Pre Flop Equity.

[Silverback]

Can anyone shed some light on pre flop equity?

Where do I get this information, how do I use this information?

Basically anything related to pre flop equity, or point me in the direction of finding out.

Im sure im not the only one who could do we a fuller understanding of this aspect of the game.

[Kovner]

At any given point in a hand, you have a certain chance of having the best hand at showdown if all remaining players go to the showdown. That's your equity. You usually can't calculate your equity precisely because you don't know what other people have (especially preflop - you don't have that much information).

If you have a greater equity than the percentage of players you are, you have an equity edge. Example: if you have a 25% chance of winning the hand, and there are 4 other players in the hand, you make up 20% of the amount of players there are so you have an equity edge. Every bet that is called all 5 ways is profitable for you.
That's the practical application of equity: if you have an equity edge that you think you can push (note: you cannot always push it - eg you think a raise will get 3bet behind you and that will knock some players out), then you should push it.

More specifically to preflop: if you can estimate that you have an equity edge preflop, you raise. The problem is that this concept is often in contention with other concepts of pre-flop play (your theoretical equity is not dependent on position, but the strategic element of post-flop play makes hands less profitable out of position ; there is value to deception ; making pots bigger makes top-pair-type hands more vulnerable ; etc.) This is why in Grisgra's post there is the debate over raising with AQo from the BB: you have an equity edge, but you're building a pot out of position with a top-pair-type hand.