Can you win at no limit without using any math?

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Bentheman87

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It seems like limit hold'em is a lot more mechanical and you have to use more math than in no limit. No limit is much different, for example if you're trying to figure out your implied odds, it's impossible to be exact. But you know how much future bets will be in limit so you can be exact. Can you be a winner in no limit by playing by feel and instinct and reads alone?
 
T

theWizard-50

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yes and no...
yes if you consider "feel" to be knowing that it's right to make certain plays because it's worth the risk/reward. basically to me 'feel' is simply knowing the basics of math and the basics of the game well enough that you don't need to literally crunch the numbers, you just feel what is right from experience and from what is the right play to make. whatever you call it 'feel' still comes down to making the mathematically correct decision, consciously or unconsciously.

hope that made some sense.
 
nevadanick

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Limit and No Limit are two totally different animals.

I started playing live in '69 when limit stud and draw were THE games in the rooms, with the exception of the high stakes or private rooms 'upstairs'. I still prefer limit games.

Why? I play for 2 reasons. Enjoyment of the game and expectation of winning. I find little enjoyment in betting the farm on one hand, and online, often pre-flop. How many times do you have the absolute nuts when you bet or call an all-in? No Limit is more like magic - one 'poof' and you're gone.

I guess if I had an unlimited BR and could sign marker after marker, or do buy-in after buy-in, it wouldn't matter. More power to those who can.

At least in limit games, I know what each max round could be, how it affects my stack, what I see on the board, am I hitting or not, etc. That's a different kind of math than 4xBB, pot bet, implied odds, fold equity, value bet, etc, etc.

Any time you call or bet an all-in pre-river, you are turning your future over to Lady Luck to handle for you. Sure, it's math percentages, but aren't there days when you can't get AA to hold no matter what you do? Then the days when 99 will win every time for you? It's your luck that day - not skill.

Millions of books have been sold about how to play this and that. Have the majority learned? I don't think so.

Just sighing and saying - that's poker - doesn't cut it for me.
 
tenbob

tenbob

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Its not impossible but difficult to say the least. Knowing key concepts like "always call a raise with a small pair if we are deep stacked" is generally good, knowing exactly when calling a raise with a small pair becomes unprofitable because the stack size decreases, and when it becomes profitable again because of very small stack sizes gives you a clear edge.

Learning concepts without the math is fine, learning concepts with the math is better. There is lots and lots of concepts out there that dont esentially require math but are better with. If you find it difficult get an odds chart and stick it on your desk :)
 
skoldpadda

skoldpadda

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Been done, but certainly easier with math. The more skills you possess, the easier any game is.
 
WinPokerToday

WinPokerToday

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Maybe you could be a winner without maths, but you'll be a bigger winner by understanding and using it.
 
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