Introduction to Pot Odds in Poker

How do the best poker players win over time? Even though in poker the person who will win an individual hand may be subject to the whims of fate, just as in sports betting there is definitely plenty of skill involved in poker. Experienced players understand that part of this skill involves understanding probability. The idea of pot odds is a fundamental part of learning how to turn your game from amateur to pro. Remember that if you are playing in free poker rooms, people don’t really care about the money they play with. So therefore, pot odds do not really matter – unless you are playing with real money.

Dealing With the Odds

A big part of poker is knowing when you have an edge. Casinos understand that by making sure that players put their money in when the odds are against them, they will come out ahead. Poker players have no casino stacking the odds, so a winning poker player will make sure the odds are in his or her favor when he or she gets the money in.

How can a player do this? By making sure the pot odds are longer than the odds of winning.

Poker Pot Odds and Ratios

Calculating poker pot odds means looking at whether it’s worth it to play that hand. The pot odds involve comparing the amount of money already in the pot to the amount needed to put in to win it.

Let’s say you are playing a hand and the pot is $100. If the bet is $25 to you to call, the pot odds are 4-to-1. You can lose in this situation four times, only win once, and still break even. If you think you are likely to win in the situation more than one time out of five, a call has long term expected value.

Example of Using Pot Odds

Let's say you hold 8s 9h and the board reads Tc Js 5d 6c. Your opponent bets and you suspect he has top pair.

However, you know that if you hit a Q or 7 on the river you will win. You also know the odds of this are close to 5-to-1. Therefore, if the pot odds are better than 5-to-1, you should call and try to hit your straight.

If there is $75 in the pot and you have to call $10 to see the river, make that call. If you have to call $20, calling is a long term negative expected value play.