09 Nov 2024 Intermediate This material is for medium-skilled players EV exploit GTO The term GTO has become very popular among poker players in recent years. Serious players probably know this term well. GTO stands for "Game Theory Optimal" and is a poker strategy based on mathematical game theory. Understanding GTO fully requires knowledge of complex math, but in practice, basic math is usually enough. Modern tools like PioSOLVER or GTO+ (aka solvers) can handle the hard calculations for players. This article will explain what game theory optimal is in poker. For a deeper understanding of GTO and its relation to exploitative play, see our article “Understand GTO Poker in Less Than 10 Minutes” What is Game Theory? Game theory is a part of math that studies players' choices and behavior in different situations. A famous example is called *The Prisoner’s Dilemma*. The Prisoner’s Dilemma Imagine two prisoners, A and B, who are questioned separately and cannot talk to each other. Here are the possible outcomes: If both A and B remain silent: A and B each receive 3 years imprisonment. If A confesses and B remains silent: B alone receives 10 years in prison. If B confesses and A remains silent: A alone receives 10 years in prison. If both A and B confess: A and B each receive 5 years imprisonment. A\B Silence Confession Silence 3,3 10,0 Confession 0,10 5,5 What is the best choice for A? If B confesses, then A should confess too, getting 5 years instead of 10. If B stays silent, A should still confess to go free. So, no matter what B does, it’s best for A to confess. B will make similar choices. So, both will end up confessing and each will get 5 years. Nash Equilibrium This is the Nash Equilibrium, where each player tries to get the best outcome for themselves, but the overall result is not ideal for either. A Nash Equilibrium is a situation where no player could gain by changing their own strategy (holding all other players' strategies fixed). How GTO and Game Theory Connect GTO is essentially the Nash Equilibrium in poker, which means a strategic balance where each player has optimized their play in such a way that no one can improve their EV by changing their strategy. PioSolver, released in 2015, is the first GTO solver wich made this mathematical approach to poker popular. Modern solvers, such as GTO Wizard, have become more user-friendly and help players learn GTO as well. Modern computers allow players to explore complex poker strategies and find optimal solutions, similar to how the prisoners in the dilemma find the best choice. Check out our video GTO Wizard AI Solver: Get Max Value (from your study time) for more information aboot this topic.
