Odds

The odds are a mathematical expression of pot size and a bet that you need to put in the middle when making the call.

This is one of the concepts you should not leave aside when playing since it shows when you can make a mathematically correct call and when you are better off folding your hand. If you want to play poker seriously, there is no way to get around without understanding this principle.

The good news is that calculating pot odds is fairly simple. All you need to do is divide the amount you need to call by the sum of the pot plus the amount you need to call and multiply all of this by a hundred.

For example, let’s say you are playing in a$1/$2 game with a pot of $200 already, and your opponent moves all-in for another $200 on the turn while you hold an open ended straight draw.

The calculation here would be (200 / 600) *100% = 33%

Doing this simple calculation, you know that you need 33% equity to make a profitable call assuming you will only win if you hit the straight. Unfortunately, you only have 8 outs which transition to around a 17% chance of improving, meaning you can easily fold this hand since you are not getting the right price.

This is a perfect example of how you can know when you need to fold and when to continue playing the hand rather than relying on your gut feeling or anything else. While you probably won’t able todo this math on the fly when you are playing multiple tables, it is essential to know the most common draws and bet sizings by heart to make math-based decisions.