The Ultimate Guide to Mastery: How to Play the Cutoff Position in Poker

In No Limit Hold’em, position is one of the biggest drivers of long-term win rate, and the Cutoff is the gateway into true late position aggression. Sitting directly to the right of the Button, this seat lets you attack the blinds, pressure weaker ranges, and often “inherit” last position when the Button folds.

The key to mastering the Cutoff is shifting gears from early-position caution to late-position offense while staying disciplined against strong players behind. This guide covers optimal opening ranges, how to respond to different Button types, blind-stealing tactics, 3-bet defense, and post-flop play from this seat.

The Cutoff gains power from information and blind-stealing potential: by the time action reaches you, most players have already folded, shrinking the number of live opponents. When the Button folds, you effectively become the last player to act post-flop versus the blinds, allowing you to realize equity, bluff more often, and thin-value bet profitably.

Tracking data from tools such as PokerTracker and Holdem Manager consistently shows that for solid winning players, the Cutoff is usually the second most profitable seat after the Button in terms of big blinds won per 100 hands.

To play the Cutoff effectively, start by defining a solid Raise First In (RFI) strategy: when action folds to you, a strong baseline is to open roughly 27–30% of hands. This is notably wider than typical middle-position ranges, which often sit closer to 18–20% in standard lineups.

Exact ranges should always be adjusted for table conditions, but a robust default Cutoff opening range generally includes:

• Pocket pairs: All pairs (22+).
• Suited aces: A2s–AKs.
• Offsuit aces: A9o+ by default; A8o–A7o can be added when blinds are tight.
• Suited connectors: 54s–T9s.
• Suited gappers: Hands like T8s, J9s, QTs.
• Broadways: All suited Broadways plus offsuit holdings like KQo as standard.
• Suited kings/queens: K5s+ and Q8s+ are common opens in 6-max games.

Your Cutoff strategy is highly sensitive to the player on the Button. A passive Button lets you treat the Cutoff almost like the Button, while an aggressive regular behind you forces you to tighten and respect their 3-bets.

Scenario A: Passive or tight Button — When the Button is nitty or overly passive, you can widen your Cutoff range considerably since you are less likely to face 3-bets or flats that put you out of position. In these lineups, it is reasonable to add more speculative holdings such as K8s, Q9o, and smaller suited connectors.

Scenario B: Aggressive Button — Against a strong, aggressive Button who 3-bets frequently, your edge from the Cutoff shrinks because you are often forced into playing out of position in bloated pots. Versus this profile, remove roughly the bottom 10–15% of your usual Cutoff range, folding hands like A2s–A5s or KTo that perform poorly in 3-bet pots.

One of the main revenue streams from the Cutoff is blind stealing: you are attacking the 1.5 big blinds that sit in the small blind and big blind before the flop. The key is to exploit each blind’s tendencies, distinguishing between players who overfold and those who defend too wide.

When the big blind folds to steals more than roughly 75% of the time—especially 80%+ in higher-rake online games—you can profitably open extremely wide, sometimes approaching “any two” playable cards because the immediate EV from folds outweighs the risk. If the big blind calls often but plays passively or makes large mistakes after the flop, favor value-heavy hands like KJ or AT.

When you open wide from the Cutoff, you will inevitably face 3-bets. Your defense strategy changes dramatically depending on whether the 3-bettor is on the Button or in the blinds.

Versus Button 3-bets (you are out of position) — Playing out of position against the Button is one of the toughest spots in poker, so your defense should be tighter and more value oriented. A solid approach is to 4-bet for value with premium holdings like KK/AA and sometimes AK, while mainly calling with hands that retain good playability such as pocket pairs (around 88–JJ) and strong suited connectors like T9s or JTs.

Versus blind 3-bets (you are in position) — In position against the blinds, you can defend a significantly wider range because acting last post-flop gives you more control over pot size and bluffing opportunities. Here, it is reasonable to call 3-bets with lower pocket pairs and extra suited connectors (like 65s or 76s).

In live games and softer online pools, limpers in early or middle position are common, and the Cutoff is an ideal seat to execute isolation raises. Instead of limping behind, raise to around 3.5–4× the big blind over a single limper to push out the Button and blinds and isolate the weaker player.

When successful, this line often creates a heads-up pot where you hold position against a capped and usually weak range, which is a highly profitable situation over the long run.

Once the flop is dealt, your positional advantage shapes how aggressively you can continue. Because your opens from the Cutoff represent a reasonably strong range, you can continuation-bet frequently on dry, unconnected boards such as K‑7‑2 or A‑8‑3.

With medium-strength holdings like second pair, you can often check back versus the blinds to control pot size and realize your equity across later streets—a luxury that is not as accessible from early position, where more players act behind you.

• Open wider: Start with a baseline of about 27–30% of hands from the Cutoff, tightening or loosening based on table texture.
• Adjust to the Button: Expand ranges versus tight/passive Buttons and trim the bottom of your range against aggressive 3-bettors.
• Attack the blinds: Target over-folding blinds relentlessly and value bet players who call too wide or play poorly after the flop.
• Respect position in 3-bet pots: Defend tighter versus Button 3-bets and wider versus the blinds, leveraging your positional advantage when in position.

By combining disciplined preflop construction with sharp awareness of who sits on the Button and in the blinds, the Cutoff can become a reliable engine for growing your bankroll and stabilizing your overall win rate.