Quick facts by PokerStrategy

  • WSD in poker shows how often a player wins when a hand goes to showdown.
  • WSD can provide you with an indication of your own play as well as your opponent’s tendencies.
  • A WSD percentage that is too low or too high suggests weaknesses in a player’s game.
  • WSD is most effective when combined with other poker HUD (Heads-Up Display) statistics.

What Is WSD in Poker?

WSD (Won at Showdown) is a poker HUD stat (tracked by poker software) that tells you the percentage of times a player won the pot when the cards were shown.

If you’re using an online poker tracking tool, WSD percentage can tell you about your own leaks and your opponent’s tendencies, especially when combined with other stats that give you a fuller picture.

Where You’ll See WSD in Poker

When using a poker HUD tool like Poker Tracker or Hold’em Manager, you’ll see many stats about players’ hands. One of these is Won at Showdown.

WSD is a secondary stat displayed by clicking the player’s stat box. It can also be set as a primary stat visible on screen during play. You can use the poker WSD stat both in-game and post-game analysis.

How WSD Is Calculated

Won at Showdown is a simple poker stat that is calculated using this formula, and it often comes into play when making decisions in games played on poker apps:

WSD = (Number of Showdowns Won / Number of Showdowns Reached) × 100

For example:

  • If you go to showdown 100 times and win 60 of them, your WSD is (60/100) × 100 = 60%.
  • If you go to showdown 460 times and win 220 of these, your WSD is (220/460) x 100 = 48%.

Why WSD Matters in Poker Strategy

Won at Showdown can give you indications about your own play. By looking at this poker HUD stats, you’ll be able to see if you are losing chips unnecessarily or generally winning your showdowns.

The poker WSD stat can also give you hints about your opponents’ tendencies. It tells you how strong the hands they take to showdown tend to be. This information can be used to make strategic adjustments, particularly when betting or calling in later betting rounds.

What Is a “Good” WSD Percentage

The WSD percentage of winning players is greater than 50 percent because they are winning more pots than they are losing. However, a very high WSD can actually suggest weak play.

Like pretty much everything in poker, WSD is all about balance:

  • Less than 50% WSD: A low WSD percentage suggests the player is losing more often than they are winning at showdown. This is an indication that they are either calling down with weak hands or bluffing too often.
  • 50–60% WSD: The player is winning more hands than they are losing at showdown. This is a balanced Win at Showdown percentage.
  • More than 60% WSD: A very high WSD in poker can also be a sign that the player only goes to showdown with very strong hands, which might make them predictable.

Sample Sizes & Variance in WSD

Before delving deeper into WSD strategy, you should always consider how many hands you have tracked. You’ll need tens or hundreds of hands to account for natural ups and downs in poker. With only a few hands, the data isn’t reliable enough to make decisions.

It’s far easier to gather data on preflop and flop data than it is to get a relevant sample size on a showdown poker stat like WSD. This is because not many hands actually reach the showdown.

You can start to see patterns in your own WSD after a few sessions, but you’ll need lots of hands to use it effectively against other players.

Using WSD in Practice: Strategic Adjustments

Here’s a practical guide to the strategic adjustments you can make against opponents based on their WSD poker stat:

  • WSD too low: Usually, when your opponent’s WSD is low, it’s because they call too light and make it to showdown with weak hands. In this case, you should value bet more frequently and thinner to extract the maximum. Players with a low WSD may also bluff too often, allowing you to widen your bluff catching range on the river.
  • WSD too high: When someone’s WSD is exceptionally high, they are usually folding weak hands before showdown. This means you can often make them fold anything except their strongest hands by the river. You can bluff more often when calling with a tighter, more selective range.
  • Combine with other stats: When looking at a player’s WSD percentage, you should always combine this with other stats that you have available to build a more accurate and actionable profile.

How WSD Interacts with Other Stats

To get the most out of WSD in poker, you’ll want to combine it with other stats to get a well-rounded view of what your opponents are actually up to.

WSD can be combined with pretty much any stat, but here are the most crucial that you need to know:

  • Went to Showdown (WTSD): This shows you how often a player made it to showdown after seeing the flop. A high WTSD combined with a low WSD suggests a very loose, losing style. A low WTSD with a high WSD shows tightness.
  • Won $ at Showdown (W$SD): W$SD is a similar stat to WSD, apart from it shows the $ amount won or lost. Even with a low WSD percentage, a high W$SD can show that a player is capable of extracting value for big hands or making hero calls.
  • Win Rate: Shows you the overall win rate of a player across both showdown and non-showdown hands. If someone has a low WSD but a high win rate, they could be excellent at winning pots earlier in the hand but have some postflop leaks on later streets.
  • Aggression Factor (AF): Aggression factor shows the ratio of bets or raises to checks or calls postflop. A high AF and high WSD suggest they are aggressive and capable of folding when losing hands. A low AF and low WSD suggest they are a calling station.
  • Other stats: You can combine WSD with more specific stats to spot leaks. For example, if someone has high Fold to River Bet (FTRB) and low WSD, they fold too often on the river, making them very easy to bluff.

8 Tips to Improve Your Own WSD in Poker

As well as exploiting opponents, you can also improve your poker strategy by studying your own WSD in poker and how it relates to the mistakes you are making.

If your WSD percentage is too low, consider:

  1. Playing tighter from the early position to avoid entering pots with weak starting hands.
  2. Tightening up calling ranges on turn and river so you are not paying off with marginal hands.
  3. Avoid chasing draws when you are not getting the correct pot odds.
  4. Improving hand reading skills by considering focusing on factors like board texture, ranges, and opponent type.

If your WSD percentage is way higher than it should be, it’s likely that you are missing opportunities to bet or call. Consider:

  1. Loosening up your mid-to-late position to enter more pots with playable hands.
  2. Call continuation bets and turn bets slightly wider when the board and ranges justify it.
  3. Looking for more “thin value” opportunities – betting with medium-strength hands when your opponent is likely to call with worse.
  4. Calling more often on the river when your opponent has enough bluffs in their range.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is a good WSD percentage in poker?

A solid, balanced WSD poker stat is around 50-60 percent, or a little higher in weak games where you have a huge edge. If your WSD is too high, this can imply that you are playing overly tight and missing spots.

What is the difference between WSD and WTSD?

Won at Showdown (WSD) is the percentage of times that you won the pot at showdown. Went to Showdown (WTSD) is the percentage of time that a player goes to showdown after seeing the flop.

If my WTSD is high but WSD is low, what should I do?

A combination of a high Went to Showdown (WTSD) and low Won at Showdown (WSD) suggests you are playing way too many hands, calling bets too light, or making badly timed bluffs. You’ll need to learn when to fold.

What are the average WSD ranges by stake level?

Generally, you’ll want your WSD in poker to be above 50 percent, so that you are winning more pots than you are losing at showdown. A range of 50-60 percent is typical for a winning player at their stakes.