Does poker involve more luck, or skill?

[Peter Gazinya]

I've always thought the argument that Damon makes in Rounders is bogus, don't you? I simply don't buy that skill is the deciding factor in events such as the WSOP. Are there any dissenters on this matter? :dunno:

The WSOP broadcasts basically only show the huge hands where some guy dominates another with 2 Aces vs 2 Kings, or the hands where the flush draw hits the river and the guys sucks out on the other guy that flopped a set of 9s for a HUGE pot.

Those are about 5% of the hands in a poker tournament. What they don't show is the other 95% that involve simply making the best decisions about what you think you know about your opponent, his cards, his betting habits, his view of YOUR cards, and guts. Those hands are the nuts and bolts of the game. They're boring to watch and you'll never see them on TV.

 

[~~whimsy~~]

Are you saying TV would go as far as to make something that is otherwise boring to watch turn it into a entertaining spectacle?

Never! You, Peter Gazinya, need to take your heresy and leave this board!



NOW!

 

[anairhead999]

you need a little bit of both to be a good poker player

 

[Shifty]

Skill breeds luck in poker.

I'm by no means a stellar poker player, but I've come to understand that much.

 

[mr. jizz]

Luck, regardless if you know how to count cards, you still have to get a good hand while playing. If you keep getting shit cards, you're going to lose all night no matter how "skilled" you are.

 

[Shifty]

Luck, regardless if you know how to count cards, you still have to get a good hand while playing. If you keep getting shit cards, you're going to lose all night no matter how "skilled" you are.

/disagree

Once again, skill breeds luck.

Right Kenny?

 

[LaLiLuLeLohan]

I've always thought the argument that Damon makes in Rounders is bogus, don't you? I simply don't buy that skill is the deciding factor in events such as the WSOP. Are there any dissenters on this matter? :dunno:

Oh skill, definitely. Yeah, luck and odds can fuck any player, but hardcore players and pros play so often that skill dominates.

A) You learn how to read other players. That's a skill and you'd be surprised how well honed that skill is for some.

B)There's knowing your hands, seeing how others bet and weighing the risk. There's so much to it.

Let's say that you have two Aces (a heart and a club) and the there's a 3rd Ace (a spade) on the flop, what do you do?

What do you do when all the cards on the flop are spades..and there's 4 players? What do you do when the turn is also a spade?

Could you fold with three aces?

 

[STDiva]

Luck, regardless if you know how to count cards, you still have to get a good hand while playing. If you keep getting shit cards, you're going to lose all night no matter how "skilled" you are.

Skilled players win with bad hands. Lucky players win with good hands. Does 10,2 ring a bell to anybody? There is a reason the same players are always at the final table.

 

[fallacy]

Any professional poker player will tell you it is skill. The fact that you see a lot of the same people make it to the end of tournaments proves its skill.

 

[TaylorVixenFan]

i would say luck, because have no luck and i suck at poker.

 

[Rane1071]

Skill always helps of course, but even the most skillful player is sooner or later going to have a run of bad luck. So luck does count,... though you can argue over to what degree. :dunno:

 

[Bloodshot Scott]

you see a lot of the same people make it to the end of tournaments .

That's the whole point though...you don't see the same players at the the final tables. Maybe it's just me, but I think it's very rare to see the same faces at the final tables.

 

[CunningStunts]

Skill more than luck, but agree that anyone can get on a lucky streak and clean house sometimes.

 

[D-rock]

Any professional poker player will tell you it is skill. The fact that you see a lot of the same people make it to the end of tournaments proves its skill.

That's a bit deceptive all things considered, because only a relatively small pool of players either get invited to major tournaments or they are some of the only people that will constantly be willing pay enough to get into tournaments like that in the first place. I think their skill gives them a slight edge over mediocre players. However even if skill or luck is taken out of the equation it's not like there would be a pure random chance about who makes it out of all the world's poker players. Their previous fame and success lets them get into later events easier. Essentially, in a statistical way it ends up being a form of selection bias.

 

[DietCrush]

I'm not a big poker player but many of my friends are VERY into the game. I think you can't discount luck since it never hurts right Though poker is one of those games where you can win with a crap hand just knowing how to not only read what is going on with the cards, but also read the players. I would say skill plays the major part with luck being the minority

 

[maildude]

I'm gonna start an argument here, but who cares. I was just on FullTilt playing. People...a word of advice: when you're on a play money table, play like it's YOUR money. In other words, stop raising and raising and raising again with only your hold cards. You look stupid. Maybe playing intimidation luck poker with a pretend bankroll is your thing, but it ain't fun for most people, and it ain't seen on Poker After Hours.
Hell...even in THE tournaments the players play like it's their money, despite being bankrolled chips. Look at it this way: maybe playing like I suggest will give you an opportunity to learn how the game is really played--intelligently. Or maybe that's not your thing.