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In heads-up limit Hold'em, how wide should the big blind defend against a button raise, and how often should it 3-bet?
Heads-up, PokerToast's limit Hold'em solver defends the big blind against a button raise with 87% of hands: it calls 57%, 3-bets 30% and folds 13%.
The spot
Heads-up limit Hold'em, before the flop. You are in the big blind and the button raised.
The solver's numbers
| Play | Share of all hands |
|---|---|
| Re-raise (3-bet) | 29.8% |
| Call | 57.0% |
| Fold | 13.2% |
Every one of the 169 starting hands, weighted by how many of the 1,326 possible deals it stands for.
Hands it folds more often than not (14 of 169): T2o, 94o, 93o, 92o, 83o, 82o, 73o, 72o, 63o, 62o, 52o, 43o, 42o, 32o.
Example hands
| Hand | Plays (how often) | Worth (EV estimate, small bets) |
|---|---|---|
| A-5 offsuit A♥ 5♦ | Re-raise (3-bet) 51.6% Call 48.4% | Re-raise (3-bet) +1.06 Call +1.05 Fold +0.00 |
| 8-7 suited 8♥ 7♥ | Call 54.5% Re-raise (3-bet) 45.5% | Call +0.76 Re-raise (3-bet) +0.72 Fold +0.00 |
| A-K offsuit A♥ K♦ | Re-raise (3-bet) 100.0% | Re-raise (3-bet) +2.43 Call +2.24 Fold +0.00 |
| Q-5 offsuit Q♥ 5♣ | Call 98.7% Fold 1.3% | Call +0.36 Fold +0.00 Re-raise (3-bet) +0.26 |
| K-2 offsuit K♥ 2♣ | Call 99.8% | Call +0.44 Fold +0.00 Re-raise (3-bet) +0.27 |
| 7-2 offsuit 7♥ 2♣ | Fold 99.2% Call 0.8% | Fold +0.00 Call −0.21 Re-raise (3-bet) −0.48 |
What popular strategy articles say
No heads-up limit number was found; the answers fell back on no-limit benchmarks, which do not apply to limit.
What AI search answers said when we asked this question on 2026-10-08. They cited strategy articles written mostly between about 2007 and 2013, and most of that advice is for full-ring games with several players in the pot.
Among the sources AI search surfaced, the numbers on this page are the only direct heads-up limit answer.
Heads-up vs multiway
This question is about heads-up play (two players), so there is no multiway version of it.
How these numbers were made
From PokerToast's own heads-up limit Hold'em solver, trained 9,047,710 iterations, exported 2026-10-07 01:24:47, 63,797 situations (version H-9047710-20261007012447). It learned by self-play (Monte Carlo counterfactual regret minimization) for limit betting, at most four bets a street.
- How often is the solver's average strategy for this situation.
- Worth (EV) is an estimate measured after training by playing the situation out many times against the solver's own strategy: small bets won or lost from this decision on, compared with folding (0). It assumes an opponent who plays like the solver.
- Hand groups: the solver groups similar hands, so the numbers are for the group, not only these exact cards. Before the flop it knows all 169 starting-hand types and your position (button or big blind). After the flop it groups your hand by how it uses the board (for example an overpair, top pair and its kicker, or a draw), the board's texture (paired, two or three of a suit, connected), the pot and the betting so far on this street.
- Looked up when this page was built (2026-10-19); a newly trained solver changes the page and its version number.
Practice it
Today's Hold'em Daily Spot Open PokerToast
Part of: Heads-up limit Hold'em before the flop
More Hold'em spots: Heads-up limit Hold'em: which hands does the button fold? · Heads-up limit Hold'em: top pair in the big blind on the flop. Bet or check-raise? · Heads-up limit Hold'em: continuation-bet A-5 on a 9-6-2 flop? · Heads-up limit Hold'em: pocket 2s in the big blind against a button raise · Heads-up limit Hold'em: K-J offsuit on the button facing a 3-bet. Cap, call or fold? · Heads-up limit Hold'em: pocket Aces on the button. Raise or limp?