Poker Math – The Underlying Form Of The Game
I think that most players will agree, that every effective Poker Strategy, must contain an element of math. If you read “About The Author” then you will know that I am a student of Zen. Zen is concerned with how things function, and what is the cause and effect regarding the outcome of a situation. Math is the underlying form of poker. The entire game is based on hand probabilities, pot odds, implied odds, etc.
I know players that will disagree with me. They will say that being able to read other players, to have a “feel” for the game is far more important than knowing the probabilities. I agree those things are important. However, I seek out those players who don’t understand, or care to learn, the underlying form of the game – math. I want them at my table!
Importance of Poker Math
Do you need to be a math expert to have a winning poker strategy? No, it’s entirely possible to win, and have no clue as to the underlying form of poker math. That said, it would be one step away from impossible to be a consistent winner, without having a broad understanding of the math.
As I said earlier, there are those who believe that poker is all about tells, reading players, and how the game “feels”. While those things are important, your dominant strategy must be the math of the game. Without the knowledge of the math, you will fall victim to those that do know.
Is Poker Math Difficult To Learn
Poker Math is actually relatively simple to learn, and with some practice, you will easily be able to calculate even complex scenarios at the table. Knowing your pot odds, versus your hand probabilities, being able to narrow a players range using Combinatorics, and other factors will greatly increase your win rate. Not paying off another player is also a win, and understanding the math will assist there as well.
I encourage you to study the articles that we have in our Poker Math section on the Main Menu. The sooner you gain a complete understanding of the underlying form of math, in poker, the quicker you will become a consistently winning player.
