Pot Odds explained.
Poker is largely a mathematical game. To win you need to make decisions with a positive mathematical expectation; it means those that are beneficial for you. Beginners often do not realize it, trying to take the pot at any cost, and as a result they lose.
In order to use poker odds, you should take into account pot odds before making a decision whether you need to make a certain action or not.
Pot odds – the ratio of bets, which the player should make, to the actual value of the pot, that is, if the pot contains $ 20 and your opponent bets $ 10, poker pot odds are 1:3 ($ 20 + $ 10) / $ 10 = 3.
Depending on the bets, you have the ability to control the pot odds poker in your favor. If you collect a hand in no limit Holdem, for example, you might want to make bet that will be big enough to not give your opponent enough chances for a possible exchange of hands. And if you have to change the hand, respectively, you need to estimate your chances to call a bet.
Example: If you have 8-9 and the flop is A-6-7, your chance of making a straight in turn is equal to 4,9:1, so if you plan to call a bet on the flop (without taking into account the odds), your bet shouldn’t be greater than one-fifth of the total pot. That’s why the game with bet limits is more advantageous to changing hands than no-limit poker games, but taking into account implied pot odds, the exchange can be beneficial even in no-limit or pot limit poker games.
Implied pot odds.
Taking into consideration additional rounds of betting, you should also multiply the implied odds. If you think your opponent has a stronger hand and will call a big bet or raise a bet later, your actual odds are better than the odds at the moment. In other words you can call a bet even without convenient pot odds just because your opponent will pay you on later rounds.
This is mainly balanced way of betting, and you should consider the game style of your opponent, as well as the fact how well your hand is hidden. Straight is more hidden than flush, and hidden triplex is more preferable to the triplex with a pair on the table and so on.
You can also use pot odds calculator. This service is available on many web sites. This program will help you in calculating pot odds as well as your poker odds.