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1. Pre Flop Odds Chart
2. Pre Flop Odds

Sep 30, 2019 Six-Player Power Ratings in Texas Hold ’Em Introduction. The following table ranks the top hands in a 6-player game. This table assumes that all players stay in until the end. Explanation of column headings: Cards: Initial two-card hand. Probability of win: Probability that this hand will win, or tie for the win. Poker Cheat Sheet For Texas Holdem: How To Use This Texas Holdem Poker Cheat Sheet. Step 1: Find your hand on the chart (example KT suited) Step 2: Determine whether you should follow coloured or number schematic. Step 3: Take into account information give under headings preflop and post flop. Step 4: Take home some cash.

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Introduction

Rules

1. A single 52-card deck is used. All cards count as its poker value. Aces may be high or low.
2. One player is designated as the dealer, usually with a laminated marker. This person does not have to physically deal the game. However it is important that a symbolic dealer position rotate around the table.
3. The player to the dealer's left must make a 'small blind' bet. The player to the left of the small blind must make a 'big blind' bet. The amounts of both blinds should be specified in advance. The purpose of the blinds is to get the ball rolling with some money in the pot.
4. Two cards shall be dealt down to each player, starting with the person to the dealer's left.
5. The player to the left of the big blind must either call or raise the big blind bet. The play in turn will go around the table according to normal poker rules, which I assume the reader already knows. Table rules will specify any limits on the size or number of allowed raises.
6. The small blind may also raise the big blind. If nobody raises the big blind the player making the big blind has the option to raise his own bet. The term for this is the 'big blind option.'
7. Three community cards will be dealt face up in the center of the table. This is called the 'flop.'
8. Another round of betting will ensue, starting with the player to the dealer's left.
9. A fourth community card will be dealt face up in the center of the table. This card is called the 'turn.'
10. Another round of betting will ensue, starting with the player to the dealer's left. Generally the minimum bet is double the first two rounds of betting.
11. A fifth and final community card will be dealt face up in the center of the table. This card is called the 'river.'
12. Another round of betting will ensue, starting with the player to the dealer's left. The minimum bet is generally the same as the previous round.

13. Each player still in the game at the end will determine the highest poker value among his own two cards and the five community cards. It is NOT a requirement that the player use both of his own cards. The player with the hand of highest poker value shall win. Following are the hand rankings.

    1. Straight flush: Five consecutive and suited cards. For example 5, 6, 7, 8, 9.
    2. Four of a kind: Four cards of the same rank, plus any fifth card. For example Q, Q, Q, Q ,4.
    3. Full house: Three of a kind and a pair. For example 6, 6, 6, J , J.
    4. Flush: Any five cards of the same suit, except for a higher ranking straight flush. For example A, Q, 8, 4 , 3.
    5. Straight: Five consecutive cards, except for a higher ranking straight flush. For example 8, 9, 10, J, Q.
    6. Three of a kind: Three cards of the same rank, plus any other two cards. For example 5, 5, 5, Q ,2 .
    7. Two pair: Two pairs, plus any fifth card. For example 8, 8, 2, 2 ,Q .
    8. Pair: A pair and any other three cards. For example 7, 7, 2, 5 ,A .
    9. ? High: Any five cards that do not form any higher poker hand. A king high hand for example might be K, Q, 7, 5 ,4 .
14. If two or more players have poker values of the same rank then the individual cards will be used to break the tie. If necessary all five cards will be considered.
15. I get asked a lot whether the two unused cards in a player's hand are used to break a tie. The answer is a firm NO. The two unused cards do not matter.
16. If a new player arrives at the table he should either wait for the big blind position or put up an amount equal to the big blind, amounting to a call of the big blind.
17. If a bet is made after another player runs out of money, then a separate pot is created. The player that ran out of money is not eligible to win the second pot. If more than one player runs out of money then multiple separate pots can be created.
18. In formal games players may not bet with cash or buy chips with cash in the middle of a hand.
19. There are numerous rules of etiquette, which I won't get into.
20. There house may set the betting rules. There are three main types. A 'structured' game features raises of specified amounts. For example a '3/6 game' would mean that raises after the deal and flop are $3, and after the turn and river are $6. There is usually a limit to the number of raises a player may make, typically three. A 'pot limit' game has structured minimum raises but the maximum raise may be anything up to the amount in the pot at the time the raise is made. A 'no limit' game also has structured minimum raises but there is no maximum raise.

Examples

Example 1

Board: A, 2, 4, 5, 6
Player 1: J, 6
Player 2: 7, Q

Player 1 wins. Both have an ace high flush, so the second highest card is considered. Player 1's jack beats player 2's 7. The only way to have a flush tie is if the flush is entirely on the board and no hole cards are higher than the lowest card on the board in the same suit.

Example 2

Board: J, A, 7, 5, 6
Player 1: 2, J
Player 2: 10, J

Player 2 wins. Both have a pair of jacks so the singletons are considered. High highet singleton in both hands is an ace so the second highest singleton is considered. Player 1's second highest singleton is a 7, compared to player 2's 10. A 10 beats a 7 so player 2 wins.

Example 3

Board: A, A, K, Q, J
Player 1: Q, J
Player 2: Q, 2

Tie. Both have a two pair of aces and queens, with a king singleton. Some people incorrectly believe that in such cases the unused cards are considered, in this case player 1's pair of jacks beating player 2's jack/2. Only the top five cards matter. The jacks and deuce are irrelevant.

One of the most important aspects of Texas Hold'em is the value of each two-card hand before the flop. The decision of how to play your first two cards is something you face every hand, and the value of your first two cards is highly correlated to your probability of winning.

The following table shows my power rating for each initial 2-card hand in a 10-player game. The numbers are on a 0 to 40 scale. Basically, you should only play hands that are dark green, blue, or purple. Of course you should be more be more liberal in late position and picky in early position. If forced I would say you should need 10 points in late position and 19 points in early position to call the big blind. If your table is loose, as if often the case online, you can play a bit looser yourself.

Use the top table if you have a pair, the middle table if your cards are suited, and the bottom table if your cards are unsuited. Except for a pair,look up your high card along the left and your low card along the top.

Following are the links to my tables of the value of each intial hand according to the number of players. The 10-player section explains the methodology for creating the table table.

Pot Odds

The following table shows the probability of making various hands after the flop and the correct 'pot odds.' The pot odds are the breakeven ratio of money in the pot to the amount you have to bet for the player to be indifferent about calling, assuming the player would definitely win if he makes the hand (a big if) and there are no additional bets (another big if). This table is a good starting point the player should make mental adjustments for the probability of winning without making the hand, losing with making the hand, and expected future bets. The odds of a two pair improving to a full house are the same as those for four to an inside straight.

Pot Odds — After Flop

The next table shows the pot odds after the turn.

Pot Odds — After Turn

Hand Strength Calculator

I'm proud to present my new and improved Poker Odds Calculator. Enter any situation in Texas Hold 'Em, and it will tell you the probability of each possible outcome.

Poker Tournament Calculator

My Poker Tournament Calculator will determine each player's probability, for up to nine players, of finishing in each place, and his expected share of any prize pool, assuming equal skill among all players. It produces the same results as what is known as the Independent Chip Model.

Internal Links

• Pinapple — Strategy and analysis of which card to discard before the flop.
• Bad Beat Jackpots: What is the Probability of Hitting one?
• Texas Hold 'Em Dominated Hand Probabilities: What is the probability one of your opponents has similar, and better, hole cards than yours?

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Whether you’re playing a cash game or a tournament, prefer to play tight or loose, are gambling with some extra money or are on a tight budget, your pre-flop strategy in Texas Hold ‘em can vary dramatically. What makes this seemingly simple aspect of the game even more complex is that, just as you’ll have to evaluate several factors before you sit down to help develop a pre-flop strategy, you’ll consistently have to change up your strategy as the game goes along.

Cash Game Pre-Flop Play vs. Tournament Pre-Flop Play

In a cash game, you’ll want to be much more conservative with your pre-flop strategy than you would be in tournaments, where your goal is to knock other players out of the game. Sometimes that requires a willingness to gamble when you only have a small advantage, or even if you know it’s a coin flip situation. However, cash games are more of a grind, and with real money on the line with each decision, you’re often better served by taking a more conservative route before the flop, then playing the hand as it develops. Learn more about cash versus tournament strategy here.

Pre-Flop Play in Tournaments

In tournaments, people tend to play tighter before the flop than they do in cash games. One reason for that is because the pre-flop raises as a proportion of chip stack are usually much higher in tournaments – meaning players have to be more selective when deciding to come into a pot. There’s also a heightened awareness that one false move can mean the end of your tournament life, which tends to dampen people’s pre-flop enthusiasm.

Pre Flop Odds Chart

To take advantage of that tendency among tournament players, especially in the later stages of play, you can get very aggressive pre-flop. Even when your opponents don’t believe you have the hand you’re representing, they will often fold knowing that if they’re wrong it could be the last play they make in that tournament.

Texas Hold ‘em is always a game that requires a player to abandon fear, and rarely is that more true than in pre-flop tournament situations. In tournaments, the onus is on you to put your opponents to a decision, and pre-flop they are less likely to take you up on that challenge than in any other scenario .

Pre-Flop Play in Cash Games

Cash games require quite a bit more finesse than tournaments in almost all areas, but especially before the flop. While you will certainly need to be aggressive in cash games, using that aggression pre-flop is more likely to get you in trouble than to help you build your stack.

Doyle Brunson, considered by many to be the greatest all-around poker player of all-time, wrote in the no-limit Texas Hold ‘em section of his classic 1979 book, Super System, that in a cash game you should almost never move all-in before the flop unless you have pocket aces or pocket kings. And while the game has changed considerably in the more than 30 years since the book was published, that is one rule that still holds true. For more information on Super System and other poker strategy books, see our Poker Books guide.

Playing Tight Before the Flop

Conservative pre-flop play is a good strategy for avoiding trouble. You rarely raise, only doing so with premium hands, which means you can make your decisions once more cards have been dealt and bets have been made, giving you more information from which to work.

However, playing tight before the flop also limits your options as the hand progresses. Rarely raising before the flop means you won’t establish strength that can be used after the flop or turn. That will keep you from being able to make small bluffs to pick up extra pots, or use other power poker techniques.

Tight pre-flop play also keeps you from being able to take control of specific hands, or the table in general. Consistent raising, in and of itself, serves as an intimidating factor, no matter when you use it. If you aren’t raising before the flop, opponents will be able to easily read your hand – knowing that you only raise with premium cards – making their decision-making process much simpler.

Aggressive Pre-Flop Play

On the other hand, playing more aggressively before the flop, while it exposes you to more risk, puts more chips in play and opens up the game for the whole table. Pre-flop raising builds pots, so that when you do have the best hand or decide to bluff there is already a decent, if not substantial, amount of money to be won.

Regular pre-flop raising also allows you to sneak up on your opponents. Deciding to raise in late position with a 9-7 suited, for instance, is one way to throw the table off balance. Many of the other players are likely to assume you’re raising with at least a couple of face cards, which means when a middle flop comes up – say, 9-6-5 – they will be less inclined to think you’ve hit your hand. Then, when you do bet out, you’ll have an even greater advantage because you’ve masked your hand.

Deciding to raise in late position with a 9-7 suited, for instance, is one way to throw the table off balance.

Raising aggressively before the flop is something many inexperienced players are afraid to do. It means you’ll be involved in more hands, are putting yourself at risk of being re-raised and could find yourself in situations where you feel compelled to make a follow-through bet on the flop no matter the situation.

Those are all valid concerns. But, as the saying goes, you have to give action to get action. Unless you are actively adding to the money in play, your opponents are only going to want to get involved with you if they feel they have an advantage, or the ability to sneak up on you with a good drawing hand. So, by playing too conservatively before the flop you may unwittingly be exposing yourself to a different kind of risk altogether.

Pre Flop Odds

In the end, you have to figure out which pre-flop style works best for your temperament and skill level. Many people begin their poker careers with a conservative strategy, then implement more aggressive tactics as they gain experience, which is something that is worth keeping in mind as you become more comfortable at the table.

It is possible to get a full board of Merlin stacks during a Superbet, which makes the game so much more exciting.