“Lost with ace-queen” records a result, not a reviewable hand. A useful note preserves who could act, the amounts involved and the moment you want to revisit. It can be short without pretending to be complete.
Capture after play, away from the action.
Use the record after the hand and only where the organizer allows it. The safest default is to wait until you are away from the table and active play. TDA rules restrict device use with a live hand and strategy tools at the table. A note template is not an exception to those rules.
Do not record covertly, slow the game to write or assume a filming permission includes unrestricted recording. A missing detail can remain missing.
The smallest useful note has a situation, an action and a question.
Record the game and stage, blinds and ante, number of players, positions and relevant starting stacks. Keep your cards and the board in street order. Then list each action with its amount, including checks and folds that explain who remained in the hand.
Write raises to 2,200 when 2,200 is the new total for that street. Write adds 1,200 to call when that is the extra amount paid. “Raises 2,200” can leave the reader unsure which you meant. For unfamiliar notation, use words instead of compact symbols.
Mark an estimate where it appears: “about 28,000 before forced bets,” “turn suit unknown,” or “reconstructed from memory after the session.” Do not reserve uncertainty for a general disclaimer at the bottom.
A fictional note with a checkable pot.
The note does not establish the opponent's cards or whether the flop bet was the best action. A useful review question could be: “Which worse hands could continue against this size, under a stated range assumption?” That question belongs after the record, not inside it as an observed fact.
Make gaps visible before calculating around them.
If the ante is unknown, do not publish an exact starting pot as though it were recorded. If a suit is uncertain, do not assign a specific blocker. When only a range of stack sizes is plausible, either keep the analysis conditional or choose a different hand for an exact worked example.
Check that the pot ledger and final stacks agree with the described payments and refunds. Keep both chips and big blinds where helpful, but name the blind level used. The pot-odds workshop handles the extra amount required to call; the review guide takes the next step into interpretation.
A public explanation needs fewer identifiers than a private record.
Use position labels rather than names. Remove ticket numbers, faces and identifying details that are unnecessary to understand the decision. Keep remembered thoughts separate from later analysis, and obtain appropriate permission for any material involving others.
The blank hand-capture sheet is available to copy, print or download. Complete it privately. There is no upload field and the website does not receive your answers.
In the example, why is the 1,800 flop bet not part of the contested pot?
No opponent called any of it. It is an unmatched wager returned to the bettor. The button receives the 5,900 contested pot but had already contributed 2,200 to it, leaving a net gain of 3,700.
Sources and scope
Poker TDA: device restrictions and tournament procedures.
Public reference pages checked October 8, 2026. Planning suggestions and fictional examples are original educational material. Confirm current event details with the organizer; provider documentation is not an independent product test.
Published . Prepared with AI assistance. Examples are fictional, not personal tournament accounts. Use these guides before or after play, not as assistance during a live hand.