Odds in Draws and Connectors
I’ve been reading some stuff about the odds involved in poker, and took interest in the probabilities for straight and flush draws. I’ve since wanted to try out how knowing the odds would work for me. I found it a bit funny that I learned to use those odds with suited connectors and straight/flush/gut-shot draws in my game from Puzzle Pirates.
I got myself a Parlor Badge (so I can play the poker parlor game any time of the week) then I tried it out. I created a table and set the blinds and buy-in tot he cheapest so I could squeeze in a lot of rounds (it’s a bit common). One of the guys who went is was quite good, very aggressive. I had to re-buy like 5 or 6 times, then I just left the table, his stack was too high and he knew how to use it too well I couldn’t take him on. Perhaps if there were more of us, I could do it, but heads-up, no. I’m not ready for heads-up.
I joined another table where there were more pirates, and I managed to get my groove there. I got a feel on how the players played, and when I got comfy and had a stack going, I started trying stuff out. I tried playing actively more draws and connectors, and managed to get a few key pots using that strategy.
It really does add a lot of options in the hands you can play. However, that kind of play takes a bit of courage as often you’ll often have to get to the river to see if you got anything (and you often don’t), and getting to the river can be very expensive. If you know your odds and have a good betting strategy, you’ll be surprised how many monster pots you can steal from over-pairs.
Being a generally tight player, this helped round me up a bit more, giving me options other than the standard pairs and trips game. It also helped me look at the board more closely for possibilities. Perhaps with more practice, I can learn the correct odds given various hands and it may end up boosting my play (I hope so).
Tags: Puzzle Pirates