The Essential Theorem Of Poker

Might theorem of poker sounds a lot more intimidating than it really is because it runs on the couple words that most people don't hear everyday. The truth is, the fundamental theorem of poker is quite simple and clearly spoken - yet at precisely the same time it's even more complex than the scientific-sounding name implies.

Might theorem of poker is another contribution to the poker world by notable poker player, theorist and author poker88 David Sklansky, who also developed the gap concept, among other things. The theorem reads as follows:

"Every time you play a hand differently from the way you would have played it if you could see all your opponents' cards, they gain; and every time you play your hand the same way you would have played it if you could see all their cards, they lose. Conversely, everytime opponents play their hands differently from the way they could have if they could see your entire cards, you gain; and each time they play their hands the same way they might have played if they could see your entire cards, you lose. "

It's a whole lot of words to sum up a fairly simple idea, and that is this: if you could see your opponent's cards, then it might be possible to make decisions predicated on complete mathematical certainty. Thus, assuming you knew your math and understood some basic poker concepts like pot odds, you could always make the perfect decision to bring you closer to winning the table. By the same token, if your opponent could see all your cards, he would have the same decision-making power.

What the fundamental theorem of poker emphasizes is the fact that information is the most important resource that any poker player has. The more information you have, the better your chances of making the correct decision.

Unfortunately, there is certainly little that players can do to genuinely increase their available information. While you may possibly have the ability to "read" your opponents, any information that you get from this is far from complete. Plus, often there is the chance that your opponent is actively deceiving you, feeding you misinformation which will surely lead to you making an incorrect decision.

Everything you can take from the fundamental theorem of poker is that there surely is always a proper decision. As you shouldn't beat yourself up for making an incorrect decision, you should use every hand as an opportunity to gain as much information as you are able to. Learn about your opponents to enable you to better predict their actions in the future. Even if the sole information you could glean is that your opponent is playing completely randomly, that is still information that you can use.

Do not think too hard about how this theorem applies to your everyday game - you'll just drive yourself crazy. Instead, contemplate it in a wide sense and try to keep your mind available to every possible avenue for new information.