Poker Scientist — Your Easy Way to the Hard GTO

A balanced strategy is a key concept for success in modern poker. To understand GTO well, players need to practice hard in solvers. However, not all solvers are created equal. Even an experienced player has a hard time understanding the principles of operation and the interface of GTO programs. Therefore, they should try the new poker app — Poker Scientist.

What is Poker Scientist?

Poker Scientist is a application that teaches users all the subtleties of GTO in a simple and understandable way. PS works in a browser, so you don't need to download and install anything on your computer. There are 2 ways to study at Poker Scientist:

1. Analysis of hand histories in the "Gameplan" tab;
2. Playing against the bot in "Training".

Gameplan. There you analyze your hands using PS tools. It is similar to Flopzilla in many respects, but with an emphasis on GTO. Since June 2021, balanced game strategy analysis is available not only for 100 BB cash tables, but also for tournament poker. Now you can analyze situations from MTT in stacks of 10, 15, 20, 30 BB. Key features of Gameplan:

• All situations are resolved in accordance with the GTO strategy and visualized;
• Any solution is available instantly — you do not need to wait for Poker Scientist to calculate everything;
• Removed irrelevant lines — no more cumbersome trees with 27 betting options depending on the rare actions of opponents;
• The optimal number and size of bets have been chosen — hundreds of hours of time were spent on the most popular scenarios in a regular raised pot, as well as situations of 3-bets and 4-bets;
• Grouped runouts with a similar strategy for playing them — now you do not have to rack your brains after each turn or river card. Instead, you have multiple scenarios, with a plan as reliable as a Swiss watch.

Training. Postflop decision trainer, where you choose the optimal action against the bot. Unlike PreflopHero or PokerIQ, Poker Scientist trains not only your preflop but also postflop lines. The bot can fold the hand already on the flop, or it can check / call the flop, turn and push the river. And already you have to make a choice in a difficult situation. Features of the trainer:

• The training is based on real hands against the GTO bot;
• A choice of specific situations for training is available;
• Any of your actions are described using the exact numbers EV;
• The program includes over 15 million different scenarios;
• Detailed statistics of your results allow you to determine your strengths and weaknesses.

The developers are constantly improving Poker Scientist. In the near future, the "Academy" mode will become available to users. The academy will be hosting exclusive tutorial videos available only to subscribers. The content will be regularly updated to reveal all the possibilities of the program. The ultimate goal is to create a single learning space where all the useful information is gathered in one place.

Gameplan

After switching from the main page to "Gameplan" you will be asked to choose the discipline (MTT or Cashgame) and the size of the stack. In the cash, all calculations are made for 100 BB stacks. For MTT, there are options with 10, 15, 20, 30 big blinds. In the example, we'll select Cashgame.

In the next window, you need to decide your position and position of your opponent in the hand. In the cash, only a 6-max table is considered, but in MTT there are 8 positions to choose from. Let's take a popular blind battle situation: BTN vs BB. The "Reset" button removes all selected positions, but we need a "Select Action". We click on it.

On the new screen, select an action. In our case, this is an OR of 2.5 BB from BTN. We are offered to open 44.3% of our range. Both the raise size and the range are set in accordance with the GTO strategy. The poker scientist's unnecessary line simplification in action! Click on the square below the matrix on the right. The square is divided into two parts: the upper one is the size of the bet, the lower one is the frequency of the bet. If you click on the fold, then the analysis of the hand will be completed and you can move on to the next situation. An excellent option if on December 31st you promised yourself "Analyze 10 hands every day", but are not looking for difficult paths.

After raising from the button, BB's range and action becomes available. Click on the green call square. PS will now ask you to choose the flop cards.

Let's choose the dry structure 37J. A canonical flop is associated with a grouping of similar boards. With the "View flops list" you can choose any of 198 types of generalized flops. The amount is impressive, but still feasible with regular training.

Moving on to choosing a flop action. To the left of the range, a table appeared with the percentage of made hands and draw-hands. When you hover over a specific combination, you will be shown the number of combinations instead of percent. When you click on a combination, it will highlight the hands that form it on the matrix. In the example, BB should check the flop 100% of the time. BTN has a lot more options on the flop. When you hover over each of the 5 squares, the matrix will show you the hands with which you should take the action recommended by the GTO.

Pay attention to the "Simplifier" column. With its help you can disable the actions offered by Poker Scientist. This will simplify your training and allow you to focus on lines that are more common. In the upper right corner there is a switch "Strategy — Equity". It changes the display of combinations in the matrix. Equity becomes available to you instead of frequencies. When you click on any pair of cards from the matrix, information about a specific hand will appear on the right side of the screen.

Let's go back to the 37J flop. The blind called to a small bet from the button. Now click on "View Turn Runouts". Here we come across another useful analysis tool — the graph of the dependence of equity on the turn card. Simply put — we can clearly see which cards enhance the BB range, and which ones fit BTN better.

We pass to the choice of the turn card "Select Turn Cluster". Let's choose a neutral card — let it be a two of hearts.

A similar algorithm on the turn and river. The players have narrowing ranges and increasing the size of the bets, but the principle of analysis is the same.

Pay attention to the button with a dial and an arrow. It is responsible for navigating. If you want to change something in the actions of the players, their sizing or board cards, then just go back to the desired stage.

Poker Scientist has limitations that you should be aware of:

• When you "roll back" the analysis back, you will not be able to jump forward again — the entire sequence of actions and bets will have to be set again;
• You cannot save an analysis. You will not be able to write down the situation and continue to analyze it on another day or come back to it months later.

It is possible that these features will be added in the future. Especially if many users ask for it in the "RoadMap" tab.

Training

When switching to the "Training" mode, you will be prompted to choose:

• format and size of the stack;
• the positions of the players;
• action on preflop (raise, 3-bet, 4-bet);
• the opponent's playing style.

As an example, let's choose the following options: Cash, CO vs BTN, 2bet, we are in position, there is a tight opponent against us. First, click on "Randomize Spot". The Poker Scientist gives us a random starting hand and flop. Let's start training.

The trainers interface is much simpler than Gameplan. We have a flop, a starting hand, 1 opponent, several options and bets. In the window under the gaming table, key information about the distribution:

• Street;
• Player;
• Action;
• Frequency;
• Best strategy;
• Best frequency;
• EV;
• Best EV;
• EV Lost;
• Gameplan.

Pay special attention to the columns with the best strategy, lost EV and Gameplan. With a correct decision in accordance with a balanced strategy, EV Lost = 0. In other cases, the numbers will be highlighted in red. To analyze the error, click on "Gameplan". This will open a new tab where you can carefully research mistakes using the game plan tools.

In case of an error not only with the betsizing, but also with the action itself (put where the GTO should be checked), you will see a pop-up window:

If, after completing the hand, you press "Replay Hand", then it will start over.

Choosing "New Hand" will give you a completely new situation.

Stats, Subscription and RoadMap

In the "Stats" tab, Poker Scientist keeps statistics with your results in the trainer. This is useful for assessing progress and identifying the most vulnerable areas of your strategy. Filters can help you identify the leaks better.

Subscription. Shows your current subscription and its expiration date. Automatically renews when finished — be careful.

RoadMap. In the roadmap, the developers are announcing the Poker Scientist updates. The plan is divided into several elements: coming soon, in progress, planned and under consideration.

In Updates, users can learn more about the new features and provide feedback.

But PS is not limited to reports and descriptions alone: in Ideas, you influence the development process and future updates.

Developers add new tools and functions based on player suggestions. This is how the "Strategy — Equity" switch and the division into MTT and cash tables appeared in the program.

Whats difference between subscriptions of Poker Scientist?

There are 3 types of Poker Scientist subscriptions:

• Gameplan. You will have access to work in Gameplan, all possible variants of HU GTO situations and instant GTO solutions. The subscription does NOT include Trainer and its interaction with Gameplan.
• Trainer. You will be able to practice in Trainer and all possible variants of HU GTO situations and instant GTO solutions are available. There is a tracking of training results. The subscription does NOT include Gameplan and its interaction with Trainer.
• Bundle. Full access to all functions of the application without restrictions.

The full potential of the application is revealed only in the full version: analysis of situations in the simulator without access to analysis in terms of the game is not so useful. As well as analyzing hands in "Gameplan" without further training against the GTO bot.

How to get up to 135 € discount on Poker Scientist?

Poker Scientist is far from the most affordable poker program: a 1 month subscription is more expensive than a lifetime license of the Flopzilla. But you have the opportunity to get a 20% discount for 3 months on any of the PS subscriptions. To get a discount you need:

1. Register on the official website of the application.

2. After registration, you will be prompted to subscribe. The type and duration of the subscription for getting a discount does not matter — choose any.

3. On the next tab, click on "Apply coupon".

4. Specify POKERENERGY in the line that opens and click on the button with the green arrow.

5. In the next window you will be shown the subscription price with a 20% discount.

6. Click on "Proceed To Checkout" and follow the recommendations.

How to contact the Poker Scientist developers?

If you have any questions about Poker Scientist, please write:

• to e-mail [email protected];
• to the Facebook group.

There is a feedback form in the lower right corner of the PS official website. In it, you can also leave a report on problems in the program.

The developers also answer on the youtube channel Poker Scientist.

Open any video and leave your message in the comments.