Aytan Eldarova's Poker Essays That Help Improve Your Game

 

Aytan Eldarova

I first met Aytan Eldarova during the OLA Poker Tour, where I was working as a media reporter. In our casual conversations, we would talk about game strategy a bit - nothing too serious. That's where I found out that she teaches poker mathematics among other things. This is your basic GTO strategy with a little added edge.

Eldarova is a poker strategy writer published by PokerPro and PokerOrg, known for blending rigorous analytical insight with a deep commitment to poker as a true mind sport. She is the originator of Dynamic Exploit Equilibrium (DEE), introduced in 2025 — a framework that uses GTO as a baseline and layers real-time exploits, particularly under ICM pressure, to maximise EV in practical tournament environments. Her work is recognised for delivering clear, actionable explanations of complex strategic concepts, spanning solver theory, exploitative adjustments, and modern tournament strategy. Aytan has provided live strategy coverage from poker’s biggest stages, including the WSOP Final Table in Las Vegas, and regularly collaborates with top players to analyse high-level decision-making. In 2025, she was also credited with formalising new mathematical tools for poker, including rMDF, refined probability calculations for straight and flush draws, and the concept of a ‘minimum chance’ threshold — with particular emphasis on final-table dynamics. With a background in data-driven analysis and extensive on-the-felt experience, her work bridges theory and real-world application, equipping players to think deeper, adapt faster, and capture EV others miss. At present, she currently writes some poker essays and shares them with everyone to read. Below is an excerpt from one her essays, entitled Rethinking the River: The Street Where Creativity Disappears - and Where the Biggest Edges Still Remain.

For years, poker players have poured enormous intellectual energy into perfecting their pre-flop charts, memorising solver-driven flop strategies, and refining the delicate balance between aggression and control on the turn. The last decade of strategy content has reshaped how we think about ranges, frequencies, and equity shifts. Yet amidst this seismic evolution, one part of the game has remained surprisingly underdeveloped: river play. 

For many players, the river is where creativity evaporates. All the clever manoeuvring done on earlier streets suddenly distils down to a timid checking back of medium strength, a robotic thin value bet, or a half-hearted bluff that follows the solver-approved candidates but lacks real psychological resonance. The river is the moment of maximum clarity and maximum pressure - and paradoxically, it is where most players begin thinking the least.

This is a strategic tragedy. The river is the street where pots are largest, ranges are narrowest, emotional commitment is highest, and population tendencies are clearest. A single overbet, a thin value extraction, or a well-chosen blocker bluff can swing a session, a tournament life, or even a career trajectory. The players who learn to think creatively, rather than timidly, on the river are the ones who consistently capture EV that others leave untouched.

To understand why, we must first examine why river play stagnates - and how human psychology creates immense opportunity in the final decision point.

Just click on the link to continue reading - Rethinking the River: The Street Where Creativity Disappears - and Where the Biggest Edges Still Remain.

For her other essays, just visit Aytan's page at Substack.com.