The Most UNDERRATED Skill In Poker!

Watch two of the best tournament poker players in the world battle it out in the $300,000 Super High Roller Bowl VIII tournament in the PokerGO studio in Las Vegas. Chris Brewer takes on Jason Koon as they both flop trips. Watch how two of the greatest minds in poker navigate this interesting spot!
Many players will think that Chris Brewer should have raised from the small blind with his A8o but if you actually look at the optimal GTO charts you will see that the small blind has a huge limping strategy when playing around 50bb effective.
On the flop Jason Koon opts for a very small size on the flop after his raise pre-flop. This is because he has to consider Brewer's overall range, it is unlikely to contain an ace at this point as Koon has one of them and two are on the board! For this reason Koon wants to keep Brewer in with as much of his range that will be completely dominated.
Koon decides to size up on the turn which will allow him to set up for a roughly pot sized river shove if Brewer does decide to call. It's always important to be very well aware of the effective stack size and how you can manipulate your bet sizing to be able to reasonably shove on the river with your strongest hands and some bluffs that make sense! Brewer still cannot fold to the turn bet especially as he has the 8d which may bail him out if a 4th diamond comes on the river.
Making big folds in poker tournaments is never an easy thing to do but it is something you MUST master if you want to suceed in becoming a winning poker player. Be aware of your opponent's tendencies and range of hands rather than just your specific hand in relation to the board. Brewer does have a very strong hand even by the river but he correctly identifies that Koon may have a stronger hand.
Get FULL access to the Advanced Cash Game Course over at PokerCoaching.com featuring Chris Brewer and many of our other top coaches!
Chris Brewer is an American professional poker player. He has over $18,000,000 in live tournament earnings putting him 48th on the all-time money list. He has 2 WSOP bracelets, one of which came from the 2023 $250,000 buy-in event for $5,293,556.
Jason Koon is a 38 year old professional poker player from America. He has over $51,000,000 in live tournament earnings putting him 4th on the all-time money list. He has 1 WSOP bracelet from the 2021 $25k Heads-Up Championship event.
Chris Brewer ended up bubbling this event in 5th place. Jason Koon came 4th for $600,000.
Super High Roller Bowl VIII was held inside the PokerGO Studio, Las Vegas from September 28-30, 2023. The 20-player field created a prize pool of $6,000,000, and Isaac Haxton was the winner claiming the $2,760,000 first-place prize.
Payouts from Super High Roller Bowl VIII:
1st: Isaac Haxton - $2,760,000
2nd: Andrew Lichtenberger - $1,680,000
3rd: Stephen Chidwick - $960,000
4th: Jason Koon - $600,000
This high stakes poker hand took place during the Super High Roller Bowl VIII $300,000 Main Event, taking place at the prestigious PokerGO Studio in Las Vegas. In this intense hand from Day 2, we witness a showdown between two seasoned professionals, PokerCoaching's new guest coach Chris Brewer and one of the all time greats Jason Koon.
🃏 Preflop:
The action begins as Brewer in the small blind opts to limp after the action is folded to him with Ac 8d. Koon doesn't want to let Brewer see a cheap flop and opts to raise to 40,000 with his Ah Tc.
🔥 The Flop: As Ad 3d
The flop is about as spicy as it can be as both of the remaining aces hit giving both players trips! Brewer checks, and Koon bets using a small size of 22,000. Brewer makes an easy call, and both players head to the turn.
🌀 The Turn: Qd
The turn completes the flush draw, Brewer checks again. Koon continues the aggression now opting to size up to a bet of 90,000, and Brewer makes the call once more.
🔴 The River: Th
The river doesn't change anything in relation to the strength of both players hands. Brewer checks for the final time, and Koon unleashes a substantial bet of 367,000 which is practically all in. Will Chris Brewer be able to figure out that he is behind in the hand and find a fold? Watch this poker video by Jonathan Little to find out!
Jonathan Little analyzes live poker hands from TV poker shows such as Poker After Dark, Hustler Casino Live, The Lodge Poker Club & PokerGO. He also analyzes popular poker vloggers such as Rampage Poker, Brad Owen, Jaman Burton, Ashley Sleeth, Wolfgang Poker and others!
You will also find many poker hands on this channel that contain some of the biggest names in the poker world such as; Daniel Negreanu, Phil Hellmuth, Phil Ivey, Doug Polk, Garrett Adelstein, Tom ‘Durrrr’ Dwan, Dan ‘Jungleman’ Cates, Fedor Holz & many more!
#pokerstrategy #pokergo #highstakespoker

[@PokerCoaching]

What do YOU think is the most underrated skill in poker? 😎

[@LitCentralMillennialXLIII]

Solid preflop play, & folding decent hands post flop

[@glaubs65]

Knowing when to fold.

[@pwnd785]

Definitely recognising when to fold

[@captaincandor2182]

The most important skill is patience. You can't force spots. Trust me Daniel Negreanu declared I was the goat! I'm the top earner in several tournaments on GG.

[@jaybingham3711]

​@@captaincandor2182Trust me...no one should be trusting anything a poker player says about their poker.

[@jaredcarrick3468]

The most vital skill for beating MTTs is probably mastering or at least being very high level at playing at stack depths of 40 BB or less. Not too often will you get one of those MTTs where you sun run and maintain a top 10 stack depth almost the whole way. Nice when it happens but it’s just too rare. The most typical stack depth you will find yourself at in MTTs is 40 BB or less at any given point in time. Bankroll management is also right there at the top of the list as well, but that applies to every aspect of poker. The part where it plays the biggest role in MTTs is once you are in the money and are starting to make a deep run. If ICM and laddering starts to take precedent over making optimal plays to try to continue to win pots, you’re never going to put yourself in position to potentially win the tournament, and it’s indicative that you are probably playing a buyin too high for your roll if you are sweating non-1st 2nd or 3rd place money that much. A close third would be knowing how to play 80-150 bigs deep. This is the typical stack depth you will find yourself at in MTTs when you have a top 10 stack deeper into the tournament like around the money bubble or after (top 10 stack depths are often even deeper in earlier stages depending on tournament structure). Too many people who have gotten off to nice starts in MTTs don’t know how to play their deeper stack and will start playing way too tight and allow their big stack to get blinded and ante’d down to an average stack depth before starting to play closer to optimal again. Knowing how to play a variety of stack depths is vital for your chances of beating MTTs in he long run.

[@rajahferrier7475]

Great advice

[@nigelvarney4042]

Well said mate. I'd also add, another important MTT/ poker skill is being completely unpredictable. For example, taking calculated bluff risks a little more often with 40BB or less. In the past, I would rarely bluff, seeing myself reach the money, but rarely making a final table.

[@ryandaley3351]

Winning your flips is the most important skill to master in tournament poker. 😂

[@boffo63]

No doubt lol If I could just master it.

[@andrehanderson]

Preflop hand selection is the number 1 skill imo

[@user-nh1ou6se2g]

I think you're correct. It's just so fundamental that most good players / coaches take it for granted.

[@julianhodgson1961]

The ability to constantly chip up without taking big risks - stealing all the orphan pots in the process.

[@scbluesman13]

Patience. If you're playing large MTTs and expect to survive to the money ladder, you have to have patience.

[@brianfloyd2279]

It ain't what u play, it's what u fold

[@Powner187]

Learning all the charts from Pio Solver. Probably the one thing I'd have to do but will never do, to become a solid player.

[@finalben7]

The most underrated skill is probably game selection. Too many people just want to play and put themselves in poor spots before the cards are even dealt.

[@graceamora456]

So. What's the answer ?

[@JMTavares7]

most underrated skill by standard rec's is ability to raise-fold for value. It's underrated because almost all of them think is is always bad. Fish logic is "why would you do that when you could have just called".... By actual poker players, maybe table selection? I'll sit at tables with 9 european kids in backpacks and get up immediately. idk wtf the rest of them are thinking staying

[@julianhodgson1961]

Yep spot on - the ability to bet/raise for value and then have the discipline to fold if you get raised/re raised is something all the great players do with consummate ease.

[@glenterris3980]

Intelligently buffing in pots where you have no or little showdown value but retain the range or nut advantage in a spot your opponent is looking for reasons to exit. Not sure if it's the most underrated skill but it has helped me chip accumulate during times of being other wise card dead. The most optimal way to do this consistently, we when you can take down pots with small or mid size bets.

[@TimeHandler]

Most important thing in online poker is data analysis. Most important thing in live poker is ability to pick up on patterns of behaviour and body language, whilst concealing your own patterns. Assuming you know the basics already of course.

[@pbetftdi]

This is my biggest leak.. folding a decent hand. Flush, straight and a better ace all out there and I’m finding a reason to call with my trips.

[@DatAceTho]

Me too 😢

[@rajatmahajan88]

Most underrated skill - Bank roll management

[@RemyDelaCruz]

I think staying focused is the most underrated skill. Playing tilted sucks. I need to play more!

[@willlinke2849]

Set up for a river jam with 90k bet on the turn right? So probably shoving all non diamond rivers?

[@DatAceTho]

6:00 take a guess, solely based on apparel, who has more money in the bank

[@bleboulier5213]

Very intéressant spot where brewer can only call 3 barrel on 2 runouts imo , the 8 the A! Before seeing him fold i was thinking koon doesnt shove A8s A9s so i think we have to fold Aj here!!!! And call straight + Kj what do you think?

[@dimecanal]

The cash game course would be for micro, low or mid stakes online?

[@TsunamiSurfaceWash]

For sure aggression early on, you steal a lot of pots

[@iamamish]

"What can you do?" "You can fold" 100%

[@edwardkain5006]

Jonathan, biggest challenge/leak is execution. There are spots like this where I know I should fold but get in my head and talk myself into calling. So actually doing what I know/think I should do.

[@Tazdingo01]

The best skill by far is knowing what the other guy is holding.

[@charlesfriebis7954]

My biggest leak is this exact situation. I tend to call off when I get coolered like this. I have called more times than I can count when I say to myself "I am too strong to fold." Not a single person would fault Brewer for calling off or shoving at any point in this hand.

[@uchibenkei]

a skill i need is winning pots when i'm card-dead

[@denmark8th]

Jonathan, is it possible for you to have a session on bet sizing in multi-way pot? Most of the bet sizing discussions have been centered around HU play, but in low stake games, usually there are > 2 players in the pot post-flop. I'm struggling with sizing correctly in this situation. Thanks!!!

[@boffo63]

Size up the stacks. If you got something and you don't want people chasing straights or flushes then bet big. If you think you have the best hand and just want to harvest some chips then go All in

[@Zstone38]

I think getting reads on your opponents and knowing when to bluff catch a big pot is a big skill as well.

[@marksimpson2321]

Tough fold because up until the river, Brewer loses to AK, AQ AJ AT A9 and beats the other 5 weakers Aces but once the T comes on the river that reduces the combos of Aces he loses to in Koon's hand very slightly so that MIGHT just edge me towards a call. Also i may call as i am rubbish and i am going to get bluffed at some point by any of these players and I would take a stand at some point.

[@DatAceTho]

Increases combos chopping. Koon probably doesn't shove those tho.

[@manfredullrich483]

There are potentially flushes, straights, full houses out there, and even aces with better kicker - so really nasty to call.

[@jaybingham3711]

Pretty sure the more important skill is how to bluff. And how to come over the top with big raises. And how to slam your foot to the floor whenever you have trips... particularly aces. Hyper-aggression ftw! 👍🤟

[@buckleup8962]

THIS AND ALWAYS THIS. I know it’s my number one flaw too.

[@Flowstate_network]

Having poise and being able to slow the game down. Mistakes happen more often when acting too fast

[@willlinke2849]

Deciphering what bets mean important? Its why i dont play anymore cause i cant make sense of anything. Im totally lost flop onwards. Not fun being terrible on top of being practically transparent.

[@DatAceTho]

8:30 I think the commenters made a mistake... T only helps vs A9 and hurts vs several low Ax.

[@DatAceTho]

Are they anywhere near ITM?

[@cain2548]

I feel that a very important skill is to master your leaks. Im a live MTT player and after every tournament I play I write down and focus on the obvious mistakes Ive made. Thanks for the video JL.

[@8yogibear]

Most important skill is patience simple as

[@McRuffin]

Emotional control for sure. People play less than their A game when tilted, and lose for that reason alone. I struggled with this for a while. Now I’m beating sng with 11% ROI. Get your tilt out of poker. That could be the difference with some breakeven players. Play like a robot.

[@robcoop6521]

I'd say an underrated skill is not scaring the ever living shit out of people with volume change. WTF dude, you came in hot out of nowhere.

[@DocSpratley33]

Inconceivable!

[@DatAceTho]

2:54 I'm thinking the most underrated skill is turning a 3 outer

[@DatAceTho]

Just kidding of course. I don't want to get lumped in with the "poker is all luck" crowd.

[@billzepp69]

Easy fold. The best move would have been value bet. But could have been shove like if… but no because limp calling didn’t happen then.

[@marksimos7549]

Comments help, you’re welcome

[@andrewcharles2249]

Yep the fold button is your friend. I only lose the big pots when i call

[@aepr84]

SPR

[@andreathomas4579]

Good Afternoon, Jon!

[@boffo63]

Let me guess. Changing gears?

[@jamesthorson8135]

Skill - Binking the river 😎

[@goldskull05]

I had a tournament where it felt like every hand was like this 😂 ran well but they run just a bit better

[@Bob-pd1wf]

Best play with A8....muck

[@BPMa14n]

Sick fold

[@michaelbaltierra200]

Paying attention...

[@davehimlin2374]

Its according to what type of poker games we are talking about. For example---if it is no limit hold em tourney , the most important thing is WINNING all your coin flip hands, when you are all { or almost all in } in preflop. I dont give a damn how good a person plays , you must have alot of GOOD LUCK, in toruneys to win them . This explains why, we never see any PROS winning the WSOP main event anymore because there is so much luck involed, that any amateur can win it, if they are running good/ hot. Now, other games, like limit or pot limit 7 card stud or omaha, playing a tight conservative game is very important and making sure to bet properly to control the pot size { in pot limit } when on draw hands. No limit hold em is the most crap shoot poker game, because players will regularly bet all their money preflop, on just 2 out of 7 cards...which means you risk your whole stack, on just 28% of your total hand...and then you sit their and PRAY that you get lucky as 5 more cards are dealt...and you are now unable to bet, fold, raise....you just sit there and hope the poker Gods treat you well.

[@Gos1234567]

😂😂😂wtf ?? Pros have been winning the WSOP for years. You pick one example of a 8000. Field tourney. You haven’t a clue

[@davehimlin2374]

@@Gos1234567 MAIN EVENT

[@davehimlin2374]

@@Gos1234567 When is the last time a big named pro won the WSOP main event ? ROFL...so if it is a skill game, how come the pros aint winning the main event for decades ? NL hold em tourneys are a crap shoot...because they are timed events with increasing blind structures....and if a player is running bad/ cold cards, you aint gonna be able to continually bluff your way to a 1st place win in a large field of players.

[@davehimlin2374]

@@Gos1234567 You wanna know 1 of the most important things needed to win NL hold em tourneys....? Having the continual LUCK...to win your all in pre flop - coin flip hands. If a person is experiencing downward bad variance in the course of a tourney with their all in coin flip hands, they aint got a shot to win....and those hands are LUCK BASED..because once all the money goes in preflop on just 2 out of 7 cards { only 28% of your total hand} , all that is left to do now is to sit there and PRAY you win, as you watch 5 random cards get dealt...you cant fold, bet, raise or bluff...all you can do is HOPE to get lucky...you think thats skill ? LOL.

[@Gos1234567]

@@davehimlin2374 2023 a pro won it 😂🤣

[@worlddaves]

Skill: strong bladder

[@ELKORA2388]

Knowing ranges

[@andreathomas4579]

Hi there, Jon!!!'

[@malcolmwasher2308]

Y does he keep covering his mouth with his shirt

[@gordonwasserman7352]

At first, I thought this was a great question. It took a few minutes to realize it was only a good one. Why?, there is one answer head and shoulders above others.. being able to sense weakness.

[@Divinevert]

It's bankroll management. Poker success is overwhelmingly determined by good bankroll management.

[@krisamagus1]

no. That is the easiest part of poker.

[@Divinevert]

@@krisamagus1 then why do 95% of poker players mess it up so terribly?

[@alanrocks00]

100%

[@krisamagus1]

@@Divinevert because they are not poker players, they are simply gamblers. Not tilting for instance is indefinitely more difficult than keeping proper BR management.

[@wolf-ro7ml]

​@@DivinevertBecause that is poker. 90% percent people going to loss in the long run no matter how they are bankrolled.

[@Gos1234567]

Easy enough fold,too many hands beat the A8 and there really are not that many bluffs out there. Trips with a medium kicker on a board with flushes and straights aren’t that great Would be more interesting if Koon had A-low kicker and jam using it as a bluff but I rarely see anyone doing that

[@quiettime1195]

The person that mutes the shuffling of chips during broadcasting....😢

[@geraldhenderson8474]

Folding

[@bleboulier5213]

Its adaptation to opponent level imo , exemple i limp sb BB makes 2.5x alarm signal , flop jt2 BB pot i say to my friend TT JJ QQ KK AA , oh AA what a surprise lol

[@worthplayingfor2197]

uh ok

[@bleboulier5213]

@@worthplayingfor2197 because 100deep the fish would have made 3.5x or 3x my limp if he wanted me to fold , so preflop i already know he has a good pair or AK , les say 99+ ak or tt+ Ak , and flop i reduce it to tens plus , btw some fish 2.5x with jj+ only because they feel some protection is needed with tens minus

[@TomRauhe]

No the most underrated skill is to fold QQ in UTG against a single LJ raise 14% of the time like GTO tells you to do. Because you NEED TO BE BALANCED. Remember to show what you folded though, for maximum amusement and balance effect.

[@loganfignewton]

Why tf would he not go all in and put max pressure????

[@rousseausp]

A bit too intense in your presentation man. It would be more enjoyable if you roned it down.

[@wr8756]

he lucky it wasn't a ten of diamonds

[@unclejoe7929]

Not shooting your self in the foot. If you think you probably shouldn’t be doing something LISTEN to yourself. There is always another hand that probably will be better and less marginal.

[@UncleJoeLITE]

Playing with & hiding in his jacket is weird as. It must be annoying, it is designed to be imo.

[@benybenshlomo7455]

The skill I want is luck

[@jaybingham3711]

Good luck. And good luck.

[@peterskully7335]

Poker is more on luck than skill. Chess is absolutely skill and a little luck.

[@peteradnell]

That helps alot to know.

[@fullor9395]

The skill in poker is getting MAX VALUE when your luck pops up

[@onegod7257]

...IS NOT PLAYING POKER. ITS A FUCKING LUCK BOX GAME.

[@TMumblez]

Awww did your aces get cracked?

[@Deadflush]

Why do you sound like an auctioneer?

[@graceamora456]

Thinking you know what other players hand is. Just nonsense most of the time

[@jefferyford1242]

Patience waiting for right hands

[@wesch6354]

The skill I want to master to be able to crush tournaments is to actually get a decent distribution of cards. Way to often I go completely card dead somewhere in the middle of the tournament when the blinds really start hitting hard when you don't have cards. Then I usually start picking up some hands only to get coolered and KO'd. That scenario has happened to me with such a high frequency its almost like my life is a bad sitcom with terrible writers.

[@mass4905]

I absolutely hate when they start raising up their shirts up to their faces like it makes THAT big a difference. It's almost cringe

[@Young-ep8ik]

Unfortunately you cringing or not makes no difference to them. I know people who observe neck veins and get reasonably reliable tells once in a while from recs. Chris doesn’t normally wear sunglasses or hoodies up so it’s reasonable to believe he does this specifically for a reason.

[@mass4905]

@@Young-ep8ik I know, and unfortunately your opinion makes no difference to me.

[@Young-ep8ik]

@@mass4905 same, but I respect your wrong opinion.

[@maxwilltruck5074]

It is cringe. If you think this is a reliable tell you’ve been watching too many movies.

[@culu37]

Idk with negrebeau at the table seems pretty +EV to cover up

[@bbbulldog61]

Limp call, check call, check call, fold. Unless he has some kind of read I can't see 🙈 folding there. Show all that weakness. Encourage a bluff then fold. I'm in the camp of those players that say heads up, trips, what can you do. I'd call. I believe that A8 is at top 🔝🎩 of it's range. Plus I'm a calling station 🚉⛽.

[@TMumblez]

Well you're not wrong about being a calling station lol

[@DatAceTho]

Brewer's hand is very underrepresented. In a cash game I think you should get it all in at some point in the hand.

[@mrmeseeks5731]

My hand reading skill at 1/2 is seriously the most insane fucking thing ever I’m 90percent right

[@user-bg1bk6pd6e]

So today I'm playing 1-3, my position is 2. 3 players in the hand we go to the river player 8 bets 75 I cal the player behind me folds I turn my cards over the 8 player puts a chip on his cards and mucks his cards. The dealer goes what are you doing and pulls them from the muck.

[@aaronl614]

Lost all that protecting his small blind... let it go