to battle back against check-raises on 4 different flop types in this ...

Heads-up poker is fast and action-packed. You have to play loose and aggressive to maximize your win-rate. But you also have to be precise with your aggression to avoid spewing money to your opponent. Whether you play heads-up or not, you can benefit a lot from learning heads-up strategy. Case in point: Doug Polk has had a ton of success in non-heads-up games throughout his career, and he owes a lot of that success to the skills he gained playing ...

Multiway pots are incredibly common in live poker cash games and they warrant a completely different strategy than heads-up pots. You need to adjust your preflop hand selection, your postflop bet sizing, how you play as the aggressor, and how you play as the caller. Do you know the money-making adjustments to make in multiway pots? No worries if not, because Mike Brady and poker pro Gary Blackwood are about to walk you through the fundmentals of playing hands with ...

Paired flops like A-A-5 or 7-7-4 are fairly common in No Limit Hold'em. As a result, the way you play them will have a pretty big impact on your overall win-rate. Do you know how often to c-bet on these flops as the preflop aggressor? And are you familiar with the (very aggressive) response you should use as the player in the big blind facing a bet? Mike Brady and poker pro Gary Blackwood cover the fundamentals of paired flops ...

Playing out of position as the preflop raiser is one of the most misplayed situations among poker players. A lot of people think that just because they raised preflop, they should follow through with a bet on the flop at a high frequency. That’s largely true when you’re in position, but playing out of position calls for a much more passive and defensive strategy. If you’re continuation betting too often in these spots, you’re likely leaving a lot of money ...

Bounty tournaments have taken over the online poker world (especially Progressive Knockouts) and live bounties are far from uncommon. This unique format requires a unique strategic approach. If you're playing bounty tournaments the same as non-bounty tournaments, you are absolutely torching money every time you play. Aussie tournament pro Hristivoje "ALLinPAV" Pavlovic joins the Upswing Level-Up Podcast to share some bounty tournament wisdom and help you capture more EV in this popular format. If you want to dive deep into ...

There's no doubt that Ace-King is one of the best starting hands in No Limit Hold'em. But "Big Slick" also gives some poker players a lot of trouble. If you want to avoid mistakes and maximize your profit when you're dealt Ace-King, this episode of Upswing Poker Level-Up is for you. First, you'll how to play Ace-King in every common preflop scenario. Then, get tips for playing it after the flop (3 tips for when you hit, 3 tips for ...

The aggressive betting strategy known as "range betting" can be a big money-maker in poker...but it can also be incredibly costly if you try it at the wrong time. Do you know the flops and situations that warrant a range bet? And perhaps even more importantly, do you know which boards you should slow down and check at least sometimes? This episode of Upswing Poker Level-Up will help you answer those key questions. Mike Brady and poker Gary Blackwood teach ...

If you ever play poker tournaments that start with deep stacks, this video is for you. You're about to get a lesson on early stage deep stack strategy from one of the best tournament players of all time: Nick Petrangelo. He's got over $30 million in live cashes and many millions more online, so you know you're in good hands. Nick reveals 3 crucial takeaways for early stage tournaments. This lesson was taken directly from his Deep Stack Dominance course ...

The great game of Pot Limit Omaha is arguably the most profitable poker game to play in the modern era. The average PLO player tends to be much less studied than the average No Limit Hold'em player, so you can gain a big edge by learning the fundamentals. Those fundamentals are what this episode of Upswing Poker Level-Up is here to teach you as high stakes PLO specialist Dylan Weisman joins Mike Brady. Get a winning PLO strategy fast with ...

Imagine this. The flop has checked through after you defended your Big Blind against a player who raised preflop. Now, you're considering whether or not to probe bet (the term for a bet in this situation) on the turn. Do you know which hands to probe bet? And what about the size you should bet? That's exactly what you're about to learn in this episode of Upswing Poker Level-Up. Mike Brady and poker pro Gary Blackwood will cover the basics ...

The $10,000 buy-in World Series of Poker Main Event is a special tournament. Even poker business people like Mike Brady and cash game pros like Gary Blackwood dust off their hoodies to register the big one and take a shot at glory. In this special episode of Upswing Poker Level-Up, Mike and Gary recap their respective runs (or lack thereof) in the 2023 WSOP Main Event. If you really want to take your tournament poker skills to the next level, ...

The Small Blind is a unique position because you already have half a blind invested, which improves your pot odds, but you're also out of position against every player at the table. What's more, you've still got the Big Blind to worry about behind you. This unique position requires a unique strategy before the flop. Mike Brady and poker pro Gary Blackwood walk you through the optimal approach from the Small Blind in this episode of Upswing Poker Level-Up. If ...

Poker tournaments are a grind and you have to have a lot of different skills to succeed in them. Do you know how to play with deep stacks in the early stages? Does your strategy thrive (and/or survive) in key bubble situations? Can you set yourself up for the final table once you're in the money? Do you have what it takes to play your A-game at the final table and eventually close the deal heads-up? Darren Elias is an ...

Ace-high flops are the most common type of flop in the game, but they certainly aren't the easiest to play correctly. Many poker players use an over-simplified strategy on these flops, playing all Ace-high flops very similarly, but that is far from the best way to play them. Instead, you must consider the subtle factors that separate one Ace-high flop from the next and how those factors should impact your strategy. Learn those subtle factors and the strategies you should ...

If you are a player who rarely bets big at the poker table, you are leaving a lot of money on the table. Betting big in the right spots allows you to build pots with strong hands when you have them, but it only makes sense to do when the rest of your range can support it. Mike Brady and Gary Blackwood help you understand exactly when to shovel big bets into the pot in this episode of Upswing Poker ...

15 or so years ago small bets were used quite rarely by great poker players. But since then, the usage of small bets has grown as players realized how much expected value they can add to their overall strategy. Using small bets at the right time will allow you to win more pots and put your opponents in tough spots, so this is a vital topic. Mike Brady and Gary Blackwood cover the factors that should push you towards betting ...

Flops with three cards of the same suit can be very confusing to play. They're unlike any other flop texture type in poker, so they warrant a unique approach. Do you know what bet size to use on monotone flops as the preflop raiser? What about which hands to check-raise against a bet as the preflop caller? Mike Brady and Gary Blackwood help you understand the answers to these questions and more in this episode of Upswing Poker Level-Up. If ...

You might know when and how to check-raise in poker, but do you know how to proceed on the turn when your check-raise gets called? How should you decide which hands to continue betting for value? And when should you keep up the aggression with a bluff? Gary Blackwood and Mike Brady help you understand the answers to these questions and more so you're equipped to handle these tricky post-check-raise situations. If you really want to take your poker skills ...

Splashy live poker games with lots of action are incredibly profitable. But they can be incredibly frustrating too, especially if you don't know how to adjust your strategy for maximum profit. In this episode of Upswing Poker Level-Up, Mike Brady and Gary Blackwood cover the most critical adjustments that you must make when playing in loose, splashy live poker games If you really want to take your poker skills to the next level, head over to http://upswingpoker.com. Upswing has hundreds ...