Most online poker players are making use of software when playing. Even recreational players have heads up displays (HUDs) that track real time stats when they play online. It’s almost essential for anyone who plays more than one table at a time as it reveals key information about your opponents and yourself too that will assist in decision making. But what are the most important stats to watch out for? We answer that question in this post.
VPIP %
Otherwise known as “voluntarily put in pot” is a statistic that shares the overall percentage of hands a player plays. This metric is important as it will provide insight into how often a player is entering the pot voluntarily. In poker, we need to know the types of opponents we are facing and by understanding how many hands they tend to play, we can rule out certain types of hand from their range. Conversely, if they play loads of hands, we can’t narrow it down quite as simply even at a trusted online casino Malaysia.
PFR %
This stat means “pre-flop raise” percentage, it sheds light on the percentage of hands a player raises before the flop. Like the VPIP stat, it is important as it will clue you into how active and aggressive your opponent is. A player with a low PFR can be considered passive before the flop and someone with a high PFR is potentially overly aggressive or playing a loose aggressive style.
3-Bet %
Lastly, this stat is all about how often your opponent is re-raising before the flop. This is known as a 3-bet. It’s a very aggressive action and truthfully, anyone with over 15% is playing wildly. Most tight aggressive regulars will have between 7 and 10% as their 3 bet stats. It’s important to mix in some creative 3-betting to avoid being predictable. For instance, if your opponent has a 3-bet stat of under 5%, you can reasonably assume they are only 3-betting the very best hands.
A final comment on these metrics is that sample size is important. If you the stats are over a very small number of hands e.g. under 500, then you can’t draw final conclusions.
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