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The Poker Professionals Association
Research Chapter
26
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Fluctuations
Fluctuations or standard deviation, or good luck or bad, whatever you call it most poker players could do without it. Or could they?
We expects that without the element of luck in poker, the best players would always win and everyone else would always lose. Obviously, even the dumb poker players would soon realize this and stop playing and there would be the end of any poker pro making a living.
So next time you get a little streak of bad luck or whatever you call it, remember thats what keeps the donkeys coming back and thats what provides a good living for you.
Without luck there would be no poker or any other gambling, for that matter.
For your reference in relationship to the current topic, the poker point system is attached below.
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POKER PRO POINT SYSTEM
With the point system we assign each card a specific relative value or points. As expected, the Ace receives the highest value; however, you will note that cards rankings from 8 down receive no value, unless paired, connected or suited.
For learning purposes, we are using Texas Hold'em Poker game primarily because it is currently the leading money game both for tournaments and live play and it the easiest to use to demonstrate the point system, as only two cards are dealt each player initially. Naturally we will cover the use of the Point System in other primary poker games in later research chapters.
Individual Card Point Values:
- A= 6 points
- K= 5 points
- Q= 4 points
- J = 3 points
- 10=2 points
- 9 = 1 points
- 8 = 0 points
- 7 = 0 points
- 6 = 0 points
- 5 = 0 points
- 4 = 0 points
- 3 = 0 points
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2 = 0 points
Pairs receive an extra value of 8 points.
Suited cards receive an extra value of 3 points.
Connected cards receive an extra value of 2 points.
Suited cards are written with a small "s" as: KJ's
Connected cards refers to directly adjacent cards such as: KQ or AK or KQ or QJ, not KJ or AQ.
Examples of values of first two cards dealt in Texas Hold'em:
- AA=20 points (6 points for each ace plus 8 points for a pair)
- KK=18 points (5 points for each king plus 8 points for a pair)
- QQ=16 points (4 points for each queen plus 8 points for a pair)
- AK's=16 points (6 points for the ace, 5 points for the king plus 3 points for being suited and 2 points for being connected)
- JJ=14 points (3 points for each jack plus 8 points for a pair)
- KQ's=14 points (5 points for the king, 4 points for the queen plus 3 points for being suited and 2 points for being connected)
- AK=13 points (6 points for the ace, 5 points for the king plus 2 points for being connected)
- AQ's=13 points (6 points for the ace, 4 points for the queen plus 3 points for being suited)
- T,T=12 points (2 points for each ten plus 8 points for a pair)
- AJ's=12 points (6 points for the ace, 3 points for the jack plus 3 points for being suited)
- AT's=11 points (6 points for the ace, 2 points for the ten plus 3 points for being suited)
- KJ's=11 points (5 points for the king, 3 points for the jack plus 3 points for being suited)
- KQ=11 points (5 points for the king, 4 points for the queen plus 2 points for being connected)
- 9,9=10 points (1 point for each 9 plus 8 points for a pair)
- AQ=10 points (6 points for the ace, 4 points for the queen)
It is interesting to note the value difference of 3 points between AQ's and AQ. This demonstrates the importance of suiting and is helpful in evaluating the correct value of a AQ starting hand. Suited it is definitely playable while unsuited it can be a marginal hand often played for more than it's worth.
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