How deep can the small blind shove K5s?
K5s shoves at every stack from 1 to 20 big blinds as the small blind. Its shove EV stays above the -0.5000 big blinds it earns by folding at each of them.
| Stack | Shove frequency | Shove EV | Fold EV | Equity when called |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1bb | 100% | +0.116 | -0.500 | 55.8% |
| 2bb | 100% | +0.232 | -0.500 | 55.8% |
| 3bb | 100% | +0.347 | -0.500 | 54.8% |
| 4bb | 100% | +0.378 | -0.500 | 52.0% |
| 5bb | 100% | +0.369 | -0.500 | 49.7% |
| 6bb | 100% | +0.316 | -0.500 | 47.7% |
| 7bb | 100% | +0.245 | -0.500 | 45.8% |
| 8bb | 100% | +0.177 | -0.500 | 44.5% |
| 9bb | 100% | +0.099 | -0.500 | 42.9% |
| 10bb | 100% | +0.018 | -0.500 | 41.4% |
| 11bb | 100% | -0.041 | -0.500 | 40.8% |
| 12bb | 100% | -0.108 | -0.500 | 39.9% |
| 13bb | 100% | -0.155 | -0.500 | 39.3% |
| 14bb | 100% | -0.199 | -0.500 | 38.8% |
| 15bb | 100% | -0.252 | -0.500 | 38.6% |
| 16bb | 100% | -0.287 | -0.500 | 37.7% |
| 17bb | 100% | -0.301 | -0.500 | 37.3% |
| 18bb | 100% | -0.312 | -0.500 | 37.3% |
| 19bb | 100% | -0.334 | -0.500 | 36.9% |
| 20bb | 100% | -0.415 | -0.500 | 35.9% |
When should the big blind call with K5s?
K5s calls every time as the big blind up to 13bb. At 13bb its call is worth -0.8633 big blinds against -1.0000 for folding. At 13bb a call breaks even at 46.2% equity, because the big blind has already posted a full blind that folding gives up. Past 13bb the chart folds it.
| Stack | Call frequency | Call EV | Fold EV | Equity vs shoves |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1bb | 100% | +0.116 | -1.000 | 55.8% |
| 2bb | 100% | +0.177 | -1.000 | 54.4% |
| 3bb | 100% | +0.165 | -1.000 | 52.8% |
| 4bb | 100% | +0.152 | -1.000 | 51.9% |
| 5bb | 100% | +0.143 | -1.000 | 51.4% |
| 6bb | 100% | +0.098 | -1.000 | 50.8% |
| 7bb | 100% | +0.047 | -1.000 | 50.3% |
| 8bb | 100% | -0.118 | -1.000 | 49.3% |
| 9bb | 100% | -0.237 | -1.000 | 48.7% |
| 10bb | 100% | -0.335 | -1.000 | 48.3% |
| 11bb | 100% | -0.577 | -1.000 | 47.4% |
| 12bb | 100% | -0.696 | -1.000 | 47.1% |
| 13bb | 100% | -0.863 | -1.000 | 46.7% |
| 14bb | 0% | -1.191 | -1.000 | 45.7% |
| 15bb | 0% | -1.492 | -1.000 | 45.0% |
| 16bb | 0% | -1.580 | -1.000 | 45.1% |
| 17bb | 0% | -1.778 | -1.000 | 44.8% |
| 18bb | 0% | -1.955 | -1.000 | 44.6% |
| 19bb | 0% | -2.111 | -1.000 | 44.4% |
| 20bb | 0% | -2.283 | -1.000 | 44.3% |
What makes K5s different from similar hands?
K5s is 4 combos out of the 1,326 two-card hands and ranks number 54 of the 169 starting-hand classes by equity against a random hand. From the small blind, K5s shoves at every stack from 1 to 20bb, while K5o shoves every time only up to 14bb. From the big blind, K5s calls cleanly 3bb deeper than K5o (13bb against 10bb). 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 K5s?
The stack pages show the full shove and call charts at each depth, and the hands closest to K5s in strength, along with K5o, have pages of their own. The combos page counts the specific hands that make up K5s and how card removal changes them.
How were the numbers for K5s computed?
We solve a chips-only game for two players: small blind 0.5, big blind 1, no ante, equal stacks. Starting hands are the 169 classes, weighted so that shared cards are impossible, and equity comes from counting every five-card board. The solver plays itself with best responses, averages them, and fixes the hands on the edge so they are exactly indifferent.
Source: GeorgeLiPoker's own heads-up solver, run on its exact preflop equity table.
Questions
- Is K5s a shove at 10bb heads-up?
- Yes. At 10bb the small blind shoves K5s: shoving is worth +0.018 big blinds and folding -0.500.
- Should the big blind call a shove with K5s at 15bb?
- No. At 15bb calling with K5s is worth -1.492 big blinds against -1.000 for folding, so the chart folds.
- Does K5s ever fold heads-up at 20bb or less?
- Not from the small blind: K5s shoves at every stack from 1 to 20bb. As the big blind it calls cleanly up to 13bb and folds or mixes deeper.