odds

[sixofone]

anyone know any good books on poker odds? I can do the basic 2/4, but i dont have a clue about implied odds etc.
I am not the best Mathematician, but i can muddle my way through. but its something i really need to improve on.

[FirePhil]

There's a book that's about to be released at the end of the month called 'The Mathematics of Poker' by Bill Chen, should be an excellent book. You might have to import it via amazon or something though, it probably won't be released in the UK for a while.

[DonkBox]

someone posted this the other day. might help.

[jglenny]

Maybe a stupid question but when playing live do you guys always take note of specific odds? I play odds in the way that i look at how good my hand is and is it worth calling etc but how many of you actually work it out proper while playing?

Do you think that by going on odds alone you can make money in the low cash tables just due to poor play?

[sixofone]

it comes down to drawing hands, is it worth calling the bet with the odds i have to make my hand. so just playing the odds will generaly get you through most low limit games. as to making money in the long run at higher stakes with tricky players????

ask some poker bots

You also have implied odd to work out the chances of you opponent having a certain hand. You combine that with any reads you have on them. Its just anouther way of getting a bit more info to define there hand

[FirePhil]

You also have implied odd to work out the chances of you opponent having a certain hand. You combine that with any reads you have on them. Its just anouther way of getting a bit more info to define there hand

Implied odds have nothing to do with defining your opponents hand. Implied odds are about factoring in how much you figure to make on future betting rounds if you improve your hand, it is used in conjunction with pot odds when deciding whether to call a bet or raise.

[sixofone]

ahh soz ur right.
see i do need a book

So which is it for calculating an opponents cards?

[Raiser]

someone posted this the other day. might help.

ARGGGGHHHHH............. since high stakes poker series the phrase 'back door flush' has been driving me insane!! Who in their right friggin mind would chase one?????? ....actually dont answer that i know who you all are and i expect to be the first out as per usual tonight!

[Dice Man]

ARGGGGHHHHH............. since high stakes poker series the phrase 'back door flush' has been driving me insane!! Who in their right friggin mind would chase one?????? ....actually dont answer that i know who you all are and i expect to be the first out as per usual tonight!

A backdoor flush draw gives you on average 20% more EV. I prefer the "double backdoor" though, a backdoor flush draw and 3 cards to a straight. That's practically the nuts.

[neildowse]

In actual fact implied odds do apply slightly to your opponents hand once you consider re-draw potential. You have to consider the probability that you make the hand you're aiming for and its either not best or subsequently gets outdrawn and the amount you would lose if this happens. The most obvious case of this would be drawing to a flush against trips. A full house could easily beat your flush. To begin with you have to remove the outs to a flush you have that also pair the board, and then you have to subtract the chance that you both hit. This then gives you the chance that you'll win the hand.

In general though, I think odds and statistics are THE MOST IMPORTANT part of No-limit hold-em play. This doesn't mean simply playing premium hands because they're statistically up preflop, but it means taking into account implied odds pre-flop, drawing odds, and the probability that your opponent didn't hit anything, then betting accordingly. When you apply statistics at such a fundamental level to your game, you'll find profitable poker becomes almost instinctive.

In answer to the other question, I am constantly calculating things when I play live poker.