Because losing in poker causes so much trouble for players (mentally), I thought it would be helpful to write an article about how to calculate poker player's winning in the long run, also known as "Sklansky Dollars" (David Sklansky introduces this concept in his The Theory of Poker book). I also think this concept is quite important in order to maintain discipline in poker.
Fortunately, Sklansky Dollars as a concept is a simple one. You just multiply the % you have to win by the amount of money going into the pot.
Example:
Player A and player B both go all-in with $500 stacks (pre-flop). Player A's got AA and he gets called by player B's QQ - player A will win this one 81.5% of the time. The whole pot is $1000, so $1000*0.815 = $815. In other words, you just won $815 "in the long run". If you want to keep a track of your "real" winnings, how much you would be winning/losing in the long run, this is how you can do it. When you face tough times as a poker player, I definitely recommend doing some "winning's in the long run" calculations. Obviously it's good to do this anyway, but if you play good and you're just in need of some confidence, this is a great way to gain some.
When a player is well prepared with proper poker bankroll he should actually only play by counting winnings in the long run. You'll always win an imaginary amount of money, but what's actually "funny" about this, is that it's as realistic as possible, really. Your everyday winnings change a lot, and when things don't go the way probabilites suggest, it isn't "realistic". Then, when you have played a lot of poker, you can expect to have won close to the amount so-called "Sklansky Dollars" tell you.
Well, obviously you shouldn't go and calculate this math on every single hand you play. What's important here, is the meaning of the concept - how winning in the long run is the most important thing for a poker player. (Unless the player in question would stop playing poker today - although still it doesn't make sense to play anything but profitable poker).
Poker is a lot about the psychological side of it. You have to be mentally stable in order to compete at your best.
If you are indeed a losing player - lose in Sklansky Dollars so to speak, there's a legitimate reason for you to be worried. In fact, you should be worried enough to do something about it. Counting your probable winnings in the long run is definitely a good idea whenever you need some more confidence. It's also good to know whether you are a winning player or not at all.
Poker Mathematics:
Poker Probability,
Pot Odds
(Continue: Implied Odds),
Expected Value,
Winnings in the Long Run
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