How do you know the pot size?
 

How do you guys keep track of the pot size when you are in a hand? There are so many things going on inside my head when I'm in a hand and sometimes the betting is quick I don't know the pot size.

Re: How do you know the pot size?
 

I'm assuming you mean in a live game, since online it's usually right there on the screen for you. In a live game, you really have to make an effort to keep a running count of the bets. Keep this count in terms of number of bets rather than the actual amount of money in the pot, this makes things much easier. So just count the number of small bets pf and on the flop, then divide by two and add the big bets on the turn and river. If your conscious about this for a few sessions, it'll become second nature to you.

Re: How do you know the pot size?
 

first and foremost, stop counting the number of dollars, and start counting the number of bets. Not only does this save time and energy, but as you begin to progress upwards in limits it helps to think "Man i lost 27BB's tonight" instead of "i lost 810 dollars tonight."

Also, learning to count the pot is one of the most important skills a new player can learn, and gives you something to do to occupy your time so boredom tilt doesnt happen. If im not occupying my time by drinking like a fish, i like to pick a certain player and try to read his hand as compared to the pot odds he is getting on each call.

peace

john nickle

Re: How do you know the pot size?
 

When converting small to big on the turn, don't forget to adjust your count slightly to take into consideration the jackpot, rake, etc.
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I'm assuming you mean in a live game, since online it's usually right there on the screen for you. In a live game, you really have to make an effort to keep a running count of the bets. Keep this count in terms of number of bets rather than the actual amount of money in the pot, this makes things much easier. So just count the number of small bets pf and on the flop, then divide by two and add the big bets on the turn and river. If your conscious about this for a few sessions, it'll become second nature to you.

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Re: How do you know the pot size?
 

Something I never thougt of was counting the bets. So if there are 10 bets in the pot after the flop and there are 3 bets to me to call before the turn my pot odds are a little more than 3:1?

And I could practice calculating this when I'm not in a hand.

Will this work in No-Limit or only structured games?

Re: How do you know the pot size?
 

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Something I never thougt of was counting the bets. So if there are 10 bets in the pot after the flop and there are 3 bets to me to call before the turn my pot odds are a little more than 3:1?

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essentially yes.

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And I could practice calculating this when I'm not in a hand.


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you need to be doing something besides staring at the cocktail waitresses....

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Will this work in No-Limit or only structured games?

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sorry, limit only. However, in most no limit games the number of bets and raises should be smaller, making it easier to keep track of. You may be on one of those nl games that feature everyone calling the bb, or perhaps someone getting aggressive and doing a min raise. Then just multiply the number of players on the flop times the amount of the BB/raise. Besides, from my understanding of NL, its far more important to have a general idea of your opponents stack size, as the amount of the pot is often easily known for at least the purpose of pot odds and what not.

peace

john nickle

THX for the help
 

The 2+2 web site forums come thru again. [img]/images/graemlins/cool.gif[/img]

Re: How do you know the pot size?
 

Or if counting is too much work, sometimes you can just estimate. If you need 3:1 to call, does the pile of chips out there look like it's at least three times as big as the stack you're about to put in? While using all the same denomination of chips sometimes seems annoying, it makes it easier to estimate a pile.

Re: How do you know the pot size?
 

There is no need to guess. What I do is really simple. I am constantly playing with my chips so no one notices what I am really doing. For every SB to the flop, I drop one chip into a pile directly to the right of my big stack of chips. Either that or put one chip in my right hand for every SB.

Before the turn, I chop the stack in half because they are now BBs. Again, I drop a chip into the stack for every BB. I never ever have to guess at how many SBs or BBs are in the pot at any given time. Just glance at the number of chips you have in your "special" stack.

My only advice is try not to make it obvious that you're counting the pot. You don't want people to know how serious you're taking the game.

Onaflag...........

Re: How do you know the pot size?
 

[img]/images/graemlins/cool.gif[/img] I think this would work for me. Sort of a visual aid. One less thing to have to keep in my head.

THX