Essential Poker Statistics
Poker today is super smart, especially with BLITZPOKER! It’s like a science project. The top players, like detectives, carefully study every detail to win more games. They use all the info they can find to outsmart their opponents and win more often. Did you know that stats in poker are like secret weapons? Yeah, they’re a big deal! Players can collect loads of data from their games by using special software like Holdem Manager or Poker Tracker. These numbers are like clues about how other players behave and where they mess up. Plus, they can even show you how to get better at your own game! Those poker stats aren’t much help unless you know how to use them. In this article, we’ll break down some key stats you’ll find in any tracking software. By the time you finish reading, you’ll not only understand what these numbers mean but also how they should look to help you win more games. And don’t forget, mastering poker statistics is essential for any serious player looking to gain an edge at the table.
Essential Poker Statistics #1 VPIP
VPIP, which stands for Voluntarily Put Money in Pot is a simple but important stat in poker. Basically, it tells you how often a player jumps into the action by betting, raising, or calling. Every time you decide to play a hand by putting chips in the pot, your VPIP goes up. But here’s the catch: Blinds don’t count because you gotta pay those no matter what.
Now, there’s no magic number for VPIP. It all depends on your style. Loose players tend to have higher VPIP, while tighter players keep it lower. For a winning player in a short-handed game, VPIP usually falls between 20% and 30%. In a full-ring game, it’s more like 14% to 22%.
Essential Poker Statistics #2 RFI & PFR
The poker stats RFI and PFR are alike but track slightly different things. RFI, which stands for Raise First In, shows how often a player starts by raising when nobody else has done so before the flop. PFR, or Pre-flop Raise, indicates how many times a player has been the aggressor before the flop, including instances of 3-bets or more. RFI is more commonly used because it gives a better idea of how often a player chooses to raise initially.
PFR, on the other hand, includes situations where a player raises after someone else has already opened the pot or called the big blind. Most players prefer to look at RFI and 3-bet individually rather than combining them into the PFR stat. Both these essential Poker statistics are used to measure aggression, but they work better when PFR is separated into RFI and 3-bet.
Essential Poker Statistics #3 3-BET
A 3-bet happens when you make a third bet or raise someone again. Before the flop, the first raise is just a regular raise or “open”. When you raise again after the initial raise, that counts as a 3-bet. The 3-bet poker stat is important because it also measures aggression. Your 3-bet percentage shows how often you re-raise when someone has opened the pot and folded to you.
Professionals usually aim for a 3-bet percentage of 3%-6% for full-ring games and 5%-9% for short-handed games. Although these percentages might seem small compared to VPIP, remember that almost every hand will have a pre-flop raiser, and most of your VPIP will come from being the first to raise before the flop. Therefore, it’s quite reasonable to have a 3%-6% 3-bet frequency according to statistical poker analysis.
Essential Poker Statistics #4 FOLD TO 3-BET
The fold to 3-bet poker statistic is simple. It shows how often a player, who raised before the flop, folds when faced with a 3-bet. Players often make the mistake of folding too frequently to 3-bets, especially in live poker games. The pros suggest that your fold to 3-bet poker statistic should be 55% or lower.
Essential Poker Statistics #5 FOLD TO STEAL
A substantial portion of your poker profits will stem from claiming uncontested pots and nabbing blinds with antes. This tactic, commonly referred to as “stealing,” may sound intimidating, but it’s a perfectly legitimate aspect of the game.
In poker stats parlance, a steal refers to any raise in an unopened pot originating from late positions like the cutoff, button, and small blind. The “Fold to Steal” stat indicates how frequently a player in the big blind folds in response to such attempts.
While playing profitably from the blinds is challenging, it’s crucial to develop skills to bolster your defence against aggression.
Folding over 70% to steals represents a significant flaw in your game. If you notice this tendency in other players, it’s wise to capitalize by targeting their blinds as frequently as possible.
In contemporary games, where the average raise size tends to be smaller, you may find it beneficial to defend against steals even more liberally. This strategy might land you in some complex postflop situations, but forfeiting your equity in the blinds isn’t a luxury you can afford.
How to Utilize The Above-mentioned Essential Pre-flop Poker Statistics #1 to #5?
The online poker stats focusing on pre-flop action can help classify players and develop strategies to outplay them. By comparing a player’s VPIP to their RFI/3-bet, you can gauge their hand range and aggression level. A player with a high VPIP but low RFI (e.g., 45%/8%) is considered weak, playing too many hands and seldom taking the lead. Such players are ripe for value betting.
On the flip side, players with very low VPIPs and high RFIs are overly tight and aggressive. A VPIP below 10% combined with higher RFI/3-bet stats indicates they wait for premium hands and play them aggressively. Exploit these players by re-raising when behind, as they tend to fold too frequently, and fold comfortably when they exhibit aggression.
Players with consistently low pre-flop stats play too conservatively but lack aggression when they do enter a hand. Despite their passive play, be wary as they may hold strong hands when they do participate.
Conversely, players with elevated pre-flop stats are profit opportunities. They play loose and aggressively, often overplaying weaker hands. A player with a high VPIP (over 40%) and significant RFI/3-bet stats present an opportunity to let them overcommit with inferior holdings when you have a strong hand.
The fold to 3-bet stat helps identify players who fold excessively to re-raises. Exploit such players by increasing your 3-betting frequency against them. Conversely, against players who don’t fold enough to 3-bets, reserve your re-raises for premium hands, anticipating a likely continuation to the flop.
In addition to opponent analysis, Heads-Up Displays (HUDs) track your online poker stats. Use these metrics to pinpoint areas for improvement in your game. If any of your stats fall outside preferred ranges, adjust your pre-flop strategy accordingly. High VPIP? Tighten your hand selection. Folding too often to 3-bets? Defend your open raises more frequently. These stats serve not only to identify weak opponents but also to refine your own gameplay.
Essential Poker Statistics #6 CBET FLOP
C-betting is a big deal in poker. You don’t want to overdo it and then fold almost every time you check. That’s not a smart strategy, but unfortunately, it’s pretty common. You should occasionally check strong hands to bluff-catch on later streets and aim for a balanced range with the right mix of bluffs and value hands when you bet.
As a rule of thumb, aim to keep your Cbet Flop stat between 45% and 60% for a solid game plan. In lower-stakes games, you might want to up this frequency to exploit weaker opponents who tend to fold too often. In this area, leaning towards aggression is usually the better bet.
Essential Poker Statistics #7 FOLD TO CBET
If you read the previous paragraph, you’ll know that good players often bet with a wide range of hands after the flop. This means you need to adjust and not fold too much to their continuation bets.
Remember, you don’t have to be correct every time you call. For instance, if your opponent bets half the pot on the river, you only need to be right one out of four times to break even. So, if you think you’re winning more than 25% of the time, it’s an easy call.
Don’t be swayed by claims that players don’t bluff much, especially at lower stakes. They do! Just be selective and trust these poker stats, and you’ll do fine. Ideally, your Fold to Flop Cbet should fall between 40% and 60%.
The actual decision in the hand depends on the bet size—typically, the larger the bet, the more you should fold—but that’s a topic for another day. If you want to delve deeper, check out articles on poker odds to grasp the numbers better. A good adjustment is to fold more against players with lower c-bet percentages and those with lower VPIP overall, as they’re likely to have stronger hands when they’re in. Likewise, avoid folding too much against aggressive players.
Essential Poker Statistics #8 CBET TURN
This stat indicates how often the player who raised before the flop bets again on the turn. Such a bet is usually made when the initial raiser has a sense of the opponent’s hand strength (for example, they called the flop c-bet) and still opts to keep betting.
For a successful player, this stat typically ranges from 45% to 65%. Of course, this alone won’t guarantee success, but these are the numbers seen in winning players over many hands.
Essential Poker Statistics #9 WENT TO SHOWDOWN (WTSD)
WTSD tells you how often you (or your opponent) reach the showdown after seeing the flop. A low number suggests you might be folding too often in certain situations, while a high number indicates you’re perhaps too reluctant to fold.
A strong, winning player typically has a WTSD stat between 21% and 32.5%. If yours is higher, consider playing fewer hands pre-flop, tightening your river calling range, or finding spots to fold earlier in the hand.
Essential Poker Statistics #10 WON MONEY AT SHOWDOWN (W$SD)
This stat reveals how often you come out ahead at showdowns, even if it’s not always a substantial win. Generally, a high W$SD stat reflects a skilled player, while a lower one might suggest someone who bluffs too often or makes questionable calls.
Winning players usually have a W$SD stat of around 52% to 66%, meaning they win money more than half the time they go to showdown. If your percentage is below 50%, consider bluffing less, tightening your river calling range, and improving your understanding of opponents’ ranges to avoid frivolous calls.
Essential Poker Statistics #11 AGGRESSION % BY STREET
Many players struggle to maintain aggression, especially as the hand progresses. You’ll want to aim for at least 30% aggression on every street, not just the flop, given the high c-bet rate. If you’re falling short, you might be missing out on value and should consider betting and raising more instead of just calling or checking back.
Essential Poker Statistics #12 RIVER CALL EFFICIENCY
This stat indicates how effectively you call on the river. A value below 1 suggests you call too many weak hands, while a value above 2 might mean you’re missing some calls and folding too much. To identify potential mistakes, focus on these situations in your tracking software. If you don’t have one, consider trying out a free trial of Poker Tracker 4.
Review hands where you call on the river with weak hands and see if you can find folds there. Additionally, look at spots where you fold to river bets and consider if you could make more calls.
How To Utilize The Above-mentioned Essential Post-flop Poker Statistics #6 to #12?
When someone makes a continuation bet (c-bet) after the flop, it can tell you a lot about their game. If they’re c-betting a lot, like more than 75% of the time, you can take advantage of that by raising them more often or by sticking around with decent hands. But if they hardly ever c-bet, watch out when they do, because they probably have a strong hand. You might only want to keep playing if you’ve got something good.
And then there are showdown stats. These can help you figure out when to bet for value. If someone goes to showdown a lot but doesn’t win much, it means they’re probably holding weak hands and paying off other players. In that case, you can bet even with weaker hands yourself. But be careful with players who rarely reach showdown but win a lot when they do. They probably have strong hands, so tread carefully when they’re still in the game.
You can also use these stats to tweak your own strategy. If you find you’re going to showdown too often (WTSD stat), try folding more often with weaker hands after the flop. And if you’re winning at showdown more than 66% of the time (W$SD stat), well, congratulations! You’re doing great, so keep it up!