Linear Range Poker: Build Better 3-Bets
You want to 3-bet for value, but the bottom of the range feels arbitrary. A linear range gives that decision a clean rule: start with the best hands and move down until the next hand no longer earns the raise.
Quick Answer
A linear range in poker contains the strongest hands available in a continuous, top-down order. Players commonly use it when they have one aggressive continuation, such as raise or fold, or when opponents call reraises with too many weaker hands. Premiums come first, followed by the next-best hands for that exact spot.
What is a linear range in poker?
A linear poker range is a stack of hands chosen from strongest to weakest for one decision. GTO Wizard describes linear ranges as top-down value and notes that they often appear when a player has only one way to continue. First-in opens, some early-position 3-bets, and calls against an all-in can fit that pattern.
Continuous does not mean a perfect ranking by raw all-in equity. A hand must also realize equity after the flop. A5s may fit a range while A8o does not because the suited ace can make nut flushes, wheel straights, and useful semi-bluffs. The range is top-down according to performance in the spot, not a single preflop equity list.
If range notation is new, begin with our poker hand ranges guide. It explains pairs, suited hands, offsuit hands, and the 13-by-13 matrix used to display a linear shape.
Linear vs polarized ranges
A linear range raises premiums and the next-best medium hands. A polarized range raises premiums plus selected weaker hands, leaving a gap of medium hands that usually call. The deciding factor is the action tree. If calling has value, polarization can preserve it. If calling is poor or unavailable, a linear raise-or-fold range is often cleaner.
| Range shape | Hands selected | Typical preflop use | Main risk |
|---|---|---|---|
| Linear | Best hands downward | Open, value-heavy 3-bet, call versus shove | Thin bottom hands meet a strong continue range |
| Polarized | Premium value plus selected bluffs | 3-bet when medium hands can call | Too many weak bluffs become exploitable |
| Condensed | Mostly medium hands | Flatting after top hands reraise | Top end can become capped |
The labels describe shapes, not fixed charts. Read the polarized range guide for blocker-driven bluff selection and a deeper comparison.
When should you use a linear 3-bet range?
Use a linear 3-bet range when your best response is to raise the strongest hands and fold or rarely call the rest. Common reasons include high rake, a player left to act behind you, a wide opener, or an opponent who calls reraises too freely. Exact ranges still change with position, sizing, stack depth, and format.
Your cold-call branch is weak
Suppose the cutoff opens and you are on the button. If rake or aggressive blinds make flatting unattractive, you may continue mainly by 3-betting. The range can run from AA downward through strong broadways and pairs until the next hand fails to clear the threshold.
The opener calls too much
Against a player who rarely folds to 3-bets, weak blocker bluffs lose much of their purpose. Medium-strength hands that dominate the calling range gain value. An old r/poker discussion about live $1/$2 captures the practical debate: when fold equity is scarce, players favor a tighter value-heavy range over decorative bluffs.
You face a shove
After an opponent moves all in, you usually choose call or fold. With no reraising branch to protect, the calling range tends to take the best hands from the top down. Tournament payouts and blockers can create exceptions, but the basic shape remains linear.
Find the real boundary. Drill one position matchup at a time and learn where the linear 3-bet range ends.
How do you build a linear preflop range?
Build a linear range from the actual decision, not a memorized list of hand rankings. Define the formation and size first. Add the clearest value hands, test the next tier against the opponent’s response, then stop where raising earns less than calling or folding. Solver charts provide the baseline; table behavior determines any exploit.
- 1. Lock the spot. Record positions, stack depth, raise size, rake, antes, and players left to act. “My 3-bet range” is too vague to study.
- 2. Start at the top. Add AA and continue through the premium hands that clearly prefer raising. Do not begin with bluff candidates.
- 3. Compare adjacent hands. Ask why AQs raises while AJs calls, or TT raises while 99 folds. Equity, domination, blockers, and postflop playability can change the order.
- 4. Mark mixed boundaries. The last few hands may split between actions. Keep those mixes while learning, then simplify only if the lost accuracy is acceptable for your game.
- 5. Test the exploit. Widen for value only if worse hands continue. Tighten when the opener responds with a strong 4-bet or call range.
Three linear range examples
The same range shape can serve different jobs. These examples show the logic without pretending one chart applies to every rake structure or stack depth. Use them to classify the range, then check the exact formation in a trusted chart or trainer.
Example 1: First-in opening range
Action folds to you in the cutoff at 100bb. You raise the strongest hands and keep adding playable hands until the weakest opens no longer clear the blinds, rake, and players behind. The result is broadly linear, even though suited connectors can outrank some offsuit high-card hands for playability.
Deepsolver uses first-in opening as a clear linear-range example because the selection moves from the best hands downward.
Example 2: Small blind versus button open
The button opens and you are in the small blind. Calling creates a hard postflop spot out of position and lets the big blind enter. Many strategies respond with a 3-bet-or-fold structure. Premiums, strong broadways, and good pairs can form a linear core.
Do not copy that logic into the big blind. Closing the action and receiving a better price can support a large calling range, which changes which hands become 3-bets.
Example 3: Value-heavy live 3-bet
A loose player opens to 5bb at $1/$2 and calls nearly every 3-bet. Raising A5s as a bluff loses the fold equity that helps the hand. AQo or TT may earn more as a raise because worse aces, broadways, and pairs keep calling.
The adjustment is linear: bring the next-best value hands into the 3-bet range. If the player starts folding or 4-betting, rebuild the boundary instead of using the same exploit forever.
Is a linear range the same as a merged range?
Linear and merged often refer to the same continuous shape, but poker players do not use the words with perfect consistency. Upswing groups linear and merged ranges together, while other players use merged to stress that medium-strength hands raise because worse hands can call.
That terminology disagreement appears in forums too. In a frequently ranking r/poker question, players try to separate linear, merged, and polarized ranges, but the answers overlap. The safest move is to ignore the label for a moment and inspect the hands.
If premiums flow directly into medium-strength raises with no intentional gap, the range is linear. If premiums and weak bluffs raise while medium hands call, it is polarized. That description survives whatever vocabulary a coach prefers.
Which linear range mistakes cost the most?
Players usually understand the top-down definition. The expensive mistakes happen when they treat a range as universal, rank hands by raw equity alone, or widen for value without checking what calls. A useful range always belongs to one action sequence.
Using the same range against every position
A cutoff open and an under-the-gun open contain different strengths. A hand that comfortably 3-bets the cutoff may lose money against the tighter range. Build separate boundaries for each formation.
Confusing raw equity with practical strength
KTo can have reasonable hot-and-cold equity but suffer domination when called. A suited wheel ace can block AA and AK while making nut draws. Range construction cares about the full tree, not one equity number.
Forgetting the call branch
If medium hands profitably call, 3-betting all of them can weaken that branch and isolate you against stronger continues. Compare the expected value of raise, call, and fold before labeling the range linear.
Calling every medium hand a value raise
A raise earns value only when worse hands call often enough. Against a tight opponent, the bottom of a wide linear range may fold out worse and get action from better. Move the boundary upward.
How do you practice linear ranges?
Practice the boundary, because AA is never the hard decision. Choose one formation, hide the chart, and drill the hands around the last clear raise. Check each answer immediately. Then explain why the neighboring hand calls or folds. That explanation exposes whether you learned the shape or only memorized colors.
Start with a common spot such as small blind versus button at 100bb. Drill until you can identify the pure raises, mixed hands, and first folds. Change only one variable next, perhaps the opener’s position or stack depth. Our poker range practice routine gives you a repeatable session plan.
When you review a mistake, trace the whole branch. Ask what happens if you call, who remains behind, and which worse hands continue against a raise. The range will stop looking like a colored grid and start looking like a set of connected decisions.
Linear range poker FAQ
What is a linear range in poker?
A linear range contains the strongest available hands in a continuous top-down order. If a player includes one hand, they usually include hands that perform better in that spot. Opening ranges and many value-heavy 3-bet ranges have a linear shape.
Is a linear range the same as a merged range?
Players often use linear and merged for the same range shape. Both include premium and medium-strength hands without a deliberate gap. Some coaches reserve merged for a wider value range that expects calls from worse, so check how the term is being used.
When should you use a linear 3-bet range?
A linear 3-bet range fits spots where calling is unattractive, the opener calls too many reraises, or your position creates a raise-or-fold strategy. It lets you raise the best hands available and earn value from weaker continuing hands.
What is the difference between linear and polarized ranges?
A linear range runs from premium hands down through the next-best playable hands. A polarized range combines very strong value hands with selected weaker bluffs while medium hands call or check. The available actions and opponent response determine which shape fits.
Are opening ranges linear?
Most first-in opening ranges are broadly linear because the player chooses between raising and folding. Playability creates exceptions: a suited connector may be opened while an offsuit hand with slightly more raw equity is folded. Position, stack depth, rake, and sizing move the boundary.