COUNT, DOUBLE, DECIDE
Pot odds and outs, without the maths degree
Every call in poker is a price. Pot odds tell you what the pot is charging; your outs tell you what you are buying. When the price is lower than the chance, call. When it is higher, fold and let someone else pay it. That is the whole idea, and you can do it in your head in five seconds.
Counting outs
An out is any unseen card that turns your hand into the likely winner. A flush draw after the flop has nine outs (thirteen of the suit, minus the four you can see). An open-ended straight draw has eight. A gutshot has four. Two overcards have six, if you believe a pair will be good, which is a big if.
Be honest about dirty outs: if the card that completes your straight also completes someone’s flush, it is not really yours.
The rule of two and four
Multiply your outs by two for the chance of hitting on the next card, or by four for the chance of hitting by the river when you are seeing both cards. Nine outs: about 18% on the turn, about 36% by the river. Eight outs: 16% and 32%. Four outs: 8% and 16%. Close enough at the table, every time.
Reading the price
Pot odds compare what you must call with what you would win. If the pot is 30K and the bet to you is 10K, you are calling 10K to win 40K: four to one, so you need better than a 20% chance to break even. A flush draw seeing one card (18%) is a slight fold; seeing two cards with no more betting (36%) is an easy call.
Poker Call shows the pot and the bet in the chrome and the raise slider snaps to pot fractions, so the price is always readable without arithmetic.
Implied odds and reverse implied odds
Implied odds add the chips you expect to win later if you hit. Hidden draws (a gutshot, a set) have big implied odds because nobody sees them coming; a four-flush board has small ones because everyone does. Reverse implied odds are the chips you lose when you hit and are still second best: a low flush against a higher one, bottom two pair against a set.
A table to remember
Two outs: 4% / 8%. Four: 8% / 16%. Six: 12% / 24%. Eight: 16% / 32%. Nine: 18% / 36%. Twelve: 24% / 48%. Fifteen: 30% / 60%. First number is the next card, second is both cards. Fifteen outs (flush draw plus open-ender) is a favourite over one pair by the river, which is why good players raise with it.
Questions
What are pot odds in simple terms?
The ratio between what you have to call and what is already in the pot. Calling 10 to win 40 is 4-to-1, so you need to win more than one time in five to profit.
How many outs does a flush draw have?
Nine after the flop: thirteen cards of the suit minus the four you can see. That is roughly 18% to hit on the turn and 36% by the river.
What is the rule of 2 and 4?
A shortcut: outs times two is your percentage for one card to come, outs times four for two cards. Nine outs is about 18% or 36%.
Does Poker Call show odds at the table?
It shows the pot and the bet to you at all times, live win percentages when players are all in, and the Flop Slip prints exact odds for every flop market. The side games print their odds on the front too.