Pot odds in no limit
This blog entry makes a point about pot odds in limit hold'em that I strongly agree with and support.
But part of what he says in that post suggests a common misconception about the importance of pot odds in no limit.
Back before the no limit boom, Mason Malmuth wrote a couple of articles in Card Player pontificating on why so few cardrooms didn't spread no limit games. One of the things he often said about no limit back then was that not much skill was required -- all you had to do was bet enough so that you're opponents didn't have the proper odds to call.
You can take that idea for what it's worth (not much) but just keep in mind that it came from somebody who never played any no limit poker. In any event, like much nonsense about poker, if somebody writes it two or three times it becomes part of the popular knowledge about the game. Truth or relevance doesn't seem to have much to do with it.
Whether you are giving the opponent the right odds to call or not is one of the least important things to consider when bet sizing.
The most important thing to consider is your oppoenents habits in terms of tendency to call. If he tends to call a lot you should bet infrequently but bet big when you bet. If he tends to not call a lot you should bet frequently but bet small when you bet.
update:
My original post pointed to a plagiarized post. I've corrected the URL.
That's a hell of a lot more important than worrying about what odds he'd be getting if he calls.
But part of what he says in that post suggests a common misconception about the importance of pot odds in no limit.
Back before the no limit boom, Mason Malmuth wrote a couple of articles in Card Player pontificating on why so few cardrooms didn't spread no limit games. One of the things he often said about no limit back then was that not much skill was required -- all you had to do was bet enough so that you're opponents didn't have the proper odds to call.
You can take that idea for what it's worth (not much) but just keep in mind that it came from somebody who never played any no limit poker. In any event, like much nonsense about poker, if somebody writes it two or three times it becomes part of the popular knowledge about the game. Truth or relevance doesn't seem to have much to do with it.
Whether you are giving the opponent the right odds to call or not is one of the least important things to consider when bet sizing.
The most important thing to consider is your oppoenents habits in terms of tendency to call. If he tends to call a lot you should bet infrequently but bet big when you bet. If he tends to not call a lot you should bet frequently but bet small when you bet.
update:
My original post pointed to a plagiarized post. I've corrected the URL.
That's a hell of a lot more important than worrying about what odds he'd be getting if he calls.
Labels: bet size
posted by Gary Carson at 12:43 PM
1 Comments:
Gary,
The "blog" you link to is actually some kind of sniffer that steals blog posts and reposts them, it seems. The original is mine, and can be found here:
http://www.cardschat.com/blog/03/26/limit-hold-em-pot-odds-and-mistakes/
Since my blog doesn't get all that much traffic, it's nice if a famous poker player linking me actually links... Well, me.
Cheers,
FP
Post a Comment
<< Home