Since my esteemed co-contributor and great friend is on me about this article, let’s roll!
I’ve played No Limit Texas Hold ‘Em for over twenty years. My starting rank was at the 68th percentile worldwide when it was legal online. With my growing love for the game, I read over twenty books and moved up to the 78th. I just knew I could get better.
I only realized how many mistakes I was making once I joined a learning center. That center specialized in tournament play, which is the style I like best. Cliff Josephy, aka screen name Johnny Bax, and twenty other pros set up the center. Cliff was the number one online player in the world for eighteen straight months. The knowledge I learned here was invaluable. In one year on the site, I moved up to the 93rd percentile in the world.
I hope to give at least one of our readers something they can use in their home game. Poker is a skill and a math game. Never forget that math is part of the skill.
Obviously, the cards are not played face-up, but for learning purposes, let’s say they are. You have 22, and your opponent has AA; he is an 82% favorite. Pre-flop, don’t call a bet more than 11% of your chip stack.
Why? Great question. You have an 11% chance to hit a 3rd deuce on the flop. To win this hand, you would likely need to hit that 3rd deuce. Calling over 11% of your stack would be a mistake.
Poker is a game of logic as well. Why call if you only have an 11% chance of winning? Great question. Implied odds say if we hit trips, we have a great opportunity to claim all our opponent’s chips. You have to take risks if you are going to gamble, but it pays to know the percentages of your risk.