The Law Of Pot Odds

Today’s version of Texas holdem poker is much more aggressive than just a few years ago. To put it another way this is not your father’s poker game. Both at in person casino poker tables and at online poker games, the poker rules of thumb are being re-written by a new breed and generation of Texas holdem player. That being said, with this new era of aggression and loose play, certain hard-core poker rules of odds and numbers have been found to be inflexible and unchangeable regardless of what era they are in. These are the eternal and inflexible poker rules that are etched in stone, the poker rules of the odds.

Every time a Texas holdem player is at a casino poker table or in online poker games he MUST consider the pot odds in relation to his poker hands. There is no exception to this rule, period.

How many times have you seen a Texas holdem player that was too tight and conservative and ended up folding on the draw in the face of a relatively small bet with a HUGE pot at the center of the poker table? This player was meekly defying the poker rules of pot odds and either blind to or ignoring the potential risk/reward calculations that the better and more skilled Texas holdem players know to calculate.

Part of taking pot odds and risk/reward calculations into consideration is also knowing when to FOLD poker hands. There are simply times when drawing on marginal poker hands isn’t worth the trouble, (or poker chips), because the potential reward is so miniscule. To put these poker rules of pot odds strategy another way, a Texas holdem player should never risk an unnecessary amount of poker chips just to win a small pot. Small pots are only worth small betting amounts. The only potential time to defy such poker rules of thumb in regards to pot odds might be when a Texas holdem player is on a short stack and can steal the blinds and antes, which in late tournament rounds can be rather large.

The size of the pot will not only determine how you play your poker hands, but also how your Texas holdem opponents will play theirs. Potential tells can often be picked up on, even at online poker games, based on the relative sizes of the different pot amounts. It is important to read your online poker opponents acts in relation not just to potential poker hands but the pot odds as well.