I'd like to start really studying GTO, not to directly improve my game, but to build a real and deep understanding of the game NLHE.

This studying would be purely theoretical for me.
I doubt I'll use much GTO while I'm actually playing. Tough I'm certain it will be useful while playing and make me a better player.

I've come to realize part of my love for poker is in the theory.

But where do I start?

I have gathered at least some of the, possibly basic, GTO concepts that are thrown around on this forum.

Do I get a solver and start running hands that interest me?
This seems very time intensive and probably not optimal since I'm sure others have done this work and the info should be out there already.

Do I get a sub to a training site? Which one?

Both?
Other options?


My theoretical basis is pretty solid, I think I know and understand all the basic terms and concepts like pot odds, implied odds, equity, expected value, ...

But I've never studied any GTO concepts.
I'm sure I'm already applying some, if not many, of them in my game.

But now I'd like to build a theoretical knowledge of GTO, not a practical one.


I'm on a budget, though I have some money to spend, I don't have thousands of dollars to spend on this.
So paying a coach $200 an hour is not an option.
A training site of $100 / month would be one, though already on the expensive side for me.

Solver 100%

I really don't know where I stand on this.

On one side it feels like running things through a solver is just trying to re-invent the wheel.
It's all been done and the info should be out there?

On the other side, I know I'll learn a ton by actually running my own sims because I'll be able to focus on spots that confuse and/or interest me.
Also doing something yourself is a much better way to study than watching someone else do it.

Everything hasn't been done, much less documented and shared, but I agree there's a lot you can learn from a coach/training site to get up to speed.

I would say all of the above, the more you can invest in training the better, and the more you can spend studying sims the better

It's literally software that can answer almost any question you could possibly have and within a reasonable time frame and at any time of day.

A solver can't tell you why it does something. It should be complementary to your study but not the only way you study, and maybe not even the primary way you study.

I'd start with some books like MoP.

+1 to getting a solver. After running enough sims on hands you play, you'll start to recognize some interesting patterns from the outputs. High frequency checking OOP as RFI on Axx boards, higher check raise frequency the lower the bet size, 1/3 or check on mono boards, small pocket pairs are often used as bluffs

You can also find twitch streamers, 2+2 posts, or youtubers who do solver work. Personally I ended up doing a lot more study this way rather than using the solver I purchased. One big downside is you have to then decide whether they are correct of course, I remember watching a very prominent player try to justify something like bluffraising T8s on QQT by fiddling with the inputs until the solver did it at some frequency XD. I guess there is the similar downside to having your own solver inputs wrong as well.

Theres a GTO youtuber I like, Finding Equilibrium, who makes good solver content. I have learned a lot from him.

He released a new product recently that I have NOT purchased or used, GTOx, that is basically a cloud based solver database where you paste in a hand history and get a solution for it. Im not sure if you can adjust pf ranges or if it just uses standard ranges.

It is a monthly subscription service so you can try it out to get started on GTO study and then invest in PIO or some other solver yourself when you feel ready to expand your studies to investigate different pf ranges or bet sizes, or node lock and study how to exploit players who deviate from equilibrium in different spots.

I wouldn't recommend that product for anyone. Especially not a beginner.
It teaches poor solver habits like solving the flop for 4 sizings, which is impossible for anyone let alone a solver newbie to accurately pull off.

it also sends the wrong message. "this is how people split their range. they use these 4 sizings OTF" which is incorrect. It's neither right in theory nor in practice.

Also i've seen FE break down a recommended turn call in one of his youtube videos that was losing 10 ev BB compared to a shove. According it him it was a mix.

i'd stay far away.


OP: get a solver. don't waste your money on training sites.

literally all you need to get good at in poker is a solver.