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The
chances of drawing any particular pair are 1 in 31; the odds against
this are 30 to 1. The reader should note the relationship between
frequency and odds. Also, note that when the adds are said to be
4 to 1 against an event or 1 to 4 on an event, these are different
ways of expressing the same thing-that there is a frequency of 1
in 5 of the event's happening.
One of the attractions of the game of poker is that it is based
on mathematical principles. Three of a kind beats two pairs because
the former is a rarer hand. These same mathematical principles can
be applied to the play of a hand to determine whether~ to stay or
fold, to bet or call. The odds and probabilities set out in this
chapter can be readily computed by anyone who understands the general
principles and method.
Every time you toss a coin, you have an equal chance of getting
a head or a tail. It does not matter that you have tossed the coin
ten times and gotten a head each time, your chances on the eleventh
toss are exactly the same-1 in 2. The odds are 1 to 1 against getting
either, or, in other words, your chances are even.
Similarly, when you receive your first card, your chances of getting
a deuce are exactly the same as your chances of getting an Ace:
1 in 13. The odds against getting any particular denomination therefore
are always 12 to 1 against. Of course, the chances of the second
card's being anything in particular are different, being governed
by the fact that certain cards have already been dealt and by the
fact that you have one of them and have knowledge of what it is.
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