ICM explenation

[Codearmani]

Hi.

I am beginning to use the ICM calculator, and trying to understand it fully.

What are the ICM calculation based on? Hand strength - Stack size - Tournament equity - Fold equity - Ranges? (or any other) And how does ICM calculator get ex. fold equity, (if that is used)

How accurate is the ICM calculations that ICM by default chooses for me? Does ICM look at the hud stats to give an estimated guess on the villain range?

Excatly what does push equity % and fold equity % mean. I know what i should do with it, but what does it mean?

Thanks in advance.

[Codearmani]

Also..

ICM in pokertracker 4 is not only for bubble play right? It can be used in any given hand SNG 6-max Hyper Turbo?

What factors do i need to consider to be better at knowing my ICM at the tables and in the quiz? What factors comes into count?

[kraada]

ICM is only for use at the final table. The ICM Equity values are just how much of the prize pool you are "entitled to" using the model. That's all you'll really see using the ICM Calculator itself.

In the replayer and the quiz, we also show expected results on push and fold ranges. To do this, we have to also use player models - that is, models that assign ranges for various plays to the players at the table. You can see these models in detail in the Configure -> ICM Opponent Models area (they are completely configurable, but to do so in detail is not a small task). You can also change these models at the table by assigning tight or loose ranges to your opponents and then they will match those models and you'll see the push/fold values.

The quick way to see how these two interact is to do a one hand quiz and when you get your results, click on the green ICM box and then Results. You'll see buttons for Average in a bunch of spots - those are what you can change to change the model used (and you'll see the other model options there). You can also assign manual ranges by clicking the button in the Range column, if you prefer to do things that way.

[Codearmani]

So you dont take fold equity into account when using ICM replayer, but still it is very accurate about what is the best choice right?

i play SNG Hyper Turbo 6-max, so it will work all the time for me right?

What factors do i need to consider to be better at knowing my ICM when playing live at the tables and in the quiz?

[kraada]

The ICM calculator takes all push or fold options into account, so fold equity is included in that. You do need to consider that our ICM calculations are limited to push and fold decisions only - calling and playing flops adds such complexity that it's not something we can add at this time.

[Codearmani]

Yes and hyper turbo SNG 6-max there is almost only Push/fold situations, so thats why i said i can use it almost always in my situation. I just wanted to know what excatly the calculator factors are, so that i can become better at spotting the best push/fold spots when playing online. Which factors do i need to consider? Players, stacks, equity, hand equity ? Or what.

[kraada]

ICM looks at stacks and assigns a value in real dollars to those tournament chips. Then our player models look at the actions the players would take (according to the model) to see if your stack would go up or down depending on your action.

So I'd say you'd want to pay attention to: stack size, player tendency (what kinds of ranges will they go all in with in what spots), tournament situation (how many get paid, how many remain, what are the other stacks of the players around the table, etc.), and what your actual hand is. At least, that's where I'd start.

[TexPete]

very nice explanation, ty