Quote Originally Posted by Chopper
still confused as to what this all indicates. i mean, we all know that sets should win you more hands/money than one pair hands. i dont see the fuss.

unless, someone cares to explain the significance.
I use it (infrequently) for the following purposes.

1. It helps you understand where the profits in your game come from. For example, the vast majority of profits come from sets - they're the easiest to make on the flop. The second most come from full houses which often happen when you flop a set and the board pairs on the turn or river. So...pp's are the most profitable hand types. Big draws to straights and flushes also pay well, but they hit less often. We can sort based on how the hand finished and watch hand replays, see how these hands go against various villains from various positions.

2. As a newbie, I often worried about betting sets when the board flushed or straightened. As it happens, sets hold up about 80% of the time while straights hold up only about 75%. So we should be betting them, even when other big hands seem to be out there.

3. Should we bet the idiot end of a straight? Maybe, in certain situations, it's a good idea. Straights are big hands and are hard to hit, so if the board has only 3 cards in a given straight range, and you've made it, you should probably bet it and take the chance the villain does NOT have the higher straight.

4. Flushes hold up really well, when you make them (87%). As a newbie, I often worried about flush under flush when I had 65s and hit my hand. Now, I'm betting them regardless of reads. If I get stacked, so be it.

5. Oddly, full houses hold up less well than flushes and only slightly better than sets, obviously because of simplicity of holding big unpaired cards and hitting trips as someone hits their boat (holding small pp that flopped a set). Then...the other card pairs the board, and you've got the higher full house. These situations are fairly easy to avoid, since uncoordinated boards don't leave villains with lots of ways to out-boat us, but with pocket 3's I am worried about a A Q 3 flop with a Q on the turn. Two other full houses are possible (plus the quad Q's - ouch), and I can be drawing dead or to the case 3 if I'm not careful, here.

These are just some general observations about NLH based on what I'm seeing from my database. The above points confirm what Phil Gordon says in one of his books: "The average winning hand in Holdem is 2 pair." I use that rule of thumb to guide turn/river betting. If you don't have something that can beat TPTK, why are you still betting the turn? Sure, there are valid reasons to bet/call/rr the turn and river with less than 2 pair. Total donkfish villains excepted, expecting to win without improving should not be one of them.