By Diane Dilov-Schultheis, for Yahoo! Sports

Understanding Texas Hold’em Poker Odds

Poker odds are the mathematics involved in playing in a game of Texas Hold’em poker that every player should completely understand. Once you are familiar with how to calculate poker odds, you will then know if you are in an excellent or terrible situation. You can then use this awareness to make a decision on how you should act in response.

 There are two kinds of poker odds in Texas Hold’em. You may also hear poker odds referred to as outs. The two different types are hand odds andpot odds. This article covers the hand odds andHow to Calculate Odds in Texas Hold’em Poker Part Two, will detail pot odds.

Texas Hold’em Hand Odds

You can determine your hand odds with a simple division. The goal is figure out how many outs your specific hand has. Any card that helps the hand is an out (and counted). Use this number divided by the outstanding cards to figure your outs. However, when doing this computation, only count the cards that you know, which are the community cards and your two cards.

This computes to 50 pre-flop (52 cards minus your two cards), then 47 after the flop (52 cards minus your two cards plus three community cards), and then 46 after the turn (52 cards minus your two cards plus four community cards).

For instance, if you hold a pair, the odds that you would catch one more of the same card is detailed here:

Pre-flop - This leaves two cards in the deck, which you must calculate like this: two divided by 50 = .04 (4%, 1 in 25 or 25:1).

Flop - When you don’t get your card on the flop, you still have two cards left in the deck. Calculated like this: two divided by 47 = .0425 (4.25%, 1 in 23.5 or 23.5:1).

Turn - When you don’t get your card on the turn, you calculate it like this: two divided by 46 = .0435 (4.35%, 1 in 23 or 23:1).

Use the same method described for any poker hand, such as a straight, flush or full house. Simply use the amount of cards left, which improve your hand, as the number you divide. Once you understand how to calculate the hand odds, you can use this number to compare to the pot odds and then use this information to determine if you should remain in the hand or not.

Diane has more than 20 years experience in the casino industry in Nevada. She doesn’t just know how to play poker; she also knows how to deal the game.