Pot odds in NL play...

[Bang584]

Does anyone else here think they are overrated? While they are important, I usually don't find them very useful when I'm actually at the table. I'm leaning more towards the Mike Caro school of thought... do the math at home, and bring psychology to the table.

In other words, I know what I need to bet already to price out certain draws.

When I hold KTo on the button and there's a minraise from an uberrock up front, I know that my hand doesn't profit against his raising hand range in the long run, regardless of the odds I am offered, so it's an easy fold.

When bluffing, I don't have to calculate the pot odds... if I think there's a good chance of getting away with it, I make the bet. I just need better chances for bigger bets, simple as that.

I'm not saying the math's not important, I'm just saying there's not really a need to be calculating it at the table. I should already know the odds for drawing to certain hands, and I should be able to estimate that certain plays will be favorable against my opponents' hand ranges.

I just find it harder to follow my instincts when I'm constantly counting up pot odds. My reads aren't as sharp, and my play is usually weaker. Anybody else like this?

Anyways, I really think that pot odds at the table are overrated in NL play. If you find yourself counting them, then you probably haven't done your homework. Drawing odds never change, AT is almost always dominated by a hand range of (AK-AJ, KQ-KJ, AA-TT), but your opponents are rarely the same... which should you be more worried about keeping track of? Since you can calculate the odds at home, I think the question is easy to answer.