Elite Cash Game Mastery Review 2024 - Complete Walkthrough

Elite Cash Game Mastery Review
Elite Cash Game Mastery is a high level poker course from Upswing Poker.

Edit: This course was released several years ago and may be dated now. I have just released a brand new course with much more up to date advanced cash game strategy.

The reason why is because this course is taught by Andres "educa-p0ker" Artinano who has been one of the most successful high stakes online cash game players in recent years. He has over 2 million dollars in winnings against the highest level of competition on PokerStars.

In fact Andres is widely considered to be one of the top ten poker players in the world right now. It is really hard to find this kind of high level poker instruction anywhere.

So I have spent the last few weeks studying this extensive and highly advanced course. And I really must stress that last point.

This poker course is meant for extremely serious poker players only. It is for people who are looking to take their game to a world class level.

And that is why it also comes with a very high price tag (which I will discuss near the end).

So in this Elite Cash Game Mastery review I am going to break down every section of this new poker course and give you an inside look into exactly what it offers.

That way you can decide if it is worth it for you or not.


Is Elite Cash Game Mastery Worth It?


Here is the short answer:

Elite Cash Game Mastery is a decent option for serious poker players. However there are many significantly better options for poker training available these days at a much lower price.

This is why it did not make the list of my top recommended online poker programs.

This Elite Cash Game Mastery review will give you everything you need to know, the pros and cons of the course, what’s included in the course, and whether or not it’s a good fit for you.

I do want to mention right off the top though, that for beginners or those struggling in small or mid stakes, there are many good free options these days to get you winning quickly.

For example:

If you just want to know the basic strategy to start winning consistently, without spending a dime, you can just grab a copy of my free poker cheat sheet.

Alright, on to the review.


1. Elite Cash Game Mastery Course Overview


The Elite Cash Game Mastery course is broken up into 4 different sections, preflop, postflop, live play and "other" which I will get into a bit later.

And the course is meant to be consumed in that order as well.

Elite Cash Game Mastery Review

There are 62 total instructional videos (all done by Andres) spread across each section as of the writing of this review. And as should be expected, the majority of those are in the postflop section.

This course also includes plenty of downloadable content including Andres's entire preflop ranges, HUD setup, filters and player reports for both PokerTracker and Hold'em Manager.

Since this is a fairly new course we are also promised that even more content will be added in the future. So there is a huge amount of material already to cover here.

Let's dive in!


2. Elite Cash Game Mastery Preflop Section


The preflop section of Elite Cash Game Mastery begins with the blinds, and specifically the big blind. I like this approach since in my opinion this is easily the most misunderstood and misplayed position at the poker table for most people.

Andres dives deep into the factors involved in defending from the big blind from both a GTO and an exploitative approach.

And something else that I found new and interesting is that he also breaks down his big blind defence strategy here based on the opponent's skill level, the impact of the rake and the math versus various bet sizings.

Andres then goes into 3Bet, 4Bet, 5Bet and squeeze strategy from the big blind discussing his overall approach versus different player types and then analyzing various ranges using Pokersnowie and Piosolver.

Elite Cash Game Mastery Review

The preflop section continues with a detailed analysis of how to play blind versus blind. And Andres once again makes detailed use of solvers in order to highlight the best ranges possible.

The preflop section concludes with an extensive breakdown of RFI, cold call, 3Bet and 4Bet strategy (both IP and OOP) from EP, MP, the CO and the BTN.

Overall, this section of the course offers a very high level insight into how one of the best poker players in the world thinks about the preflop part of the game.

By the way, if you aren't ready to shell out $1000 for advanced poker training like this, I have a free poker "cheat sheet" which includes charts showing you which hands to play as well.

Only difference is my poker guide is 100% free.

I don't charge anything for it.

You can grab a copy of my free poker cheat sheet, right here.


3. Elite Cash Game Mastery Postflop Section


As I mentioned before, the postflop section of Elite Cash Game Mastery is where you will find the largest amount of content. There are currently 35 videos in this section alone covering every facet of the game on the flop, turn and river.

And this makes sense because as I mention all the time on this blog and elsewhere, postflop poker is easily where the biggest edges are to be found these days.

Most people play at least "ok" preflop but the decisions after the flop become a lot more complex and multi-faceted. So this is truly where some of the best poker players in the world get ahead.

So starting from the flop Andres gives you his complete strategy, analysis and plan for the hand.


Here are a few of the things you will learn:
  • How to build flop CBet ranges both IP and OOP
  • Delayed CBetting and probe bets
  • Flop check/raise strategy
  • Turn and river barreling ranges both IP and OOP
  • 3Bet and 4Bet pot strategy
  • How to approach multi-way pots
  • Facing turn and river CBet strategy
  • River calldown ranges versus aggro regs
  • Playing as the cold caller both IP and OOP

And much, much more.

In fact there is so much high level content in this section that I would recommend studying just one or two videos per night, taking notes and implementing the ideas at the poker table. Because if you try to digest everything here at once, you will easily get overwhelmed.

Elite Cash Game Mastery Review

The discussion in the postflop section of the course is once again bolstered by plenty of hand range analysis tools and solvers.

But nothing is too geeked out. In other words you don't need a PHD in mathematics in order to understand what he is saying.

What I also like about the postflop instruction is that Andres uses plenty of example hands from his own games at the very highest stakes in order to help illustrate everything.

All and all, this is probably the most comprehensive postflop strategy analysis that I have ever seen in a poker course. 

I found myself constantly taking notes and replaying entire sections in order to grasp everything that he was saying.

Once again, all of the analysis is extremely high level and it is not meant for beginners or low stakes games. This is about learning how to think about the flop, turn and river like a world class pro.

If you are not on this level yet, there are plenty of other good poker training courses available these days, at a much more affordable price.


Not Ready to Spend $1000 on Advanced Poker Training? Get My Free Poker Cheat Sheet Instead


Let's face it, advanced poker training courses like this often come with a very high price tag.

And I know that many of my regular readers here on my poker blog play part-time at small or mid stakes.

So shelling out $1000 for advanced training is just not going to be in their price range right now.

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So that is why I decided to write this free poker cheat sheet for you. 

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These are the proven strategies that I have used as a 10+ year poker pro to create some of the highest winnings of all time in these games. 

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3. Elite Cash Game Mastery Play and Explains Section


Just like in the Upswing Poker Lab which I already reviewed before, the Play and Explains section of Elite Cash Game Mastery really shines.

"Play and Explains" are basically exactly what they sound like. Andres plays poker against some of the best players in the world at the high stakes online tables and explains his actions as he does so.

Elite Cash Game Mastery Review

This section of the course is almost worth the price of admission alone. Because it is very rare that you get an inside look into some of the biggest cash games in the world online including NL5k Zoom.

And of course you also get to see the hole cards of one of the winningest online pros while they explain their decision making to you.

Andres also reviews his top 25 biggest pots ever played against some of the most well known high stakes online crushers including Trueteller, OTB_Redbaron and LLinusLLove.

You just aren't going to find this kind of advanced hand analysis in any other poker training programs out there. So for me, getting to watch these videos was one of the biggest highlights of this course.


4. Elite Cash Game Mastery Review "Other" Section


The final section of Elite Cash Game Mastery, which is simply called "Other", is a collection of videos on important topics that didn't have a place in the previous sections.

Andres provides an extensive review and analysis of his HUD setup which I found particularly interesting. He not only talks about why he uses each particular stat but more importantly how to interpret the information correctly, which is vitally important.

He then covers a few topics that I have never seen anyone discuss before such as the impact of the rake on your strategy at the poker tables as well as how to play optimally in straddle and ante games.

This section finishes up with the downloadable content where you can get the charts with Andres entire preflop ranges and his HUD setup so that you can use it yourself at the poker tables.

Also included in the downloadable section are the filters and player reports that Andres uses in PokerTracker and Hold'em Manager to study other top level pros and create the strategies to defeat them.

As many of my regular readers know, I highly suggest using a good free poker HUD like this, if you take online poker seriously.


Final Thoughts


Elite Cash Game Mastery is a decent option for serious players. But at a $1000 price tag, I think there are significantly better value high quality courses available.

And if you are a total beginner or a small stakes player, this is definitely not the course for you. 

There is no doubt that the level of instruction in this course is high but it does not justify the price tag in my opinion, in an era where we have tons of totally free high quality poker training.

Or much lower priced poker training courses. But I will leave it up to you to decide!

Unfortunately though, at this price point, it will simply be out of the price range of most small stakes players who read my blog.

So if you just want a simple step by step strategy to start winning consistently in small and mid stakes games, just grab a copy of my free poker cheat sheet.

elite cash game mastery review

12 comments:

  1. Nice Review, Nathan!

    But there is one thing i cant explain to myself.....Why are people making their strategy public? This is really counter-intuitive. You are making your competition stronger and so on. Is it worth to public rare strategy in order to gain some money with selling it? I hope you can explain me....Maybe i am to dumb to understand......

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    1. Thanks Mike! I believe Andres said he is moving on to another business venture outside of poker. So revealing how he crushed the high stakes games over the last couple years isn't going to affect him.

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    2. In my opinion,taking a high level course is one thing,being able to digest all the information and implementing them to your game is another.It will take years to gather the experience needed to crush the nosebleeds,and by then,the elite players will be already ahead of you since the game is evolving constantly.Also lets face it,since not everyone is equally talented or intelligent,only a handfull of players will eventually make it.Only a few will become the next Steven Hawking even though they graduated from the same physics university as so many others.The same goes with poker,with chess,with business,medicine and everything.And always remember that even though an instuctor has tought us all that we know,it doesnt mean he tough us all that he knows.

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    3. Some good points Jimmy. Thanks for the feedback!

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    4. Hi, I have also this question in mind....a lot of time....but I come to this conclusion : you could have all the Chopin or Beethoven explaining how they play the piano...you won't play the piano as they did :D / Rgds

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    5. You will also never know if you are capable of being the next Chopin or Beethoven unless you try :)

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    6. Nathan,Is there enough content on up swing that deals with "Live" play for US players, or is it online dominant?I have been thing about getting it to improve at my local casino but have wondered the Live vs. online content.

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    7. Hey Ross,

      For live poker your best bet is the Upswing Poker Lab. There is an entire section in that course devoted to beating live poker games.

      You can find my full review of it here:

      Upswing Poker Lab Review

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  2. Do you think the preflop play can be applied for all limits?

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    Replies
    1. Hey ShaK,

      This is a very high level course which I only suggest for experienced players who play at mid or high stakes. I am sure it will help if you play low limits but it is probably way, way overkill.

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  3. The link is not working

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