At a glance
- On the HUD
- Small blind 3bS-SB·Big blind 3bS-BB
- Formula
3-bets / steals faced in the blind with chips behind to raise- Typical range
6–16% in each version
- Where it shows
- Badge: the small blind, before anyone opens. Badge: the big blind, before anyone opens.
- Trust it after
- 12 chances. Below that the number is faded; reads need 12 chances and a number at least one standard error outside the typical range.
What it measures
When everyone folds to a late seat and it raises, the blinds can fold, call or 3-bet. This stat is the 3-bet, often called a re-steal. The HUD keeps it for each blind: 3bS-SB and 3bS-BB.
The two blinds use it differently. The small blind is out of position against the stealer and still has the big blind behind, so a flat call invites a squeeze and a bloated pot out of position. That pushes good small blinds toward 3-betting or folding, and their 3-bet is most of their defense. The big blind closes the action and gets a good price to call, so its 3-bets are a smaller slice of a wider defense that is mostly calls.
It’s a narrow cut of 3-bet, which counts re-raises against any open from any seat, and it isn’t a squeeze: a squeeze needs a caller between the open and the 3-bet, and here nobody else is in.
How it’s calculated
A chance is the fold to steal spot plus one condition: the player is in a blind, the first raise came from the cutoff, button or small blind with no limpers before it, their first action after it faced that raise alone, and they had more chips behind than it cost to call, so a re-raise was possible. It counts if they 3-bet.
- 3bS-SB = 3-bets / steals faced in the small blind with chips to raise
- 3bS-BB = 3-bets / steals faced in the big blind with chips to raise
Both are also kept by the stealer’s seat (vs CO, vs BTN and, for the big blind, vs SB). The same hand also counts toward the player’s overall 3-bet.
The HUD has no small blind call stat, but you can get close: 100% minus FtS-SB minus 3bS-SB is roughly how often the small blind flats.
Example: Ivy faced 30 steals in the small blind and 3-bet 4 → 4 / 30 = 13% 3bS-SB. In the big blind she faced 26 steals, but once she had only 2 bb behind against a 3 bb open, so calling would have put her all in. That leaves 25 chances; she 3-bet 2 → 2 / 25 = 8% 3bS-BB.
Why it matters
The re-steal is the blinds’ main weapon against wide stealing, and it decides which steals are worth making. Every steal you have to fold to a 3-bet loses the whole open.
For the blind, a light 3-bet is a bluff with a price. The button opens to 2.5 bb and the big blind 3-bets to 10 bb: it puts in 9 more (10 minus the 1 bb posted) to win the 4 bb in the pot (2.5 + 0.5 + 1), so it profits on the spot if the button folds more than 9 / 13 = 69.2%. From the small blind, the same 10 bb 3-bet puts in 9.5 more to win 4, which needs 9.5 / 13.5 = 70.4% folds, and the big blind still has to fold behind. Hands with blockers and playability make up the rest when called.
Pots grow fast. If the button calls that 10 bb 3-bet, the pot is 20.5 bb (10 + 10 + 0.5 dead) before the flop, more than eight times the open. A blind’s 3-bet number tells you how often your cheap steal turns into that pot, and how strong the range across from you is when it does.
Too low, about right, too high
Too low: under 6% from either blind
What it says
The blind almost never fights back with a raise. In the small blind, check FtS-SB to see which kind: a high fold means a Nit who folds or 3-bets only the top, a low fold means a passive player who flat-calls. In the big blind, a low 3bS-BB means the defense is nearly all calls, so the rare 3-bet is a premium hand, usually big pairs and ace-king.
How to exploit it
- Steal wider from the seats in front of them; the worst you usually face is a call.
- Fold most of your steal range to their rare 3-bet. Against a 3% big blind, hands like AJo, KQo and small pairs from the button are folds.
- Remember their flat range is uncapped: with no 3-bets, their strong hands are in the calls. Barrel less on boards that hit big pairs and broadways.
- Against a passive small blind who flats instead, open your value hands bigger; they call without a fight.
About right: 6–16% (SB and BB)
What it says
A blind in range mixes value hands with some bluffs. A small blind near the top of the band is usually playing 3-bet-or-fold, which is sound; a big blind in the middle of the band pairs it with a solid calling range. The seat split adds detail: a good player 3-bets more against the button than the cutoff, because the button opens wider.
How to exploit it
Against a balanced re-stealer, build your steals from hands that can do something when 3-bet: call in position, 4-bet, or fold without regret. Weak offsuit hands that only win when everyone folds are the ones to trim. Use the seat split too: if they re-steal against the button far more than against the cutoff, trim your button range first.
Then look at how they play 3-bet pots. Their 3-bet size sets your price to call, and their fold to 4-bet tells you whether 4-bet bluffs with blockers such as A5s are worth it.
Too high: over 16% from either blind
What it says
The blind re-steals a lot, so its range holds plenty of bluffs: suited aces, suited connectors, offsuit broadways. This is common among aggressive regulars, LAGs and Maniacs, and in home games among players who have decided they’re being stolen from. A small blind over 16% can be making a fair adjustment against wide button opens; a big blind over 16% is usually 3-betting hands it should simply call.
How to exploit it
- Trim steals that must fold to a 3-bet, such as Q7o and J8o, from the seats in front of them.
- Call 3-bets in position wider with hands that play well: pairs, suited broadways, suited aces, AJo and KQo.
- 4-bet bluff with blockers. After a 2.5 bb button open and a 10 bb big blind 3-bet, the pot is 13 bb (2.5 + 10 + 0.5); a 4-bet to 22 bb puts in 19.5 more and needs 19.5 / 32.5 = 60% folds. Check their fold to 4-bet against that.
- Steal smaller, so each fold to a 3-bet costs less.
When it’s your own number
3-bet vs steal has no read hint, so the HUD doesn’t turn it into a read on your badge, but anyone watching sees the pattern. Under 6% and your blinds are free real estate: players steal wide and fold to your 3-bets. Over 16% and they’ll 4-bet you lighter and call more 3-bets in position.
Check each blind against its job. In the small blind, most of your defense should be 3-bets, so a 3bS-SB near the top of the band with few flats is healthy. In the big blind, a 3bS-BB in the middle of the band with calls doing most of the work is a good shape. Re-steal more against the button than the cutoff.
Using it on the HUD
PokerNow HUD Advanced shows 3-bet vs steal on the blinds’ badges before anyone opens, next to fold to steal, so you can read both before you decide to steal. Gold means above 16%, blue below 6%, and a number with fewer than 12 chances is faded. When the version against a particular stealer’s seat is thin, the HUD steps back to the broader number and the tooltip says which one you see.
Small percentages need big samples. A 10% 3bS over 30 chances is ±5.5 points, so the true number could sit anywhere from 4.5% to 15.5%, nearly the whole typical band. Over 100 chances it’s ±3. Steals faced in one blind are slow to collect, so lean on it only after a long session or several. Read it with fold to steal, BB call vs steal and the stealer’s steal attempt.
Questions
What is a good 3-bet vs steal percentage?
The HUD treats 6–16% as typical for both blinds. A solid small blind often sits near the top of that range because it 3-bets or folds rather than calling out of position. A solid big blind usually sits nearer the middle, since it gets a good price to call and uses calls for most of its defense.
What is a re-steal in poker?
A re-steal is a 3-bet from the small blind or big blind against an open from a late seat, usually the cutoff or button, made partly because that open is likely a steal. It wins the pot preflop often enough when the stealer opens wide and folds a lot to 3-bets.
Should the small blind call or 3-bet a button open?
Mostly 3-bet or fold. Calling from the small blind leaves you out of position for the whole hand and lets the big blind squeeze or join, often in a three-way pot. That is why a healthy small blind has most of its defense in 3-bet vs steal and folds the hands it doesn’t re-raise.
How do I beat a blind who 3-bets my steals too often?
Cut the steals that must fold to a 3-bet, call more 3-bets in position with pairs and suited broadways, and add 4-bet bluffs with blockers when their fold to 4-bet is high. After a 2.5 bb open and a 10 bb 3-bet, a 22 bb 4-bet needs 60% folds to profit on the spot.