A poker odds calculator is great for helping you with decisions at every stage of the hand. Better, odds calculators are free, so you can visit a site and utilize this bit of kit without spending a cent. Poker calculators can be good too if you're watching poker on TV.
Wizard Recommends
- €1500 Welcome Bonus
- 100% Welcome Bonus
- €100 + 300 Free Spins
Hi I'm Mike Shackleford and this is part two of the Top Ten Mistakes Made by Video Poker Players
#6 Over Tipping On Jackpots
By law, if you hit a jackpot of $1,200 or more you have to get a w-2 G form and the jackpot will be paid in cash. So, how much should you tip when this happens? Opinions on this very all over the place and I'm sure many people are going write in their comments below that they disagree with me no matter what I say but my personal opinion is that the range for tipping on jackpots should be 0.5% up to 2%. 2% for the smaller jackpots around 1,200 and 0.5% for say $10,000 or more. I think that's a good rule of thumb but just don't over tip. I mean, I've heard of people tipping up to 20%. That's absolutely ridiculous. The casino should be thanking you for playing, not you thanking the casino. So an argument could be made for not tipping at all because you're not asking to be hand paid. Nevertheless, I think it looks cheap and tipping is what it is so just don't over tip on jackpots.
Online Poker Odds Calculator Free
#7 Not Paying Attention to Promotions
In many jurisdictions, casinos are very competitive with each other and are always offering promotions to try to get you to come in on certain days or for certain events. So no matter what game you play, make sure you use a player card so you can be rewarded for your play. And then come at those times when they are going to have some sort of a promotion running. Common examples are multiple point days. For example, two times points three times points or maybe if you play a certain amount on a particular day they'll give you a steak dinner or something. Or maybe they invite you to a tournament. No matter what game you play, it's always good to double dip, meaning play when you're getting some kind of a reward. And the play itself will help you get invited to come back.
#8 Leaving a Game in a High State
And what I mean by that, is some games reward you not just immediately, but they'll give you a multiplier on a future hand or they will add some money to some kind of a bank. Now, Ultimate X is the perfect example. In that game, when you hit a certain hands not only are you paid immediately, but you'll win a multiplier on the next hand. So, an absolutely terrible mistake would be to play, you get a nice hand, you collect your winnings, but then you don't collect your multiplier on the next hand. So what should you do in a game like Ultimate X? Keep playing it and only walk away from the machine when there is no multipliers on it. And you can also do the opposite. What some Advantage players do, they'll roam around the casino all day long looking for machines where players did abandon a multiplier on it. Just if you're going to play a game that offers multipliers or anything like that, only leave it the machine when it's in its lowest possible state.
#9 Leaving Credits on the Machine
Whether you play slots, video poker video, keno; always collect your money when you leave. Never forget to hit that cash out button and it can be easy to do if you just hit a nice win and you think to yourself, I'm gonna quit and run. You know before you do that, make sure you hit that cash out button and then cash out that ticket. Don't take it home with you and then let it expire.
#10 Playing Defective Machines
And in what ways can a machine be defective you might ask? A common problem in video poker is games that have sticky keys. That means that you press the button and it doesn't register that you want to hold that card. If so, if you play a game where the buttons are not functioning correctly all the time, always make sure that it registered that you want to keep all the cards that you indicated. Or better yet, just don't play that machine at all and switch to one that is functioning properly.
A place where you're likely to encounter a machine with sticky keys is at the bar, because people are sitting there drinking and smoking and eating at them and all those ashes and grease and beer can drip down onto the keys and it can cause the keys to either be sticky or perhaps even malfunction. So be especially aware of the problem of sticky keys on a bar top machine.
Another commonly seen malfunction is that the player card reader isn't reading the card right. So when you put your player card in, don't just assume that the Machine knows that you put it in. They often can be pretty sensitive and not read the card correctly. So always sit there and wait for it to say hi Steve before you start playing. And then it's a good idea to check on it periodically to make sure that it continues to read properly. It's happened to me multiple times where I put a machine a card in and it read just fine at the beginning, but sometime when I never even touched it, it lost the connection and it wasn't reading anymore. And I kept sitting there playing and I wasn't earning points for that play. So you always, always, always want to earn credit for your play in any kind of machine. So always make sure that that card reader is functioning properly.
So, that concludes the top 10 Mistakes Video Poker Players make. If you missed part one, please watch that and for a whole host of information about video poker, please see my website wizardofodds.com.
Poker is a numbers game at the end of the day and a lot of the top Poker players in the world rely on calculating odds in order to make a decision as to what their next move should be. This way, you can actually have some Poker strategies that you can follow by the book, and you will be actually find that it can bring you success pretty consistently. Of course there is a psychological aspect to Poker which is a whole ‘nother topic, but in this article, we will take a look at some basic poker odds with charts that will get you started in the right direction.
At first, you might find it a bit overwhelming to instantly calculate poker odds while you are playing, and this is completely normal. However, as you stick to it, you are inevitably going to get faster and better at calculating odds and giving yourself the mathematically most plausible chance at making the right move. In fact, if you keep at it, you will pick up the ability sooner than you think. However, if you feel like you need a bit of help to start with then you may be interested in online poker calculators!
A top notch poker calculator would be Calculatem which can interact with you in real time as you are playing the game and give you continuous feed about the odds at each point in time.
How to use Poker Charts to your advantage?
Top 10 Poker Odds Calculators 2017
If you have watched WSOP or any other poker tournament on the television then you may have noticed on many occasions how a professional poker player folds his hand even though it seems to be a pretty good pair or hand. Why would they do that? They could have taken a chance and called or maybe even raised the pot, but they decide to fold and the next thing you know, it turns out that they would have been beaten had they stayed on in the game.
So how is this possible? Is the player a mind reader? No! It’s just that most of these players understand Poker odds and how to calculate them quickly. They use these numbers to help them make rational, logical and quick decisions which give them the best mathematical chance of making the right call.
How do you find out how good your hand is?
Poker charts can tell you all you need to know about your hand in the most objective way possible. It can even give you some insight into how much you may can call when you are trying to complete a drawing hand. In fact, poker charts are especially useful when you are trying to make a flush or straight flush or even just the odds of getting the card that will complete your hand. Once you know the odds you can make informed decisions about whether it would be in your best interest to call certain raises or bets made by other players.
Poker charts are extensive and there are nearly hundreds of them which cover almost every fathomable scenario for every possible hand. It will give you all the information you need to know for every situation in a game, however, if you are going to be playing a tournament, unless you have a photographic memory, you will not be able to remember much of it. Nor will you be able to refer to the charts themselves while playing. This is why it is best to start of studying some simpler, basic charts. One of the first charts that you should try to familiarize yourself with is probably the all-in hands probability chart.
Contrary to what people generally assume, an all in situation is quite common in poker and you may find yourself being pushed all in on several different occasions, especially as a beginner. If you familiarise yourself with our all in chart then you will have a great idea of your odds of winning pre flop (even before you see any of the community cards).
If you are faced with an all-in situation pre flop, this is the best chart to remember –
| The Matchup | Example of your hand | Your odds of winning | Opponent’s odds of winning | Opponent’s hand example |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Under pair vs. two overs | T T | 57% | 43% | A K |
| Overpair vs. underpair | K K | 80% | 20% | 9 9 |
| Two high cards vs. two low cards | A Q | 63% | 37% | 5 7 |
| Dominant hand | A J | 79% | 21% | J T |
| Dominant hand | A J | 79% | 21% | J T |
| Extremely dominant hand | Q Q | 89% | 11% | Q J |
| Overcard vs. dominated kicker | A 9 | 29% | 71% | 9 9 |
| Pair vs. one over card | 8 8 | 69% | 31% | A 5 |
| One overcard vs. two middle cards | J 4 | 57% | 43% | 6 8 |
Obviously, these odds may change and they may change pretty drastically once the cards hit the felt, however, if you happen to find yourself in an all-in situation prior to the flop, then this chart will be your best bet to make the right decision.
So how did we arrive at these numbers and percentages? How could you possible know pre – flop that if you have a pair of kings that your chances of winning in an all-in situation is 80% without as much as a clue what the other player has?
Well, the math is pretty simple, the only hand better than a pair of kings (pre flop) would be a pair of Aces. Which means that if your opponent does not have that hand, then your odds of winning will be 80%.
We have only scratched the surface on poker odds and charts. As mentioned, there are charts for all hands and situations, too much to be able to remember them all. However, with time, you will be able to derive these odds yourself and this will make you a much better poker player in any situation.