ConceptsPreflop
Raise first in (RFI)
Raise first in: opening the pot with a raise when everyone before you has folded.
What it is
RFI (raise first in) is the first voluntary action of the hand being a raise — an open. Your RFI percentage is how often you open when the action folds to you, and it should depend heavily on your seat.
The alternative, calling the big blind first in (an open limp), is rarely better in a raked six-handed game: it gives up the chance to win the blinds right away and invites the players behind to raise.
Why it matters
Opening ranges widen with every seat closer to the button: fewer players are left to act behind you, and you are more likely to have position after the flop.
From under the gun, five players can still wake up with a strong hand; from the button, two — and both will be out of position.
A sensible open size is 2 to 2.5 bb from most seats, and a little more from the small blind, which plays the rest of the hand out of position.
The maths
RFI equals the hands you opened divided by the hands where the action folded to you.
Worked example
Counting an under-the-gun range
The illustrative under-the-gun range used on these pages: 66+, A9s+, A5s, A4s, KTs+, QTs+, JTs, T9s, 98s, AJo+, KQo.
- Pairs 66 to AA: 9 pairs × 6 = 54 combos.
- Suited hands: A9s to AKs (5), A5s and A4s (2), KTs to KQs (3), QTs and QJs (2), JTs, T9s and 98s (3) — 15 classes × 4 = 60 combos.
- Offsuit hands: AJo, AQo, AKo and KQo — 4 classes × 12 = 48 combos.
- Total: 54 + 60 + 48 = 162 combos, 162 / 1,326 ≈ 12.2% of all hands.
The button's illustrative range on these pages is about 42% — more than three times as many hands, from the same player, because of the seat.
Try it
Set the open size and the blinds to see how often an open has to win right away if it never wins when called.
Common mistakes
- Opening the same range from every seat.
- Open-limping hands that are good enough to raise or bad enough to fold.
- Opening too wide from early seats, where the hands that call or 3-bet you are strong.
- Using a big open size from late position, where a smaller one risks less to win the same blinds.
Related concepts
- Stealing the blindsOpening from the late seats to win the blinds: a bet that is profitable even when it fails a lot.
- PositionActing last after the flop is worth money: you see what your opponent does before you decide.
- 3-bets and 4-betsThe first re-raise before the flop, and the re-raise after it: building pots with value and taking them with fold equity.