Improving your poker game on the cheap

My updated list of places to watch, listen, and interact while learning poker.... for free.

This is an update from my December, 2024 list. I have found some new learning content that is being given away that you should know about for 2026.

The things you need to improve your poker game come down to brains, time, money, and educational content.

If you are reading this, I think it is safe to say that you have a brain. Congratulations. Because you have a brain, you have the ability to “hit the books” and study.

To be sure, to be able to study, you need to find the time. If something is important though, we find the time. You’re reading this newsletter so you must have, at least a little free time.

Which brings us to number three..... money. A lot of us spend some of our entertainment budget on playing poker. Sometimes it’s hard to justify spending more on learning how to do something you are already doing and spending money on! Well, if this is a sticking point for you, I’ve got your back. We are going to list some free (yes FREE) sources for studying NLH.

Sometimes it’s easy to get lost and overwhelmed in the sea of information.

First, let’s hit some phone applications. Whenever I am waiting whether it be in a doctors office, restaurant, tire shop, or wherever, I have my phone on me and can mess around with one of these free apps because - lets face it - that’s where we find ourselves when we find a couple free minutes.

• Preflop+ - This app is great in that you can study GTO preflop decisions finding Nash Equilibrium, Equity realization, range application, pot odds, and combination drills all in one app. Only 5 drills on each subject are allowed daily in the free version but that is actually a lot of free study. It takes me about 10 minutes to get through the free stuff each day. Preflop is the most important part of your game. Don’t neglect it!

• Postflop+ - This sister app to Preflop+ takes you to three free heads up hands each day. You are making decisions on the flop, turn, and river. You get to see how far you are straying from Game Theory Optimal. This is the app I find myself opening more often than any other.

• GTO Preflop - This drill based app lets you pick your position and quizzes you on whether to raise, fold, or call based on prior action. It also allows you to run the drill on 3 betting mode. One of the great things about this app is that it doesn’t limit the amount of time you can spend on it in a day. The downside is it is 6-max based and doesn’t offer full 9 player mode.

• SnapShove - We all find ourself in shove mode sometimes due to our dwindling stack. It would be nice to be reassured that our shoves are GTO approved for the situation. Well check out the SnapShove app. This app allows you to visualize Shove / Fold decisions at a 9 player table. It takes away a non all in raise and just gives you the best decision of whether to go all in or fold when first to act. This is a handy tool that I have used when on break in a tournament with a sub 10 big blind stack.

• GTO Lookup - If charts are your thing, download GTO Lookup and wear your eyes out on these charts representing RFI and 3 betting from 8 positions. This is a really powerful tool that also allows you to run a sim a day using set cards or ranges with random flops.

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High tech isn’t for everyone though. Some people are readers. Here are some free substacks and subscription emails that are delivered right to your inbox.

• Staying right here in Substack, I would suggest subscribing to Range Advantage. Blaise Bourgeois is a good pro with a knack for explaining poker strategy both in lay terms and deep into the nooks and crannies of solverland. Whenever he posts, it’s a must read for me. I seem to learn something valuable everytime and can’t wait for the next one.

• Also on Substack, Sam Greenwood writes his Punt of the Day. Sam writes about a punt of his own or one that he saw recently on the high roller circuit at which his game resides. He posts a new edition everyday for his subscribers. A free subscription gets you one POTD per week. Mr. Greenwood is a good writer and very funny, however, as a fair warning, the poker content and breakdowns are not for the weak. If you want to know how players at nosebleed events like Triton think about this game, delve into a few of these and it will really open your eyes - or perhaps make them bloodshot with exhaustion and resignation.

• SimplifyPoker.com - Dara O’Kearney is one of the best coaches out there and he sends an email once a week to the subscribers. Just log in at the website and the emails will come. Also, these guys aren’t scammers, you can unsubscribe anytime.

• JakaCoaching.com - tons of free stuff plus you can sign up for the emails which are quite good. Just create a free login and you will get the emails about twice a month. With your free subscription, you get a bunch of free quizzes and even some free courses.

• PokerCoaching.com - There is a free area with range charts and some courses available at: https://cardplayer.pokercoaching.com/courses/browse/free/. This includes a course called “Mastering the Fundamentals” that I would recommend for those looking for a solid stepping stone.

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If you are more of a listener, perhaps a podcast will be your ticket to learning on the go. Here are a list of my favorites. Keep in mind, I primarily play MTTs so this list is going to lean toward the tournament player.

• The Chip Race - This one annually wins the best poker podcast award. It is a great production. It has strategy but also delves into the poker news and subject matter of the day. Dara O’Kearney and David Lappin host this Irish based show.

• Thinking Poker - Andrew Brokos is a poker genius. Along with his partner Carlos Welch, they break down scenarios in a strategy segment typically followed by an interview with someone from the poker world.

• Thinking Poker Daily - This is from the guys at Thinking Poker but it exclusively discusses strategy. You can sign up on Patreon for at different levels for different number of days a week of strategy. For the free membership, you get a new 10 minute stategy segment every Saturday and Sunday plus you unlock the free content from the previous years.

• Red Chip - The guys at Red Chip aren’t putting out too many free podcasts these days but their library is a gold mine of free information and strategy. Each cast is labeled for the subject matter discussed as well.

• Tournament Poker Edge - Clayton Fletcher is a comedian and a very good poker player that takes you through some hands and situations he has been in lately.

• RecPoker Podcast - I have just started listening to these guys and I am going to add it to this list. I have been able to glean a bit of knowledge from the strategy editions. The good thing about Rec is these guys are exclusively talking about the types of tournaments - buyin size wise - that I am playing. They also have an interactive website at Rec.Poker.

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Comprensive study destinations aren’t typically cheap or easy to compare. However, when offered a free one…… it should be easy to say yes!

#[Large Blinking Sign that reads: “Pay Attention to What is Written Next”]#

• SolveForWhy - To be blunt, I am probably not doing this update if I didn’t just get the word that this entire site membership is now FREE. This is a very good - perhaps great - training site. When you get full courses, classes, videos and other content - for which people a short time ago were paying hundreds of dollars a year - offered to you for free - DO IT. As a huge bonus, poker master Andrew Brokos was a major contributor to this site and has a lot of great video content within.

I hope you find something that works well for you and your schedule among this list of things I use or have used. But this dog likes new tricks too. If you have a spot where you get free poker strategy content, please share it in the comments section or email me as I would love to take a look.

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