Poker

Pot Committed

Definition

A situation where you have already invested so much of your stack in the pot that folding would be mathematically incorrect. As a rule of thumb, if you've committed more than one-third of your stack, you're often pot committed.

Being pot committed means you have already invested so much of your stack in a pot that folding would be mathematically incorrect. As a rough guideline, if you have invested more than one-third of your stack, you should seriously consider going all-in rather than folding.

The concept is based on pot odds. If the pot is $300 and you have $100 remaining, you are getting 3 to 1 odds on a call. You only need to win 25% of the time for calling to be profitable. Most hands have at least 25% equity, making a fold incorrect.

To avoid becoming pot committed with weak hands, think ahead before entering a pot. Consider how much money you might need to invest across multiple betting rounds. If the potential commitment represents a large portion of your stack, either commit fully from the start or do not enter the hand.

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Related Terms

Pot Odds

In poker, the ratio between the current pot size and the cost of a call. If the pot is $100 and you must call $20, your pot odds are 5:1. Compare pot odds to your hand's equity to make mathematically correct decisions.

All-In

Betting all of your remaining chips in a single wager. In no-limit poker, any player can go all-in at any time. If you can't match a bet, you go all-in for what you have and are only eligible for the portion of the pot you've contributed to.