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Flawless Poker
Galaxy Bot AcademyGetting Started With Poker Bot Programming
BEGINNER · 9 MIN READ · GETTING STARTED WITH POKER BOT PROGRAMMING

How a Bot Makes a Decision

Learning objectiveFollow one observation through validation, decision, and reply.

Understand the idea

Read the observation's hand, you, players, actions, and legal fields. Confirm that it is your turn. Compare the cost to call with the pot and your remaining stack. Consider position, cards, board, and previous betting only after a safe legal action is available.

A decision must fit the current legal flags. If checking is legal, it costs nothing. Calling pays the server-provided call amount. A bet or raise uses a total target amount, bounded by minTo and maxTo. The adapter wraps your chosen kind and optional to value with protocol and hand identifiers.

At the poker table

If legal.check is true, checking is safe. If legal.check is false and legal.call is true, you must decide whether paying legal.callAmount is worthwhile; check is not an option.

Code and decision sketch

Python
if legal.get('check'):
    action = {'kind': 'check'}
elif legal.get('call') and legal.get('callAmount', 0) <= 20:
    action = {'kind': 'call'}
else:
    action = {'kind': 'fold'}

Common mistake

Treating check and call as synonyms can produce illegal actions or spend chips unexpectedly.

Try it yourself

For a 30-chip pot and a 10-chip call, list the legal information your program needs before choosing.