Learn How Counting Cards Poker Techniques Are Used

In most online table games, the house always has an edge. If you’re not careful, you could lose far more than you would ever win. Players have then devised various strategies to trump the house’s advantage, for which counting cards poker techniques were developed.

Although originally made to beat the house advantage in blackjack games, card counting has been modified to work perfectly in online poker. But, does it work? This casino news looks into what card counting in poker is and answers the question of whether it works or not. 

Counting Cards in Poker: Maximizing Your Profits

Counting cards in poker is simple. It’s the practice of keeping track of the playing cards on a casino poker table. It uses the combination of tracking the hole cards and the community cards. Hole cards are visible to individual players, while community cards are visible to all players. 

The essence of counting cards is to gain a strategic edge. That said, there is no one way to count cards in poker. We will use Texas Hold’em to describe some of the different methods people use to learn how to play poker.

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Counting Cards Poker Technique: Using Blockers

The term “using blockers” in poker refers to eliminating specific hands from other opponents’ range based on the cards they are holding or the community cards. The poker game of Texas Hold’Em uses 52 card decks. As a result, players can easily consider what other players have seen while making decisions.

As an illustration of using the blockers method, Imagine you hold the cards A-spade & K-diamond, and the community cards read the cards 9- spade, 7-spade, Q-spade, 5-clubs, & 6-diamonds. Using the blockers method of card counting, you can safely assume that your opponent does not have the ace high flush.

Does it work?

Yes, blockers in card counting work. It is a great technique that has the potential to aid players in making great plays and avoiding costly errors. You can use this blocker technique to pull off massive bluffs like in the above scenario. In this instance, you already know your opponent doesn’t have the finest potential flush.

Learn many other techniques of poker, by visiting our American Casino Guide section, created just for you to learn all the complexities of your favorite poker games.

Counting Cards Poker Technique: Counting Outs

Counting outs is the next counting cards poker strategy on our list. Mastery of it is essential for success in all casino games.

Here’s a quick example. Consider that you have A-diamond & 10-diamond on a 4-diamond, J-diamond, & 7-spade flop and are trying to determine how many cards in the deck you still need to complete your flush draw.

The deck consists of 52 cards, split evenly between four suits of 13 cards each. With the A, 10, 4, and J already out in the open, you need only find the K, Q, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 3, & 2 of diamonds to make a flush.

Now, to complete your outs counting, you need to determine the equity of the pot. 

Calculating Pot Equity

Calculating the pot’s equity measures how likely we will make our hand and win the pot. It is called the rule of 2 and 4 (or the “Rule of 4 and 2”). It applies to the “flop” and the “turn”. It states that:

• On the flop action, multiply your number of outs by 4 to determine your equity in the pot
• On the Turn, multiply your number of outs by 2 to determine your equity in the pot

So, using our earlier example, we determined that we had roughly nine outs because we held the flush draw. Since we are on the flop, we can roughly calculate our pot equity by multiplying our current number of outs (9) by 4. Our odds of making an ace-high or better hand by the river are thus approximately 36%. Remember that this is just an approximation, and the accurate poker calculation is slightly more involved. 

Okay, let’s assume we’re on the “turn” with nine outs. At this point, 46 cards remain hidden from view. The odds of making contact are thus 9/46. This likelihood can be reduced to 9/50, which is the same as saying 18/100 or 18% if we assume are 50 cards in the deck instead of 46.

Conclusion

Like any technique used in online casino gambling, like playing paradise slots or blackjack, it is essential to master a playing technique to get an edge over your opponents. Card counting in poker may take some time before it can be used appropriately.

However, with a proper understanding of what we’ve explained and implemented this strategy, you’ll learn first-hand how effective counting card poker is. You can also check out our Slots Paradise casino reviews to see online poker opportunities to practice card counting.

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