Opening from the Hijack in MTTs

The Hijack is where your range starts to loosen. In a 6-Max MTT at 100bb, a solid HJ opening range is approximately 19-22%% of hands. That is a meaningful step up from UTG's 15-18%%, and the additional hands are mostly speculative holdings that benefit from having one fewer opponent behind. Compared to UTG, the HJ adds several categories of hands. Suited aces extend down to A5s-A7s, giving you more wheel-draw and nut-flush potential. Suited connectors expand to include T9s, 98s, and sometimes 87s. Offsuit broadways widen to include AJo and KQo as standard opens, with KJo as a borderline addition. Suited one-gappers like J9s and T8s also enter the range. The strategic rationale for the HJ widening is straightforward. With four players behind instead of five, the probability of facing a premium hand decreases. You also gain a marginal positional advantage: if only the Button or blinds call, you are in slightly better shape than UTG would be. However, the HJ is still not a steal position. The Cutoff and Button are behind you with wide 3-betting ranges, so you cannot open junk. Every hand in your HJ range should have a clear plan against a 3-bet, whether that is calling, 4-betting, or folding. One important concept for HJ play is the relationship between your range and the players to your left. If the Cutoff and Button are aggressive 3-bettors, you should tighten your HJ range and lean toward hands that play well against 3-bets (suited broadways, pairs). If they are passive, you can add more speculative hands. In RangerPro's HJ range at 100bb, you can see the matrix filling out compared to UTG. The suited connector column extends further down, and more offsuit broadways light up. This visual comparison is one of the most effective ways to internalize how position affects hand selection. Stack depth adjustments follow the same pattern as UTG but with slightly wider thresholds. At 40-50bb, the HJ range stays relatively stable. At 25bb, you begin cutting the weakest speculative hands. Below 15bb, you transition to push-fold with a range of approximately 18-22%% of hands, wider than UTG's shoving range because of the positional advantage.