I teach tournament poker in a way that helps you systematically identify and plug leaks.
Instead of memorising strategies, you drill the most common spots until you fully understand them—plugging each leak before moving on to the next.
Preflop strategies are relatively quick to master with this method.
Postflop, however, takes longer because you need to grasp overarching strategies for the flop and frameworks for the turn and the river.
But here’s the key: these preflop and postflop baselines come from solvers, which assume everyone plays like a solver.
In reality, poker is about adapting and knowing when and how to adjust based on any other information you have available.
It's not just about trying to emulate a solver and mimick the Game Theory Optimal (GTO) output.
To truly sharpen your analytical mind and deepen your understanding of tournament poker, you need to ask the right questions—not just what to do, but why.
So today I want to introduce you to the Socratic Method, a powerful form of critical questioning that will challenge your existing assumptions, improve your ability to reason logically, and refine your strategy—giving you the tools to think beyond solver outputs and make the best decisions in real time.
Let's dive in...
What is the Socratic Method?
As you might have already guessed, The Socratic Method was developed by the ancient Greek philosopher, Socrates who believed that asking thought-provoking questions rather than giving direct answers led to greater knowledge and wisdom.
The Benefits of the Socratic Method in Poker
Instead of merely memorising lines and strategies, the Socratic Method helps you develop a deeper understanding of tournament poker by focusing on the reasoning behind each action.
Rather than following a set strategy without question, you learn to analyse situations critically, allowing you to recognise why certain lines are more optimal in different contexts.
This approach naturally leads to improved decision-making, as consistently questioning your choices trains your mind to think critically in real time, helping you make better, more informed decisions in the heat of the battle when you're actually at the table.
By challenging your existing assumptions and staying flexible in your strategy, you become better equipped to adjust to the different stages of the tournament, opponent tendencies, and game flow.
Beyond strategy, the Socratic Method also helps in eliminating emotional bias by encouraging decisions based on logic and reasoning rather than gut feelings, frustration, or tilt.
With this mindset, you approach the game with clarity, making sound strategic choices that lead to long-term success at the table.
Applying the Socratic Method to Poker
Questioning hand selection
Let's take this 42s in the CO off 125bb spot as an example...
Conventional wisdom would have you believe this a very clear fold, but instead of memorising which hands to raise first in from the Cut Off in this spot, you could ask yourself:
Why is this hand a fold from this position?
Is there a situation when I would open this hand?
How does my position affect my ability to play this hand profitably?
If I raise, and the player to my left 3-bets, what's my best response?
Context is everything. With no context, this goes from being a slam dunk fold to a slam dunk jam!
Yep, that's right. I didn't tell you that this was a final table situation because I wanted you to tackle the questions first.
Here's the solution:
Evaluating betting decisions
You open off 40bb from the LJ and just the BB calls.
The solver solution here is to mix between betting small and checking. But rather than following that advice, challenge your thinking with questions such as:
What does betting accomplish?
Why can't I bet my entire range here?
If I'm value betting, what worse hands will call, and if bluffing, what better hands will fold?
If my opponent doesn't check raise enough, are there any hands in my range that benefit more from betting than the solver would have me believe?
By thinking critically about your bets, you move beyond automatic actions and start making decisions that maximise expected value (EV).
Post-game hand history reviews
A lot of the players I work with review their hands to look for mistakes.
Instead of that, try using the Socratic Method to move beyond simply accepting whether your line was good or bad. To do that, ask:
Did I make this decision based on logic or emotion?
How could I approach a similar spot differently in the future?
What are my options in this spot? (usually fold, call, raise or jam)
If I had chosen a different action, how might my opponent have responded?
By consistently questioning past hands, you develop a more flexible, adaptable, and strategic approach to future hands.
Find a marked hand from PT4 and review it, thinking about great questions you could ask.
Conclusion
Incorporating the Socratic Method into your poker study and play is a powerful way to develop a sharper, more analytical mindset.
By constantly asking why, how, and what if, you train yourself to think deeply about every decision.
Over time, this process leads to better long-term results, as you move beyond basic strategy and start taking the highest EV lines with confidence and clarity.
Next time you sit at the table, don’t just ask, “What should I do?”—ask why you should do it.
That’s the key to long-term poker success.
That's it for this week.
See you next time.
Whenever you're ready, here are 4 ways I can help you:
The Final Table: Play your best poker when the most is at stake. Detailed analysis of over 100 hand examples at different stages of play. Learn how to make great decisions every time and set yourself up for daily progress.
Poker On The Mind: Listen to my podcast with Dr Tricia Cardner as we discuss peak poker performance and tournament poker strategy.
MTT Poker Academy: Join the tournament poker community for part-time players with full-time lives. Learn the strategies to optimise your study time and boost your ROI around your day job.
Purposeful Practice for Poker: Gain a clear theoretical understanding of the science of purposeful practice and how you can apply it to your poker study & training. Includes specific exercises designed to create an infallible plan for poker improvement.
Bình luận