Mel Baz

Mel Baz is a neuroscience researcher and clinical neurologist. He’s been playing poker for well over 20 years, and his favorite game to play is Pot Limit Omaha. Mel enjoys exploring the connections between poker strategy, medical decision making and brain function.

Asymmetric Indifference: When the human brain reward system meets Game Theory

By Mel Baz

December 28, 2025

Why does the same player who correctly folds to a river bet at $25/$50 call the identical spot at $1/$2? The answer reveals poker’s most exploitable edge: human decisions optimize brain reward, not chip EV. Brain Reward as Final Common Pathway Poker decisions emerge from two forces running in parallel. One is strategic calculation: pot […]