What a four-way stop expresses is the equality of the drivers who meet there. It doesn’t matter what you drive. For it to work, no deference is required, no self-denial. Precedence is all that matters, like a water right in Wyoming. Except that at a four-way stop on the streets of Rancho Cucamonga everyone gets to take a turn being first.

The underlying theme here is nothing less than the importance of  rational games playing to a functioning society. As poker players, we tend to focus on game theory’s competitive applications in zero-sum situations, but game theory is equally as applicable to cooperative interactions that realize non-zero-sum benefits. (For more on this subject, see my review of Robert Wright’s Nonzero.)

In fact, I just record a video for Poker Savvy Plus yesterday in which I used traffic lights as an example of a Nash Equilibrium. The really remarkable thing about the four-way stop is that it is largely self-governing, as opposed to the traffic light, where drivers obey orders from (literally) on high. Yes, there are rules for how to behave at a four-way stop, but their application in a particular situation are almost always left to the individual judgment of the drivers. There is no flashing light or other signal to tell you when it is your turn and when you must defer.

Yet it works, and traffic flows. Contrast this with the roundabout, which is nasty and brutish, if not solitary or short.

]]> http://www.thinkingpoker.net/2010/03/after-you/feed/ http://www.thinkingpoker.net/2010/03/the-re-squeeze-2/ http://www.thinkingpoker.net/2010/03/the-re-squeeze-2/#comments Wed, 10 Mar 2010 03:34:20 +0000 foucault http://www.thinkingpoker.net/?p=4402 A commenter on yesterday’s re-squeeze hand remarked that even at high stakes he felt like Villain would pretty much always have AK when he overcalled the first pre-flop raise and then shoved over a re-raise and a call. Having just played this hand, I couldn’t resist posting it:

PokerStars No-Limit Hold’em, $4.00 BB (6 handed) - Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

SB ($400)
BB ($400)
UTG ($385.80)
MP ($484.40)
CO ($515.90)
Hero (Button) ($421.90)

Preflop: Hero is Button with K, 10
2 folds, CO bets $12, Hero calls $12, SB raises to $52, 1 fold, CO calls $40, Hero raises to $421.90 (All-In), 2 folds

Total pot: $160 | Rake: $0

Results:
Hero didn’t show K, 10.
Outcome: Hero won $160

Granted I wasn’t an overcaller, which means I can rep a monster more credibly, but then the pot’s also a lot smaller, meaning my risk: reward ratio is greater and I shouldn’t be light as often.

PokerStars No-Limit Hold’em, $20.00 BB (6 handed) - Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

SB ($2000)
Hero (BB) ($2000)
UTG ($1890)
MP ($1370)
CO ($2000)
Button ($2107)

Preflop: Hero is BB with A, Q
UTG bets $60, MP calls $60, CO calls $60, 2 folds, Hero raises to $300, 1 fold, MP calls $240, CO raises to $2000 (All-In), Hero calls $1700 (All-In), 1 fold

Flop: ($4370) Q, 6, 5 (2 players, 2 all-in)

Turn: ($4370) 4 (2 players, 2 all-in)

River: ($4370) 6 (2 players, 2 all-in)

Total pot: $4370 | Rake: $3

Results:
Hero had A, Q (two pair, Queens and sixes).
CO had J, J (two pair, Jacks and sixes).
Outcome: Hero won $4367

Full Tilt No-Limit Hold’em, $80.00 BB (5 handed) - Full-Tilt Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

BB ($5680)
UTG ($20005)
Hero (MP) ($8120)
Button ($11344.55)
SB ($16116)

Preflop: Hero is MP with Q, Q
1 fold, Hero bets $240, 1 fold, SB raises to $880, 1 fold, Hero raises to $1888, SB raises to $16116 (All-In), Hero calls $6232 (All-In)

Flop: ($16320) A, J, 3 (2 players, 2 all-in)

Turn: ($16320) 4 (2 players, 2 all-in)

River: ($16320) 9 (2 players, 2 all-in)

Total pot: $16320 | Rake: $3

Results:
SB had 10, 10 (one pair, tens).
Hero had Q, Q (one pair, Queens).
Outcome: Hero won $16317