Skills in online Texas Hold’em poker

From my long observation on the field I was able to frame online poker skills in two different cognitive paths, but intrinsically interdependent:

• ability, quality and speed with which the subject succeeds, in statistical terms, in selecting the most relevant data and on the basis of the latter, calculating the equity of his perceived range against the opponent’s range in relation to the board and the expected value (EV) of the same to the pot;
• ability, quality and speed of critical analysis, measured by the quality and degree of relationships that the subject is able to elaborate in the process of significance of the data acquired in the previous processing path, in order to identify, design and exploit the small advantages in favor of his own objectives. 

The “Empowerment” process in online poker

This type of cognitive activity finds a scientific definition in the academic doctrine of social psychology, in the context of which , Bruscaglioni [1994] defines Empowerment:

“the process of widening (through the best use of own current or potential acquired resources) the possibilities that the subject can practice and make operational and from which he can then choose [Bruscaglioni, 1994]. The main objective of the empowerment process is to activate and facilitate the process of change, helping the subject to get out of a stalemate; the process can be spontaneous or facilitated by the intervention of an operator, in the same way, it can affect an entire group or be individual (self empowerment).” 

Online poker and the hard laws of maths

For the probabilistic calculation to be effective, each location must be able to manage from a minimum of ten up to twenty tables simultaneously, corresponding to individual different tournaments. The statistical value is based on the law of big numbers and you can not get profit in online poker by participating only in a daily schedule event. You have to “massare”, that is to play the largest number of hands possible, so that the expectations derived from theoretical calculations are reflected in the long-term reality.

Go to the next article not to lose the thread of the discussion on the Skill Poker Index, or go to the first article of the series to resume it.

Pietro Semeraro 

Transl. by Margherita Basile