Building a feel for equity

You cannot calculate every time, so the goal is a number that appears the moment you look.

Checking yourself repeatedly sharpens this faster than you would expect — a few dozen hands makes a visible difference.

Within 2 points counts as optimal, within 5 as acceptable.

• equity

  The share of the pot your hand is worth right now if the hand ran to the end. Ties count as splitting.

• range

  All the hands a player could hold in this spot, not just one guess. Decisions are made against the whole set.

20 hands or more, with an optimal rate of 50%