Putting it Together

Introduction: Odds and Holdem

Outs and Draws (and the magical rule of four)

Odds and Wagers

Tilted Donkey's Pot Size Rule of Calling

Important Calling Examples

Betting and Raising

Wonders of Betting and Raising

Making Estimates

General Points

Rules of Thumb for Drawing

So you read all of that and you discovered that poker is all about estimating whether you have the best hand! Aren't you glad we are here for you? !

Themes you may have missed

The size of the pot is crucial. Your benefit is related to both the size of the pot and your chances of winning it.

Your benefit may remain quite substantial if the pot is large, even if your chances of winning it seem somewhat low.

You benefit is quite poor if the pot is very small, even if your chances of winning it seem pretty good.

Bets and raises, even pure bluffs, get better odds the bigger the pot gets.

Knowing the size of the pot is easy, so make sure you are alway paying attention to it!

Compare your cost versus your benefit: You should always be thinking in terms of how much it will cost you to see the showdown compared to how much you can benefit, and how likely it is you will benefit. That is was what 'good poker thinking' is all about.

Always pay attention to: the size of the pot, the size of the bet, the number of opponents and your estimate of your chances to win. These are all equally important.

You can know exactly how likely it is that you can improve your hand: By counting your number of outs (cards left in the deck that can help you) and multiplying that number by 2.2 or 4 you can come up with an exact percentage that you will improve! See Outs and Draws (and the magical rule of four).

Think like a professional player and always take into account these odds.

We will have more to say on odds in the future, until then, make sure you check out our Tutorials. Experience and feedback is the only way to truly learn how likely it is you will win a hand....and the only way to practice working out whether it is worth trying to win that hand at all!