To paraphrase Phil Helmuth’s famous quote, “If luck wasn’t involved, I would win every time.” To unwrap it a bit, probability theory’s law of large numbers tells us that when there is an inside straight draw (only one of four cards in the deck can complete the straight), there is approximately an 8% possibility on the turn, even less on the river. However, that number is not zero. The “success” card will appear once every 92 times and that’s where selective memory kicks in. We will remember, more often, that result, not when your opponent misses. In turn, that hot mess leads to all of the bad beat stories you’ve ever heard.
By Howard Hian