The Weekly PokerNews Strategy Quiz: Playing with a Shot Clock

04-23-2016 74212 responses Top results

The World Poker Tour Tournament of Champions playing out this weekend is employing something called an Action Clock — that is, a “shot clock” (so to speak) giving players exactly 30 seconds to act. Players are given four 30-second time extensions to use if needed, but otherwise every check, bet, call, raise, or fold has to be performed within the 30-second time limit.

Click here to read about players’ initial reactions to the introduction of the Action Clock.

In the spirit of acting quickly, we’ll dispense with the rest of the preliminaries and get right to today’s installment of The Weekly PokerNews Strategy Quiz. In fact, the quiz itself is meant to be taken quickly, consisting of eight short questions about pot odds, outs, and relative hand values.

The quiz isn’t timed, although if you complete it and then check out the “Top Results,” you’ll see the standings are ordered by how quickly players were able to finish. If you don’t have one already, click here to create a PokerNews account, and you’ll see your name listed, too.

Okay, we’re wasting time. The clock is ticking... go!

*Photo courtesy of the WPT.

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Start Quiz

Question 1

There's 8,500 in the middle, the board reads Ac-Kd-4s-7h, and you have Jh-Ts. Assuming you need to hit a queen to make a Broadway straight to win the hand, do you have good enough immediate pot odds to call when your opponent bets 1,500?

Question 2

Say in the above hand the board was Ac-Kh-4s-7h and you had Jh-Th. How many outs would give you either a straight or flush?

Question 3

If you’re all in and at risk with Ah-Qs and get called by Ad-Kc, what are your chances of survival?

Question 4

It’s the first level of a tournament (blinds 50/100, no ante). You’re in the big blind and watch the cutoff raise to 200. Both the button and small blind call. What are your immediate pot odds to call as well?

Question 5

You shove all in with As-Ad on a Ah-9c-2h-4h board. Your opponent calls and turns over Kh-Qh. You’re behind to his flush, but how many outs do you have that will win you the pot?

Question 6

In a preflop all-in between 6c-6h and As-Ks, which hand is a slight statistical favorite?

Question 7

In which case do you have the most outs?

Question 8

Time’s almost up... if a player bets half the pot, what are your immediate pot odds to call?