Posts Tagged ‘hand odds’

How to Calculate Poker Odds

Hello,

I have a problem on how to calculate poker odds. Well, I have already seen all the hand odds/probabilities charts and already found brief summaries on how to calculate poker odds. But still, I have some questions in mind. Say you didn’t get an ace for a first card and so the odds of getting it on your second increase to 51:1. I know writing everything in paper is quite impractical, so can I do the calculation myself?

Assume that I have two suited cards in my hand and I like to calculate the poker odds of drawing a complete flush by the flop, and so as by the turn and river. In case I have 3 to the flush on the flop, what’s next? How about 4 to the flush on the flop, etc.?

Please help me. Thank you in advance!

Best regards,
Charlie Cowell
Charlie,

By all means, if you would rather do calculations yourself, you can, but to be honest, doing them on paper is long and drawed out. You need to learn to be able to do these calculations in your head. You should use the 4 – 2 method to calculate odds. Also, you shouldn’t be trying to figure odds on runner runner draws. That is just going to burn money out of your stack.

Adjusting Game and Quick Calculation Method of Odds

Hello,

Before, I’m actually into hosting of home tournaments which typically with 40-50 players. Buy in then was around $50, therefore I’ve only accepted players who belonged to average to good category. But just recently, I decided to have some friends over to play in small 10-12 people $20 buy-in tournaments. Unfortunately I was busted out in most of those games so quick. I believe my problem then was about adjusting. I found it hard to adjust my game to the table. Maybe one factor to consider is that I’ve been so use to playing with good players, by which my situational bluffs work. Your thoughts?

By the way, I also want to share to you something. One guy once taught me how to calculate hand odds quickly. According to him all I have to do is this – (outs *2) + 1 = percentage. Therefore if you have 8 outs (open ended straight draw) then (8 * 2) + 1 = 17%. But recently I saw that you showed such at 34%. Well, I know that you’re calculating hitting the hand by the river (2 draws). In the event there was a flush potential also then 8 (open ender cards) + 9 (flush cards remaining) – 2 (remove the 2 flush cards that also complete your straight…. 8 added) = 15 outs or 31%.

Hope to hear from you soon.

Many thanks,
Kirk
Kirk,

When you play with bad players, bluffs will not work that well. You will need to either tighten up and play solid poker or play small ball and crush your opponents when you flop well.

Your calculation for hand odds is a good one, but to figure out from the flop, multiply your calculation by 2. 15 outs on the flop has around a 62% chance to win with your formula.

Considering the Odds

Hello,

I’m here to ask something. Well, it’s about the decisions I made before which were actually based on pot odds, implied odds, and hand odds. I’ve read a lot of materials before and everything seemed to tell me that if you have the pot odds or the implied odds, you should call, even if you know you are behind, as if you hit you’ll be getting a good return on your investment. In case you don’t have the odds to call, against a drawing hand, you should fold. But then I ask myself, what if you have excellent pot odds, will this call for a raise?

Thanks for your time.

Best regards,
Andrew
Andrew,

While you may have excellent odds, they are still odds, they are not a sure thing. I would shy away from raising. While you may hit and win a bigger pot, if you miss, you will lose much more. You also set yourself up to let the person raise to a point where you don’t have odds.