Learn to Play Texas Holdem Poker – Understand Post Flop Odds

Before you can play profitable poker you need to learn a few odds on every different situation. All the odds in this article are based on a cash game because that is the only game in which bets are raised in a pre-flop round and not on all-in situations in tournament or sit and go games.

Post Flop Odds

Because you only bet with the best hand after the flop, you need to know how big the pot really is in relation to the amount of chips you have. When you calculate the pot odds you have to divide the amount of the pot by the amount of the bet you must call.

If you are calling a $5 bet and have 6$ in your stack then the pot is offering you 6:5, which is about 10%. This means you are making 10% on your bet. If the player next to you makes a $10 bet then the pot only pays about 8:1, which means you still make about 10% on your bet.

To figure out the odds of making a call, you need to be able to estimate the odds of you winning the hand holding the best hand. If you think that you have the best hand, you need to make the bet bigger in relation to the pot. If you think you don’t have the best hand but you think you have better cards than the other player, you can make the bet smaller, which is better in relation to the pot.

Using Pot Odds

You need to be able to calculate pot odds, hand odds and implied odds or implied odds, as the name suggests, in order to know if you are getting the correct odds to call a bet in the first place. What this basically means is that if you are risking $1 in the pot and a player bets $1,000, what are the pot odds for making the call in relation to the actual odds that you have?

If you called the bet on the flop, the implied odds for the river card would be 10:1. Since you will only be paid $20 on the river card, what are your chances of hitting the card in the river? If you think that the player will call the $1,000 bet on the flop and not the $1,000 on the river then you can call the bet knowing that you are getting the correct odds, (they are 3:1). If the bet is $1,000 on the flop and $1,000 on the river then the pot odds for your call are 3:1.

You can also get the implied odds by counting your outs. Outs are the number of cards, or the number of outs it takes to make a hand. For instance, if you hold AK and there are 4 limpers before you, then you have 4 outs for your flush. The more outs you have, the better. Your 4 outs are the cards from the flop, turn and river. You have a 40% chance to make your flush by the MPO777.

To get the implied odds you simply have to multiply your number of outs by 4.

You then have to multiply the number of outs by 2.2 to work out the percentage of hitting your hand by the river. In this case you have a 40% chance of hitting your hand by the river. explicitly calculate the value of your outs and multiply them by 2.2 to work out the implied odds.

You can do this in a separte way (single math) or in a multiway pot and multiply the outs by 3.3 to work out the implied odds. Incidentally, in case you did not know, there is also a 40% chance to lose the hand by the river. For example, you have AK and there are 3 players, including the blinds, in the hand before the flop. The flop is J-8-4 and the turn is a 7. The river is a 9. You have lost only 15% of your stack to the blinds. In this case the implied odds are 15:1, simply divide the number of outs by 2.2 to work out the percentage of hitting your hand by the river.

Make your decision whether to call when you know the odds are against you. Do not call all the time if you are unsure of the odds. Call only when you have a positive expectation.

Implied Odds and Standard Odds

You must be aware of the implied odds before you call the flop or the turn or the river. The implied odds are the extra money you expect to win from the hand being played. Before you play any hand you should know the odds. You need to know the odds before you bet or call. You can get these facts from a poker book or a poker odds calculator.