Comparing Outs
Some players seem to have trouble conceptualizing the idea that a hand with a flush draw and two overcards (fifteen outs) is a favorite in a heads-up confrontation with the top pair.
The thinking is often that the draw has fifteen cards which can give it a win, but the thirty cards that don’t hit the draw are wins for the pocket pair, so why isn’t the top pair hand a 2-1 favorite ?
The reason is that the draw to prevail, the draw only has to hit once.
ADJUSTING
One of the things we’ve been doing in this chapter is looking at the possible flops from a different perspective – form the view of how valuable your hand is in terms of its potential to win money rather than its value in terms of its poker hand rank.
For many poker players, it’s easiest to think of your hand in terms of its poker rank.
That’s the traditions approach, and that’s the way most poker books present the material.
In Holdem you need to adjust your thinking about poker hands away from its poker ranking and toward its money-winning potential.
We’ve been showing you how to adjust your estimate of the drawing value of your hand to compensate for the number of opponents.
By doing this you’ll find yourself playing identical hands differently at different times, depending on both the pot size and the number of opponents.
A side benefit of this dynamic poker game condition is that it adds the perception of deception to your play without you even having to try.
Your more observant opponents will often notice that you don’t always do the same thing twice with the same hand. It will confuse them. That’s always do the same thing twice with the same hand. It will confuse them. That’s always to your long-term benefit.
Pick the Right Table / Picking a Seat / Theories of Poker / Betting Theory: The Odds
A Theory of Starting Hand Value
A Theory of Flop Play: Counting Outs and Evaluating Draws
The Dynamics of Game Conditions / Table Image / Player Stereotypes
Women and Poker / Spread-Limit Games / Double Bet on the End Games / Kill Games
Short-handed Games / Tournaments / No-limit and Pot-Limit Poker
