Range composition on the board

Practice with exercises

Content by Tools of Poker Methodology and calculation assumptions

What are we trying to find?

We want to know how much of the opponent range forms a particular hand or draw on the board. We will follow the same example from the first combo to the final percentage.

Of all the combos the opponent can still hold, how many have top pair?

Perceived range

TTJJQQKKAAAKs

Your cards

As 7d

board

Kh 9c 2s

Target: top pair

On this board, top pair means a pair of kings made with one of the opponent’s hole cards. The range above is our starting assumption: only those hand classes are included.

Review exercise 4.3: range combinations

First, find what the opponent can still hold

1. Count the original combos

TT, JJ, QQ, KK and AA each start with 6 combos. AKs starts with 4. We count all of them before removing any known cards.

5 × 6 + 4 = 34

2. Remove combos containing known cards

A combo is blocked if it uses one of your cards or a board card. In this range, As and Kh remove combos; 7d, 9c and 2s do not affect any of the included hands.

  • AA: 3 combos are blocked: your As (ace of spades) paired with each of the other three aces.
  • KK: 3 combos are blocked: the Kh (king of hearts) paired with each of the other three kings.
  • AKs: 2 combos are blocked: AsKs and AhKh.
As Ks Ah Kh
3 + 3 + 2 = 8

3. Count the available combos

Subtract the blocked combos from the original total. The combos left over are all the hands the opponent can still hold within our assigned range.

34 − 8 = 26

From now on, we work with these 26 available combos.

4. Keep the combos that match the target

board

Kh 9c 2s

Now look at the board and ask what each remaining hand forms. The target is top pair, so we look for a pair of kings.

What each hand forms on this board
HandCombosHand on the board
TT6Pair below the king
JJ6Pair below the king
QQ6Pair below the king
KK3set
AA3overpair
AKs2✓ top pair
Total262 with top pair

Only the remaining AKs combos have top pair. KK makes a set and AA is an overpair, so neither belongs to the requested category.

These are the 2 combos we are looking for:

Ad Kd Ac Kc

5. Turn the count into a percentage

We found 2 target combos among 26 possible combos. Divide the target count by the available total, then multiply by 100.

2 ÷ 26 × 100 = 7.69%

Read the result like this: 2 of the 26 combos the opponent can still hold have top pair. They represent 7.69% of that available range.

All the other available combos stay in the denominator, even though they do not have top pair. Round only the final percentage to two decimal places.

Read this same example in the range grid

Each highlighted cell shows two numbers: available combos / combos that match the target.

  • AKs shows 2/2: 2 combos remain and all 2 have top pair.
  • AA shows 3/0: 3 combos remain, but none has top pair.

The green outline marks hands that contribute to the target. Open AKs to see its card combinations: crossed-out cards show blockers, and stars mark the available combos with top pair.

We assign the 3-bet range to the opponent in BB (30 BB). Against BTN.

View source chart

The same method for other targets

If the target changes to a set, an overpair or a draw, repeat the same process. Keep the full available range as the total, then count only the combos that satisfy the new target.

For a made hand, use its exact best five-card category. For a draw, combine the two hole cards with the flop or turn and look for a hand that needs one more card to complete.

Remember

Target share (%) = Target combos ÷ Remaining combos × 100

First remove your cards and the board. Count each matching combo once and divide by the available range. Round to two decimal places.

TargetWhat to count
Specific handOnly the available combos of the named class, keeping suited and offsuit separate.
setA pocket pair plus exactly one board card of that rank; the best hand must be three of a kind.
top pairOne hole card pairs the highest board rank; the best hand must be exactly one pair.
overpairA pocket pair above every board rank; the best hand must be exactly one pair.
Two Pair / Straight / FlushCount that exact best five-card category, excluding stronger hands.
Flush DrawExactly four cards of one suit among the two hole cards and the board, with no flush or stronger hand already made.
One-card straight drawFour distinct ranks from a five-rank straight, including the ace-low straight, with no straight or stronger hand already made.

Next: your equity against the range

You can now count what the opponent range contains. In lesson 4.5, compare your own hand with all its available combos and include ties and future board cards.

4.5 · Hand vs range equity

Questions about range composition

Use the combos that the opponent can still hold. In this example, the original range has 34 combos, but 8 are blocked. Divide by the 26 available combos, because those are the possibilities we are analysing now.

Yes. A top-pair combo can also have a flush draw. Answer only the requested target and count each physical combo once.

No. It measures the composition of the assigned range, not your expected share of the pot. Every remaining physical combo has equal weight here.

No. Made-hand targets use the exact best five-card category. A full house is counted only as a full house, not as a set or two pair.

Yes. Count the two hole cards together with the board. On a turn with four hearts, a combo without hearts still has a flush draw; a combo with a heart already has a flush and is not counted as a flush draw.

No. A cell names a hand class. Before blockers, AA has 6 combos, AKs has 4 and AKo has 12. Count the specific two-card combinations represented by each cell, not the number of coloured cells.