Poker Math That Matters

56
We can multiply these fractions together to find out how often
we do not hit our 8 on the turn or river when we’re all-in on the
flop.
41
45
40 1640
* = = 0.828
44 1980
Now we subtract that from one to find out how often we do hit
the 8.
1 - 0.82 = 0.18 = 18%.
This is exactly what Pokerstove gave us.
So, that’s the background for understanding where the equity
percentages come from. However, as you’ve seen, using the 4/2
rule is a very easy way to come up with your equity estimate.
We’ll find out why estimating equity is important in future
sections. However, for now, continue to practice estimating your
equity.
One thing I didn’t talk about yet is estimating your equity
preflop. Preflop equities mean very little unless you're going to
be getting all-in preflop. If you're not, the strength of your hand
is much more defined by other factors like your position, the
amount of money remaining in your stack, your opponents and
how your hand will play postflop. In order to determine your
all-in preflop equity, it's easiest to just get used to knowing them
from messing around with a software like Pokerstove. However,
that’s not the point of this lesson. Later in this book, I'll list
some of the more common all-in preflop situations I've
committed to memory.