Chopper,


Thx for the reply. My head hurts so I have more q's. if you feel it's best to do it via pm, rather than bloat a thread, just lemme know.

Easy things 1st, yeah, what I need to make - double it. It's what I was getting at in my post when I mentioned being too close for comfort.

I played microstakes for about 2 weeks. I entered with $20 (max buy in) each time. I finished between $50 and my best ever of $110. Sure, somedays I lost my $20 and had to reload - which meant a lower profit margin. I only reached these figures with all ins. Apart from that it was painfully slow as most of the time people folded to my raises and I'd scoop........30c! Do that 10 times in a row and it's still only $3.

As said though, I'm not looking at going pro yet. But I long for the day when I can

And I am glad it's waaaaaaaaaay better than a day job!


Now onto the head hurting stuff.....

Ash's figures
1) you need to know the average pot size to calculate rake.
Yes but I have no idea of knowing this.

2) he is jamming about 500 full ring hands or 800 6max hands per hour
How do you know this?

3) remember, its $1 for a BB, not $.50
But he said he plays at .25/.50 so isn't the bb .50 - hence 5x (3/100) = $22.5 as opposed to $45?

And was I right with the 3bb per hour?

4) if he plays an hour and wins $200, he says to himself, "thanks for the $45." if he loses $200 in the next hour, he says, "thanks for the $45." while his computer tells him he has only broken even.....he knows he has actually made $90. see that? thats how you need to think about things.
Errr no. I don't see that (and am feeling really donkey-ish right now!). All I see is that if he win then loses$200, he's broke even - not up $90.



EV
I know EV stands for Expected Value. And that'e as much as I grasp.

Quick question before I ask about your answers: do the top pros do EV calculations? As said, I've seen DVDs by Negreanu, Helmuth and Gordon yet none mention EV.

And also, isn't EV supposed to be hard to calculate? Certainly not quick enough to beat the online timers.

1) if you have more of an "equity stake" in the pot, then you need to stick as much in as you can
Not sure what you mean by this. All I know is that with a good hand, I shove more money in than with a bad one.

If I have 99, bet 4xbb and the flop comes KAA, I'd normally slow down but are you suggesting I push more money in as I've already invested?


2) and jam the money in. thats where your bread and butter lies. sometimes you will both be making a "profitable decision," but yours is MORE profitable (like AA v KK preflop). therefore, your opponent still made the bigger mistake for that particular situation.
This sounds just like standard poker play and knowing your preflop stats and odds/outs. Eg: I know AA is a 4 to 1 favourite over any other pocket pair so.......jam the pot.


3) Going back to the example I read on EV, you have scored a flush as you hold 10d and Jc. The article went on about what if your opponent had K or Q club, what if he would bet with any club, what if he would fold with any club other than a K or Q, what if he had no club, what if he would fold to any bet etc. The permutations were mad and above all, know one can know what an opponent will do until he does it. I really can't see how any good player will go through this rigmarole everytime they''re in a flush situation. But hey, I'm new so what do I know?

All in all, I know what EV means - but that's about it. Utilising it is another. And even when I see the figures - +5Ev - it doesn't mean anything to me.