Welcome to 2026 and to 10 years of the Smart Poker Study Podcast 🎉

Ten years ago, episode #1 dropped. Today, we’re at episode #573, and none of this happens without you, the listeners who’ve kept this poker train rolling.

I’m dropping 10 episodes over the next 10 days, and you can find them all here.

Let’s do this… ganbatte!

Day 1/10: 4 Simple Ways to Make 2026 Your Best Poker Year Ever

To kick off 2026 and celebrate a decade of Smart Poker Study, I’m sharing four simple yet powerful actions you can take right now to make 2026 your best poker year ever.

Watch episode #573 on YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=afIHYoy5dx8)

Or, listen to the episode as you follow along below:

1. Control Tilt

Tilt never fully disappears. The goal isn’t to be perfectly Zen all the time. It’s to control tilt when it shows up.

Key Ideas:

• Identify what tilts you most (failed bluffs, bad beats, fish winning stacks, etc.).

• Expect tilt-inducing situations, you signed up for them by playing poker.

• Create a tilt response plan before it happens.

Practical Tilt-control Tools:

• Tag the hand and move on.

• Take a 5-minute break: get some water, breathe, move your body.

• !Hand off mouse! before every decision to slow down your thinking.

• Practice gratitude: “Fish like this make poker profitable.”

Recommended Mental Game Books:

• The Mental Game of Poker – Jared Tendler – 15 years old… but still tops!

• Peak Poker Performance – Tricia Cardner

• Elements of Poker – Tommy Angelo

• Poker With Presence – Jason Su

👉 Don’t start at page one. Find the chapter that addresses your current tilt issue and start there.

2. Play at Your Best (Your Choices Matter)

Your poker results are shaped by your choices: When/where you play, the stakes, tables, mental state, etc.

👉Poker time is poker time. Be focused and intentional when you study or play.

Ditch Distractions:

• No browser tabs (music only).

• Phone on Do Not Disturb.

• Clean desktop and taskbar.

• Tell family or roommates you’re unavailable.

• Clear your to-do list before playing.

• If you’re rested, ready, and motivated, play. If not, don’t force it.

3. Play the Player

It’s not just your hole cards and the board… your opponents matter.

Use Poker’s Ultimate Question after every action they make:

“What are they doing this with?”

To answer it, consider player tendencies (use the Smart HUD!), position, bet/stack/pot sizes, past behavior, table/tourney conditions, etc.

Examples:

• Loose-passive players (like Frankie Fish) suddenly betting big on scary rivers? Believe them.

• Strong aggressive players (like Sammy Shark) showing uncharacteristic passivity? That’s weakness you can exploit.

Reads + logic = better EV decisions.

4. Play to Learn

Every session should have a learning objective. Have your thinking cap on!

Instead of robotic play:

• Choose one strategy to focus on (check-raising, double-barreling, donk betting, etc.).

• Actively look for spots to practice it.

• Noodle on hands you’re not involved in.

• Review your hands afterward.

The Optimal Improvement Loop:

1. Study

2. Take notes

3. Practice intentionally

4. Review hands

5. Repeat

👉 Pro tip: Drop down in stakes for cheaper practice. At 5NL, you can experiment more freely versus 25nl, pull the trigger more often, and learn faster with less financial pressure.

Take Action

1. Like the video if it helped you, comment and subscribe for more

2. Start today with Action #1: Control Tilt

3. Next week, work on #2 and so on.

2026 is your year. Let’s make it happen.

Day 2/10: How to Use ANY Poker HUD Effectively – Two-Parter!

Let’s continue celebrating 10 years of the Smart Poker Study Podcast!

Part 1 Video: How to Make Your Poker HUD Work for YOU

Watch this video first, customize your HUD to work for you, then learn more HUD strategies in the podcast below.

Part 2 Podcast: The Smarter Way to Think About Poker HUD Stats

I want to talk about the thinking side of HUD mastery. The parts that don’t show up on your screen, but make all the difference in how profitable your decisions are.

We’re going to cover how to interpret stats without overvaluing them, how to turn numbers into player types, how to lock in learning away from the table, and when a bet size should make you completely rethink what a stat is telling you.

If you ever feel like you “know the stats” but still aren’t sure when to trust them, ignore them, or override them, this episode is for you.

Listen to episode #574 as you follow along below:

1. Think in Thresholds, Not Exact Numbers

HUD stats are signals, not precise truths.

• Learn common thresholds (tight vs normal vs loose, passive vs aggressive)
  • RFI 0-10% is super tight, 15-30% normal, 30%+ is loose
  • The closer to 0%, the tighter or more honest they are.
  • The closer to 100%, the looser or bluffier they are.
• Don’t obsess over small differences that don’t change decisions.
  • 3bet in the SB at 11% isn’t really different than 13% over a decent sample size.
• Ask, “What type of player does this suggest?”
  • That’s why VPIP and PFR are so useful. 15/12 is a TAG
  • Other stats give nuance to their type. TAG with 31% Flop Cbet is a fit-or-fold cbettor.

2. Turn HUD Stats Into Player Types

Stats are easier to remember and apply when they describe people.

• Translate common stat profiles into clear player types
  • 4 basic types are Nit, TAG, LAG and Fish
  • Also, stations, regs, winners, gamblers, donks, rocks
• Label them by player type for quick reference.
  • Color their hud panel or player panel
  • Use a symbol like a fish, rock or donkey
  • Type in a player note
• Use their player type to simplify your decisions.
  • The Nit opened from UTG, first time ever, to 3.5bb? Don’t 3bet bluff him.
  • The calling station Fish xr 5x on the 789 flop. Yeah, get let him have it.
• Let their type guide your default exploits.
  • TAGs on your site fold a lot on the turn… so barrel bluff almost all the time.

3. Use Post-Session Review to Lock In HUD Learning

Hand histories reviews are the perfect time to figure out how to use their stats against them.

• Tag hands where a stat influenced your decision, whether for better or worse.
  • Maybe you 3bet bluffed because their RFI was > 30% in the CO. TAG it to review.
• Review the hand and the stats in question, and determine why your read was accurate or off.
• Review similar hands tied to the same stats.
  • Pull up other 3bet bluffs and look at each player’s positional RFI stat.
  • Were your bluffs well placed based on stat and player type?
• Refine how you’ll use that stat in the future.

4. Let Bet Size Override a Statistical Read When It Should – Size Matters

HUD stats tell you what a player often does. But, bet sizing tells you how they feel about their specific hand.

• Start with the stat-based read, then adjust it based on bet size.
  • Bob loves to 3bet bluff from the SB, his stat is at 19% over a large sample.
  • Normally, he 3bets to 10bb.
• Notice when sizing deviates from a player’s normal pattern
  • But this time, Bob 3bet to 13bb in the SB.
• Treat extreme sizes as new, stronger information
  • He either really loves his hand or wants you to fold. 
  • Adjust by tightening ranges or abandoning marginal plays.
• When stat and size conflict, slow down and reassess

Take Action

Watch the video above and please 👍 and subscribe.

Then, choose 1 stat to focus on for your next few sessions. When someone makes a play based on that stat, make a read then make your move.

Day 3/10: Livestream Cash Game + How to Learn from Livestreams

Yeah! Still going strong after 10 years of Smart Poker Study Podcast. Here’s today’s episode:

I do member-only livestreams for the Poker Forge, and I released a recent one on my 2nd channel, Smart Poker Study Office Hours (subscribe!). Check it out here:

Do you watch livestreams for entertainment? Well, you can learn from ’em, too!

Here’s the easy way to learn from livestreams in podcast #575:

3-Step Livestream Learning Process

1. Take note of something the streamer says that piques your interest.
2. Find and review 5 matching hands in your database. Use the streamer’s logic/strategies as your guide through the review. Take note of key lessons learned and strategies to use.
3. Play a session and put yourself in that spot (or as close to that spot as you can) in order to practice the strategies.

Day 4/10: Sunday Funday!

It’s been a fun 10 years of podcasting, so, let’s talk playing for fun today.

Listen for some fun playing ideas to take a break for the studies and grinding:

Day 5/10: Flopping an Overpair vs All-in Shove | Hand Reading Practice

Let’s continue the 10 years celebration with poker’s #1 skill: hand reading.

Follow along with Flopzilla Pro as you watch this video, then repeat the exercise with a matching hand of your own:

Or, listen to the podcast #577 as you soak in the hand analysis and hear my answer to, “Should I call this 25bb all-in raise with an overpair?”

Take Action:

1. Follow along with the video above and copy my hand reading steps.
2. Find a matching hand in your database (flopped overpair, cbet then face a raise) for another hand reading exercise.
   • Step 1: Assign a preflop range given how they entered
   • Step 2: Narrow their range w/blue hand strength filters
3. Use the same thought process on each street that I do in the video (observing changing equities, calculating break-even, considering their player type, etc.).

Day 6/10: Turn Your HUD Into a Weapon Against Leaks

You’ve been using a HUD for years to spot opponent tendencies and capitalize on them.

But have you ever flipped the lens and used your HUD on yourself?

In this episode, I show you how to turn your own stats into a powerful play-and-study tool so you can identify leaks, close the gaps, and stop being an easy target at the table.

Watch on YouTube: “Turn Your HUD Into a Weapon Against Leaks”

Listen to Episode #578:

3 Steps to Turn Your HUD Into a Weapon Against Leaks:

1. Look at your stats like Villain stats.
Pretend you’re facing you. What jumps out immediately?

2. Identify the patterns you would target.
Big gaps between streets. Frequencies that scream “honest.” Numbers that make you a target.

3. Tighten the leaks with +EV adjustments that narrow the gaps.
Study with intention and make changes that narrow those gaps and remove the target.

Goal: You’re no longer an easy target.

Example

You notice your Flop Cbet is 67%, but your Turn Cbet is only 32%. That’s a massive and easy to target drop-off.

So you study cbetting and barreling strategy.

After making a few focused adjustments, your Flop Cbet drops slightly to 65%, and your Turn Cbet climbs to 55%.

The smaller gap is harder to read for weakness. Your strategy is tougher to attack.

Boom.

You improved your game, removed a clear weakness, and increased your win rate with one simple but powerful realization.

Take Action

Do the 3 steps above for 1 set of stats per week. Enjoy being less exploitable, and more profitable.

Get the 41 Stats & Win Rates Tracker

Day 7/10: Today’s Action: Be Willing to Fold

You’ve been playing for years, but have you built the skill of finding the necessary fold? You’re going to work on this skill today…

Listen to Episode #579:

Mindset: “I CAN Fold Today”

Don’t overplay your overpairs (AA-QQ) nor the TPTK (AK on Axxxx). When the turn and river helps their range and big bets are going in… be willing to fold.

Key: Hand off mouse between decisions! Give your brain space to think.

Make reads using Poker’s Ultimate Question and make smart plays.

Just feels like a money-losing spot… fold.

Feels ugly… fold.

You flop a set, barrel for value but he comes in for a raise on the 4-to-the-straight river… fold.

If you don’t know the best response, to call or fold… fold.

Join the Smart Poker Study Newsletter for Daily Action Steps:

Day 8/10: How to Handle Flop & Turn Bets

👉 Click Here: Special show notes page with a video and podcast combo that’s sure to build your post-flop bet-facing skills and increase your bankroll.

Day 9/10: These PokerTracker 4 Filters Will Grow Skills and Plug Leaks

10 years continuing strong with the penultimate episode of 10 in a row!

Watch the video on YouTube… while taking action! Run the same PT4 filters I do, and save each as a quick filter:

This video details all the filters I discussed in “You’ll Regret Not Starting These Hand History Techniques Before 2026”: https://youtu.be/jPP3eFRDwNk?si=T17mLmfsS8ahP6c7

Then, listen episode #581:

Take Action!

1. Run the filter for your most common leak.
2. Where are you truly losing chips? Break it down further with detailed filters to get to the heart of your leak:
   • Hand range categories
   • Table position
   • Relative position
   • Hand strength
   • Bet size, etc.
3. Can you use pot winning strategies to steal more pots and plug your leak?
   • For example, you’re losing a ton calling turn cbets. But, you’re making $$$ raising, even if they’re all for value.
   • They fold versus your raises 60% of the time.
   • Why are they folding? Is it your bet size, the board, how your range interacts with the board or something else?
   • You got them to fold when you didn’t want them to fold, now make them fold by bluffing with the same strategies.

Day 10/10: Train Your ‘Plan Ahead’ Skills

It’s the final episode in our 10 years celebration of the Smart Poker Study Podcast!

Listen to Episode #582:

The Extent of Level 1 Thinking:

• “My hole cards are XX.”
• “The board is XXXX.”
• “I have TP/pair/trips/Ace-high/etc.“
• “He bet? Okay, I guess I fold/call/raise.”

Little or no thought given to player tendencies, bet/pot/stack sizes, positions, future cards, your image, etc.

Push Beyond Level 1 – Train Your ‘Plan Ahead’ Skills

The 6 “ALWAYS” Rules of Planning Ahead

1️⃣ Hero ALWAYS plans on getting called.
He seeks out fish… and fish love seeing flops. If you raise, expect action.

2️⃣ Hero ALWAYS plans for 3bettors.
Strong players love to 3bet. And where there are fish, there are fishermen.

3️⃣ Hero ALWAYS assumes he’ll miss the flop.
Most hands don’t connect. Create a steal plan before the flop.

4️⃣ Hero ALWAYS plans one street ahead for board cards.
Preflop → Flop 🤔
Flop → Turn & River 🤔
Turn → River 🤔
He’s never surprised by future cards.

5️⃣ Hero ALWAYS visualizes and narrows ranges.
Daily off-the-felt hand reading practice builds this skill for in-game.

6️⃣ Hero ALWAYS plays the player.
From the get-go, he factors in tendencies, leaks, positions and stack sizes.

Planning Ahead in Action: AQo Iso-Raise Hand

Preflop Setup: Hero’s dealt AQo and has the opportunity to iso-raise an UTG limping fish.

Before iso-raising, Hero pauses and plans for those still to act:
🧮 BTN: 28bb short stack fish. Likely to call. Plan: Flop cbet bluff, likely just one street unless the turn improves his hand.

🧮 SB: Unknown full stack. Likely to fold. Plan: Call a 3bet, barrel bluff if he calls.

🧮 BB: TAG ~full stack. Has 3bet once, but likely to fold. Plan: Call a 3bet, barrel bluff if he calls.

🧮 UTG Limper: Full stack fish. Most likely caller, turn honest versus cbet. Plan: Small flop cbet bluff with ~50% pot barrel to attack limper’s honest street.

🧮 Global Value Plan: Value bet at least flop and turn with TP+, possibly pot control versus the unknown SB and the BB TAG if necessary.

KEY: This planning takes place before Hero even iso-raises.

Action – Preflop: Hero iso-raises to 5bb, it folds to the limper who calls. 

Plan in motion:

Action – Flop: The pot is 11.5bb on Jc Th 6h. Hero has 2 overs and a gs draw. The limper checks.

▶️ Hero executes the plan and cbets 4bb (~1/3 pot).
While the limper is thinking, Hero is planning for the turn:
🧮 If Hero improves (TP or straight), he’ll barrel for value ~1/3 pot.
🧮 If Hero misses, he’ll continue his barrel bluffing plan.

Action – Flop: The limper check-calls as expected.

Action – Turn: The pot is 19.5bb and the Tc hits. The limper checks.

▶️ Hero follows through and barrels 9.3bb. The limper folds.

✅ Result: Planning Wins the Pot

Hero didn’t “wing it.”

He planned preflop, anticipated callers, created a barreling line, executed calmly and collected the pot.

All before he even raised.

That’s what “planning ahead” looks like.

Take Action: Build the Planning Habit

1. Write The 6 “ALWAYS” Rules of Planning Ahead on a sticky note.

2. Play one focused table for one hour today. Before every click, pause and ask, “What’s my plan for those still to act and the next street?”

3. After, review 5 recent showdown hands (wins or losses). Practice planning ahead with each.

4. Repeat daily until it’s automatic. You’ll feel it after 1 week, it’ll be default after a month.

Thanks for such an incredible journey! It’s been a blast being on this poker train with you, and I’m looking forward to what the future brings.

Cheers to you, to the past 10 years, to a killer 2026 and to 10 more years of the Smart Poker Study Podcast.

Ganbatte!

-Sky

Supporter Shout-Outs

Thanks to all those who help keep this poker train chugging!

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