88 (Pocket eights) odds & win probability
88 wins 69.2% of the time against a random hand and ranks 7 of 169 starting hands. It is a pocket pair with 6 combinations, 0.5% of all deals, and it is a raise from under the gun onward in a 6-max game.
The numbers
| Against | Equity |
|---|---|
| One random hand | 69.2% |
| 2 random hands | 49.7% |
| 4 random hands | 29.6% |
| 6 random hands | 20.1% |
| 8 random hands | 16.0% |
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| Wins outright | 68.7% |
| Splits the pot | 0.9% |
| Loses | 30.4% |
| Combinations | 6 |
| Share of all deals | 0.45% |
| Playability rank | 7 of 169 |
| Percentile | 96.4 |
Where 88 sits in each opening range
Six-max, 100 big blinds. The gold outline marks 88; red is the raising range.
- UTGRaise
Under the gun opening range with 88 highlighted - HJRaise
Hijack opening range with 88 highlighted - CORaise
Cutoff opening range with 88 highlighted - BTNRaise
Button opening range with 88 highlighted - SBRaise
Small blind opening range with 88 highlighted
How to play 88
Playing it before the flop
Open from under the gun and later. 88 wins 69.2% against a random hand, which sounds healthy, but most of that equity is the small pair itself holding up rather than any improvement.
Facing a 3-bet
Call when the stacks are deep enough to pay you off for a set, fold when they are not. You flop three of a kind about one time in eight, so the implied odds have to be real, roughly fifteen times the call left behind, before continuing is anything other than wishful.
After the flop
Flop a set and the hand plays itself. Miss, and 88 is a bluff-catcher on a board where at least one overcard is very likely. Deciding that before the flop, rather than talking yourself into a call on the river, is most of the edge here.
88 questions
How often does 88 win?
88 wins 69.2% of the time against a single random hand, 68.7% outright, with a 0.9% chance of splitting the pot. That makes it the 7th strongest of the 169 starting hands.
Should I raise with 88?
Yes, from under the gun onward in a six-handed game. Earlier than that there are too many players still to act for the hand to be profitable as an open.
How many combinations of 88 are there?
There are 6 combinations of Pocket eights, which is 0.5% of the 1,326 possible starting hands. Every pocket pair has six.
How does 88 hold up against several opponents?
Against eight opponents its equity falls to 16.0%. Every extra player reduces the share, but a hand that makes the nuts loses less of it than a hand that only makes a pair.
Neighbouring hands
- Next stepThe UTG opening range in full88 is one cell of it. The chart shows the other 168 decisions from the same seat, which is what you actually need at the table.
- JJ, Pocket jacks77.5% · rank 4
- TT, Pocket tens75.0% · rank 5
- 99, Pocket nines72.0% · rank 6
- AKs, Ace-King suited67.1% · rank 8
- AQs, Ace-Queen suited66.2% · rank 9
- 77, Pocket sevens66.1% · rank 10
- 66, Pocket sixes63.3% · rank 17
Hear the day the 88 drills open
You read the whole page, which is more than most. The course and the trainer that deals 88 from every seat open without a card while Learn GTO is in early access, and this list hears first when that changes.
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