Generally speaking, being pot committed means having arrived at a point in a poker hand at which folding to any bet or raise has become an incorrect play. Such a situation is determined by pot odds. Everyone checked to Hero, who bet 3,300 into the 7,200 pot. While the small pre-flop 3-bet was a mistake, the small flop bet is ideal. Notice that if the bet gets called, the pot will be 13,800 and the remaining stacks will be 6,500, allowing for an easy 50% pot all-in on safe turns. “In poker, what does it mean when somebody is 'pot committed'?” It means that when someone raises you all-in (usually before the river), the amount of the call is too small relative to the size of the pot to correctly fold assuming you still ha. To understand the term 'pot committed' requires an understanding of poker terms in general. Here is one definition: A player is pot committed or committed if he has already invested so many chips in the pot that he can no longer fold if he is raised all-in. The linked site allows you to click on individual terms to know what they mean.
If you have played much poker at all, you have certainly heard the term “pot committed”, which essentially means that you have put so much money into the pot that you can no longer fold a hand that is almost certainly in bad shape against your opponent’s range. However, most players apply this incorrectly, often justifying calling off the rest of their chips while drawing nearly dead.
You should rarely set yourself up to be committed to a hand unless you are happy to get your money in. The way you make money in poker is by making correct decisions. If you consistently put yourself in neutral or losing situations for lots of money, you are gambling with a disadvantage, which you want to avoid if you think you are better than your opponents.
The worst use of the term “pot committed” is when you are on the river and make a bet with a strong, but non-premium hand, and your opponent raises, giving you excellent odds to call in a situation where he is almost certainly never bluffing.
Poker Pot Committed Definition Meaning
Suppose you get to the river with 7-4 on an A-4-2-7-K board. You bet 3,000 into a 4,000 pot and your opponent goes all-in for 4,400 total. You know your opponent would never bluff or raise with a made hand worse than A-2. You have to call 1,400 to win a pot of 11,400, meaning you need to win 11% of the time to break even, which seems like an excellent price. This is a spot where amateur players call every time, claiming they are pot committed, whereas in reality, they have an easy fold because they need to win at least 11% of the time and they are going to win 0% of the time.
This entire situation could have been avoided by going all-in for 4,400, betting 1,600 or checking the river. Thinking ahead about what is likely to happen on future betting rounds will allow you to make better decisions. Also notice that when you make a large bet on the river, if your opponent is still willing to go all-in, knowing he is giving you amazing pot odds, he must have an incredibly strong hand. If you needed to win 5% of the time instead of 11% in the example, you should probably call because your opponent may feel like he might as well put his entire stack in if he is going to put almost all of it in.
The other main situation where amateur players use the “pot committed” defense is on the flop or turn with a strong, but non-premium when getting good odds. Say you have A-10 on an A-J-5-9 board. You bet 2,000 into a 4,000 pot and your opponent raises to 4,000. You are confident that your opponent is a weak-tight player who will never bluff or overvalue a worse hand, making his range A-K and better. You have to call 2,000 to win a total pot of 12,000, meaning you need to win at least 17% of the time to make calling profitable. You also have to take into account whatever implied or reverse implied odds you may encounter on the river. You probably have reverse implied odds in this situation because you could be drawing dead against A-J or a set. If your opponent happens to have A-9 or A-5, you will likely get one more bet in, but even if you river a 10, you cannot be too happy. So, you are going to win around 9% of the time and you need to win 17% of the time to profit, making this an easy fold even though you have top pair with a decent kicker and are getting great odds.
Do not fall into the habit of making inferior plays simply because you know you are getting somewhat decent odds and your hand is normally strong. Always think about how your hand fares against your opponent’s range and how your hand will play on the future betting rounds, both if you improve or fail to improve. If you think ahead, you will find you can avoid numerous situations where you would feel pot committed with suboptimal play.
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The pot in poker refers to the sum of money that players wager during a single hand or game, according to the betting rules of the variant being played. It is likely that the word pot is related to or derived from the word jackpot.
At the conclusion of a hand, either by all but one player folding, or by showdown, the pot is won or shared by the player or players holding the winning cards. Sometimes a pot can be split between many players. This is particularly true in high-low games where not only the highest hand can win, but under appropriate conditions, the lowest hand will win a share of the pot.
Poker Pot Committed Definition Dictionary
See 'all in' for more information about side pots.
Poker Pot Committed Definition Sociology
See also[edit]
Poker Pot Committed Definition Synonyms
