Expected Value

I have often heard, as I am sure you have, that poker is just a game, money is how we keep score. I wouuld like you to entertain a new thought I have had about this phrase, and I term it "Expected Value". When I go to the grocery store, I look at the meat in the case and select the cut that for me gives the best value for the money spent. Sometimes it is a porterhouse steak, sometimes it is hamburger, but whatever it is, I look to get the best package there for the money I spend. The same is true when I shopped for my van, I looked at several before I ended up buying one, and the reason I chose it was simply that for the money spent I didn't think i could do any better than the one I bought, and I am sure I was right, as I love it !

Poker has a term "value bet" that we are all familiar with, meaning we bet the precise amount we think our oponent will call to pay off our winning hand, this amount is every chip that we think he will call. There is no real way to know for sure if they would call more, and if they fold, then we overbet, however we are usually pleased with the outcome as long as we win the hand in question.

Expected Value is just exactly what I get for the money I put into the game. It is not dependent on if I win or lose, but everything that surrounds playing as well. If I buy into a ring game at a casino for $300 and play for 8 hours and get up with $299 then did I lose ? NO, I didn't lose, I gained the knowledge learned about the other oponents, might have learned a new play from one of them, and most assuradly I had a good time for that 8 hours. For it to cost me a dollar to sit there and play a game that I love, is such a small price to pay, considering that when I sat down with $300 in front of me at a no limit table, I was essentially risking it all.

We take a lot more away from the tables than just chips to the cashiers cage. The entertainment value alone for 8 hours of play would be eaisaly assessed at $300 if it was compared to a sporting event such as a NASCAR race, or Tickets to 8 hours worth of Rock & Roll concerts, or almost anything else you can name to fill in that blank. I see a lot of recreational players in the casinos that just want to play and have fun doing it, they risk their money more than is adviseable, yet therein lies the fun for them. The money lost to most of these players is a fair and just price, to them, for the entertainment they recieved, and the distraction from everyday life that sitting at the table afforded them.

I believe that if we have an Expected Value in mind when we play, that concerns money, entertainment, distraction, and self satisfaction, then we can view winning , or losing chips and essentially real money, in a new light. None of us mind paying for the things we enjoy, and why would we think that paying to play poker should be any different. I know we would all like to be profitable in our play, but that just isn't the reality of the situation. Losing more than we can afford would be plain stupid, but if it costs us a little bit of money to play poker, isn't it worth it ? The Value we Expect to get from investing our time and money does NOT need to be measured in money won only, but should include what we actually got in return in the form of distraction from our problems. the entertainment, and friendships and fellowship we enjoyed while playing.

I would like to think that we as Railbirds have an Expected Value that goes beyond mere counting of money at the end of the day, rather our assesment includes all of the other things we gained as well along the way. I never made a lot of money playing in the Railbirds Freerolls, but I developed some friendships that are priceless to me, and learned how to better my game, as well as got to help some others to understand the game better as well, not to metion the untold hours I killed playing. The Value I recieved from playing in these tournaments far exceeded the expection I had when I started playing here.

The next time you have had a losing session at the tables, think about this blog and take a moment to visualize just what you did get for your time and money, it should somewhat be similar to eating that porterhouse steak I bought earlier, or at the very least, munching on a hamburger, you definatly got something back in return that has nothing to do with the money end of it ...Your Expected Value isn't just about the money ! It should include the whole package!

........play on .............Tc...................