Learn Texas Holdem

If you're going to play poker professionally, or even as a profitable hobby, you're going to want to know your win rate. Your win rate is simply how much you make per hour playing poker. Calculating your win rate in no-limit Texas hold'em is fairly straightforward, but there are some traps to consider.

Calculating Texas Hold'em Win Rate Basics

The basic win rate calculations is simply how much you have won divided by how many hours you have played. If you played for five hours and won $100, your win rate for that session is $20 per hour. What you really want to know is your overall win rate, so you need to combine the amount you have won over all your sessions (since you started recording) divided by your total profit in poker.

Poker Win Rate in BB/hr

Poker players calculate their win rates not in straight dollar values, but in BB or big blinds per hour. In the above example, if you won your money playing $3/$5 blinds no-limit Texas hold'em, your win rate for the session would be 4 BB/hr. The reason the calculation is done this way is because it gives a more accurate assessment of your strength. For example, Player A wins $300 over five hours in a $3/$5 no-limit hold'em game, so his win rate is $60 hour. Player B wins $2000 over five hours in a $25/$50 no-limit game so his win rate is $400 an hour. Clearly, $400 is better than $60. However, expressed in big blinds, Player A has won 12 BB/hr, whereas Player B has won only eight BB/hr. Player A is more successful and his smaller per hour money rate is simply a reflection of being in a smaller game. If Player A can transfer his skills successfully to the $25/$50 game, he will make more money than Player B. Of course, it is possible that that game will be tougher for Player A and his win rate will go down.

Win Rate Traps in No-Limit Texas Hold'em

No-limit Texas hold'em is a game with a great deal of variance. Two or three sessions will probably not give you an accurate assessment of your win rate. "Forgetting" to include one or two losing sessions can skew your win rate wildly. When calculating win rates, remember to be complete and honest in your record keeping to create a true picture of your ability.