Texas Holdem Hand Probability
Using a Poker odds Calculator. Want to know how far ahead or behind you are in a Texas Hold’em hand against one, two or more opponents? Our poker calculator is the perfect medium for finding out the odds in any given situation. Simply plug in your hand, your opponents’ hands, and the board, and you’ll be on the way to figuring out your. Playing poker is about playing the odds. The following list gives the odds for outcomes in Texas Hold’em hands. When you realize how heavily the odds are stacked against you, you may want to rethink going all-in before the flop with two suited cards. Use the odds to your advantage: 1. The Texas Hold’em odds of how likely hands are to unfold after the flop will help guide almost every action you make on the flop Odds On the Flop in Texas Hold’em. The flop is the turning point of a Hold’em hand. This is where you’re going to make your biggest and most expensive decisions.
Ever wondered where some of those odds in the odds charts came from? In this article, I will teach you how to work out the probability of being dealt different types of preflop hands in Texas Holdem.
It's all pretty simple and you don't need to be a mathematician to work out the probabilities. I'll keep the math part as straightforward as I can to help keep this an easy-going article for the both of us.
- Probability calculations quick links.
A few probability basics.
When working out hand probabilities, the main probabilities we will work with are the number of cards in the deck and the number of cards we want to be dealt. So for example, if we were going to deal out 1 card:
- The probability of dealing a 7 would be 1/52 - There is one 7 in a deck of 52 cards.
- The probability of dealing any Ace would be 4/52 - There four Aces in a deck of 52 cards.
- The probability of dealing any would be 13/52 - There are 13 s in a deck of 52 cards.
In fact, the probability of being dealt any random card (not just the 7) would be 1/52. This also applies to the probability being dealt any random value of card like Kings, tens, fours, whatever (4/52) and the probability of being dealt any random suit (13/52).
Each card is just as likely to be dealt as any other - no special priorities in this game!
The numbers change for future cards.
A quick example... let's say we want to work out the probability of being dealt a pair of sevens.
- The probability of being dealt a 7 for the first card will be 4/52.
- The probability of being dealt a 7 for the second card will be 3/51.
Notice how the probability changes for the second card? After we have been dealt the first card, there is now 1 less card in the deck making it 51 cards in total. Also, after already being dealt a 7, there are now only three 7s left in the deck.
Always try and take care with the numbers for future cards. The numbers will change slightly as you go along.
Working out probabilities.
- Whenever the word 'and' is used, it will usually mean multiply.
- Whenever the word 'or' is used, it will usually mean add.
This won't make much sense for now, but it will make a lot of sense a little further on in the article. Trust me.
Probability of being dealt two exact cards.
Multiply the two probabilities together.
So, we want to find the probability of being dealt the A and K. (See the 'and' there?)
- Probability of being dealt A - 1/52.
- Probability of being dealt K - 1/51.
Now let's just multiply these bad boys together.
P = (1/52) * (1/51)
P = 1/2652
So the probability of being dealt the A and then K is 1/2652. As you might be able to work out, this is the same probability for any two exact cards, as the likelihood of being dealt A K is the same as being dealt a hand like 7 3 in that order.
But wait, we do not care about the order of the cards we are dealt!
When we are dealt a hand in Texas Hold'em, we don't care whether we get the A first or the K first (which is what we just worked out), just as long as we get them in our hand it's all the same. There are two possible combinations of being dealt this hand (A K and K A), so we simply multiply the probability by 2 to get a more useful probability.
P = 1/2652 * 2
P = 1/1326
You might notice that because of this, we have also worked out that there are 1,326 possible combinations of starting hands in Texas Holdem. Cool huh?
Probability of being dealt a certain hand.
Two exact cards is all well and good, but what if we want to work out the chances of being dealt AK, regardless of specific suits and whatnot? Well, we just do the same again...
Multiply the two probabilities together.
So, we want to find the probability of being dealt any Ace andany King.
- Probability of being dealt any Ace - 4/52.
- Probability of being dealt any King - 4/51 (after we've been dealt our Ace, there are now 51 cards left).
P = (4/52) * (4/51)
P = 16/2652 = 1/166
However, again with the 2652 number we are working out the probability of being deal an Ace and then a King. If we want the probability of being dealt either in any order, there are two possible ways to make this AK combination so we multiply the probability by 2.
P = 16/2652 * 2
P = 32/2652
P = 1/83
The probability of being dealt any AK as opposed to an AK with exact suits is more probable as we would expect. A lot more probable in fact. Also, as you might guess, this probability of 1/83 will be the same for any two value of cards like; AQ, JT, 34, J2 and so on regardless of whether they are suited or not.
Texas Holdem Poker Hands Probability
Probability of being dealt a range of hands.
Work out each individual hand probability and add them together.
What's the probability of being dealt AA or KK? (Spot the 'or' there? - Time to add.)
- Probability of being dealt AA - 1/221 (4/52 * 3/51 = 1/221).
- Probability of being dealt KK - 1/221 (4/52 * 3/51 = 1/221).
P = (1/221) + (1/221)
P = 2/221 = 1/110
Easy enough. If you want to add more possible hands in to the range, just work out their individual probability and add them in. So if we wanted to work out the odds of being dealt AA, KK or 7 3...
- Probability of being dealt AA - 1/221 (4/52 * 3/51 = 1/221).
- Probability of being dealt KK - 1/221 (4/52 * 3/51 = 1/221).
- Probability of being dealt 7 3 - 1/1326 ([1/52 * 1/51] * 2 = 1/1326).
P = (1/221) + (1/221) + (1/1326)
P = 359/36465 = 1/102
This one definitely takes more skill with adding fractions because of the different denominators, but you get the idea. I'm just teaching hand probabilities here, so I'm not going to go in to adding fractions in this article for now! This fractions calculator is really handy for adding those trickier probabilities quickly though.
Overview of working out hand probabilities.
Hopefully that's enough information and examples to allow you to go off and work out the probabilities of being dealt various hands and ranges of hands before the flop in Texas Holdem. The best way to learn how to work out probabilities is to actually try and work it out for yourself, otherwise the maths part will just go in one ear and out the other.
I guess this article isn't really going to do much for improving your game, but it's still pretty interesting to know the odds of being dealt different types of hands.
I'm sure that some of you reading this article were not aware that the probability of being dealt AA were exactly the same as the probability of being dealt 22! Well, now you know - it's 1/221.
Other useful articles.
- Poker mathematics.
- Pot odds.
- Equity in poker.
Go back to the poker odds charts.
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Once the flop has been dealt in Texas Hold'em, you'll be able to count your outs and know how likely it is your hand will improve. That will tell you whether you should stay in the hand or fold.
You can figure out your outs and odds for any hand, but here is a quick and dirty list of the most common scenarios:
Texas Hold'em Cheat SheetOdds Based on Outs after the Flop
If after the flop, you have:
Two outs: Your odds are 11 to 1 (about 8.5 percent)
A common scenario would be when you have a pair and you are hoping your pair becomes a three-of-a-kind (a set).
Four outs: Your odds are 5 to 1 (about 16.5 percent)
A common scenario would be when you are trying to hit an inside straight draw (there are 4 cards of one number that will complete the straight) or you have two pairs and you hope to make a full house (there are three cards remaining of one number and two of the other).
Eight outs: Your odds are 2 to 1 (about 31 percent)
A common scenario would be that you have an open-ended straight draw. There are four remaining cards of two different numbers that will complete your straight, on the high end and on the low end.
Nine outs: Your odds are 2 to 1 (about 35 percent)
This is the common scenario when you have a flush draw. Any of the nine remaining cards of the suit will give you a flush.
Fifteen outs: Your odds are 1 to 1 (about 54 percent)
A scenario for this is having a straight and flush draw, where either any of the nine remaining cards of the suit will give you a flush, while there are four cards remaining of each of two numbers that would complete a straight. However, you don't count the same cards twice as outs, so those of suit you hope to get don't count again.
Texas Holdem Mathematics
The Rule of Four and Two
These odds only apply to counting both the turn and the river, so they assume you will stay in the hand until the showdown. Your odds are only about half as good for a single card draw, such taking the hit on the turn or taking the hit on the river. A common way of looking at the difference in the odds when you will be seeing two cards compared with one is called the Rule of 4 and 2.
After the flop, count your outs and multiply them by four to get your percentage odds. This doesn't give you an exact number, but it is quickly in the ballpark. With 15 outs, 4 x 15 = 55 percent you'll complete that straight or flush with the next two draws.
Texas Holdem Odds And Probabilities
However, when you are calculating the odds that a single draw will improve your hand, you multiply the outs by two rather than 4. With 15 outs, 2 x 15 = 30 percent chance.