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POSITION
Just as the number of needed cards you see reduces your chances
of improving your hand, your position in the sequence of betting
may also reduce the pot odds you are getting. If a player
ahead of you bets and there is a possible raise to your left,
you must be cognizant of the fact that that possibility cuts
down on your odds. If, for example, there is a $100 pot and
the bet is $20, you appear to be getting 6-to-1 odds ($120
to $20). However, when there is a raiser behind you and the
original bettor calls, you are really getting only 4'/z-to-1
if you call the raise. Although the pot has grown to $180,
you must put in a total of $40. If the original bettor reraises,
your odds drop to 3%-to- 1. The pot grows to $220 (assuming
the opponent behind you calls the reraise), but you have to
put in $60. What's more, your chances of winning, even when
you make your hand, have certainly decreased with all that
raising going on between your opponents, suggesting they have
pretty big hands.
How does the concept of position vis-a-vis pot odds work in
practice? Let's say in seven-card stud you have a four-flush
in six cards and a player to your right bets after pairing
his door card. (The door card is the first open card the player
receives. When it is paired on board, trips, or three-of-a-kind,
is a strong possibility since the player may have started
with a pair.) At the same time that the player with the open
pair bets, you notice that a player to your left has caught
a card that looks as if it has made him a straight. Before
you call the first bet, you must be aware that the player
to your left may raise if he made a straight (or even if he
didn't). Furthermore, the original bettor may reraise with
three-of-a-kind or, of course, a full house. So before calling
the first bet, you have to assess your pot odds not just at
the moment but in the event there is a raise or two behind
you. You also have to decide what your chances of winning
are if you do make the flush. You would, of course, beat the
straight, but the question is whether the original bettor
is the kind of player who would bet into a possible straight
with less than a full house or at the very least three-of-a-kind.
Adjusting your pot odds before calling a bettor to your right
with players behind you comes up most often in games like
five-card draw, draw lowball, and hold 'em, where position
is important. Let's say in hold 'em you hold the and the flop
comes
You would seem to have a strong hand with the top pair, but
if you are in second position with a number of players behind
you and the player in first position bets, you should probably
throw away your aces. Not only has the player in first position
suggested a great deal of strength with his bet, but he may
get raised by such hands as an ace-king, ace-queen, and three-of-a-kind,
which shortens your pot odds and further decreases the possibility
of your ending up with the best hand. Additionally, the chance
of calls from flush draws and straight draws behind you further
diminishes the strength of your pair of aces. You face the
uncomfortable double possibility of being second-best at the
moment and of being outdrawn on the last two cards.
Similarly, in seven-card stud you might have to throw away
a pair of jacks in the hole if the player representing queens
to your immediate right bets. Not only do you figure to be
second-best to the queens, but someone behind you might raise,
thus reducing your pot odds and chances of winning. On the
other hand, you'd probably call the bet in a late position,
especially because of the deceptive value of your hidden pair,
if you happen to catch another jack. |
