---
title: "Push or fold with 42s heads-up"
url: "https://georgelipoker.com/push-fold/heads-up/hand/42s.md"
canonical_url: "https://georgelipoker.com/push-fold/heads-up/hand/42s"
last_updated: "2026-10-23"
type: "reference"
summary: "42s shoves from the small blind at every stack up to 1.5bb and calls from the big blind up to 3bb heads-up. Exact EV at each stack."
related: ["https://georgelipoker.com/push-fold.md", "https://georgelipoker.com/push-fold/heads-up/hand/83o.md", "https://georgelipoker.com/push-fold/heads-up/hand/82o.md"]
---

# Push or fold with 42s heads-up

42s shoves from the small blind at every stack up to 1.5bb and calls from the big blind up to 3bb heads-up. Exact EV at each stack.

As the small blind in heads-up play, 42s shoves at every stack up to 1.5bb and folds deeper, while as the big blind it calls at every stack up to 3bb and folds deeper. The game is chips only, blinds 0.5 and 1.

- Shoves every time up to: 1.5bb
- Calls every time up to: 3bb
- Rank of 169: 158
- Combos: 4

## How deep can the small blind shove 42s?

42s shoves every time as the small blind up to 1.5bb. At 1.5bb its shove is worth -0.3951 big blinds against -0.5000 for folding. Past 1.5bb the chart folds it.

42s as the small blind, by stack:

| Stack | Shove frequency | Shove EV | Fold EV | Equity when called |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1bb | 100% | -0.263 | -0.500 | 36.8% |
| 2bb | 0% | -0.527 | -0.500 | 36.8% |
| 3bb | 0% | -0.700 | -0.500 | 36.3% |
| 4bb | 0% | -0.650 | -0.500 | 35.5% |
| 5bb | 0% | -0.601 | -0.500 | 35.2% |
| 6bb | 0% | -0.593 | -0.500 | 34.9% |
| 7bb | 0% | -0.589 | -0.500 | 34.7% |
| 8bb | 0% | -0.625 | -0.500 | 34.5% |
| 9bb | 0% | -0.618 | -0.500 | 34.3% |
| 10bb | 0% | -0.627 | -0.500 | 34.2% |
| 11bb | 0% | -0.654 | -0.500 | 34.1% |
| 12bb | 0% | -0.684 | -0.500 | 33.8% |
| 13bb | 0% | -0.699 | -0.500 | 33.7% |
| 14bb | 0% | -0.721 | -0.500 | 33.5% |
| 15bb | 0% | -0.782 | -0.500 | 33.4% |
| 16bb | 0% | -0.775 | -0.500 | 33.3% |
| 17bb | 0% | -0.780 | -0.500 | 33.0% |
| 18bb | 0% | -0.805 | -0.500 | 32.8% |
| 19bb | 0% | -0.807 | -0.500 | 32.9% |
| 20bb | 0% | -0.831 | -0.500 | 32.7% |

## When should the big blind call with 42s?

42s calls every time as the big blind up to 3bb. At 3bb its call is worth -0.8633 big blinds against -1.0000 for folding. At 3bb a call breaks even at 33.3% equity, because the big blind has already posted a full blind that folding gives up. Past 3bb the chart folds it.

42s as the big blind, by stack:

| Stack | Call frequency | Call EV | Fold EV | Equity vs shoves |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1bb | 100% | -0.263 | -1.000 | 36.8% |
| 2bb | 100% | -0.561 | -1.000 | 36.0% |
| 3bb | 100% | -0.863 | -1.000 | 35.6% |
| 4bb | 0% | -1.160 | -1.000 | 35.5% |
| 5bb | 0% | -1.449 | -1.000 | 35.5% |
| 6bb | 0% | -1.748 | -1.000 | 35.4% |
| 7bb | 0% | -2.046 | -1.000 | 35.4% |
| 8bb | 0% | -2.362 | -1.000 | 35.2% |
| 9bb | 0% | -2.661 | -1.000 | 35.2% |
| 10bb | 0% | -2.978 | -1.000 | 35.1% |
| 11bb | 0% | -3.317 | -1.000 | 34.9% |
| 12bb | 0% | -3.611 | -1.000 | 35.0% |
| 13bb | 0% | -3.956 | -1.000 | 34.8% |
| 14bb | 0% | -4.273 | -1.000 | 34.7% |
| 15bb | 0% | -4.624 | -1.000 | 34.6% |
| 16bb | 0% | -4.957 | -1.000 | 34.5% |
| 17bb | 0% | -5.301 | -1.000 | 34.4% |
| 18bb | 0% | -5.628 | -1.000 | 34.4% |
| 19bb | 0% | -5.986 | -1.000 | 34.2% |
| 20bb | 0% | -6.308 | -1.000 | 34.2% |

## What makes 42s different from similar hands?

42s is 4 combos out of the 1,326 two-card hands and ranks number 158 of the 169 starting-hand classes by equity against a random hand. From the small blind, 42s shoves cleanly 0.5bb deeper than 42o (1.5bb against 1bb). From the big blind, 42s calls cleanly 0.5bb deeper than 42o (3bb against 2.5bb). Suited hands win more often because of flushes, which is why the suited version is the more playable of the pair.

## Where can I check other hands like 42s?

The stack pages show the full shove and call charts at each depth, and the hands closest to 42s in strength, along with 42o, have pages of their own. The combos page counts the specific hands that make up 42s and how card removal changes them.

Related pages:

- [All hands and stacks heads-up](https://georgelipoker.com/push-fold.md)
- [Push or fold chart at 1bb](https://georgelipoker.com/push-fold/heads-up/1-bb.md)
- [Push or fold chart at 3bb](https://georgelipoker.com/push-fold/heads-up/3-bb.md)
- [Push or fold with 42o](https://georgelipoker.com/push-fold/heads-up/hand/42o.md)
- [Push or fold with 83o](https://georgelipoker.com/push-fold/heads-up/hand/83o.md)
- [Push or fold with 82o](https://georgelipoker.com/push-fold/heads-up/hand/82o.md)
- [42s combos and rank](https://georgelipoker.com/combos/42s.md)
- [Push or fold calculator](https://georgelipoker.com/tools/push-fold-calculator.md)

## How were the numbers for 42s computed?

The game has two players, blinds of 0.5 and 1, no ante and one effective stack. Every one of the 169 starting-hand classes is dealt in proportion to the card-compatible pairs of specific hands, and a showdown is settled with the exact equity from our preflop table. Each side keeps answering the other's average strategy until neither can gain, then the borderline hands are solved exactly.

Source: GeorgeLiPoker's own heads-up solver, run on its exact preflop equity table.

## Questions

**Is 42s a shove at 10bb heads-up?**

No. At 10bb the small blind folds 42s: shoving is worth -0.627 big blinds and folding -0.500.

**Should the big blind call a shove with 42s at 15bb?**

No. At 15bb calling with 42s is worth -4.624 big blinds against -1.000 for folding, so the chart folds.

**Why does 42s change from a shove to a fold as stacks grow?**

Deeper stacks put more chips at risk for the same blinds, and the big blind can afford to call a smaller share of hands. 42s shoves every time only up to 1.5bb.

## Related

- [Heads-Up Push or Fold Charts, 1 to 20bb](https://georgelipoker.com/push-fold.md)
- [Push or fold with 83o heads-up](https://georgelipoker.com/push-fold/heads-up/hand/83o.md)
- [Push or fold with 82o heads-up](https://georgelipoker.com/push-fold/heads-up/hand/82o.md)