Quote from the1:
Most traders think if you have a 4 point target and a 2 point loss your risk/reward is 2:1. Nothing could be farther from the truth.
(Presuming u simply made a semantics error and meant to say "reward/risk" is 2:1)
Really? So then what is the reward/risk under this scenario? Surely if u say it isn't 2:1, u must know what it is then? Conversely and even better yet-- define what a 2:1 reward/risk looks like based target/stop...?
In a random environment how could one know which will occur first or even if the 4 point move will occur at all.
One can't... every trade is unique in and of itself... regardless of what that same setup did the previous time or what probabilities say-- uncertainty exists on every trade. However this fact is a moot point... it has nothing to do whatsoever with risk/reward calculation.
And then there's the frequency of which way the market will go.
What's your point?
Also, since you have a 2 point stop, relative to a 4 point target isn't it easy to realize the 2 point stop will get hit more frequently than the 4 point target? It comes down to relative proximity...
Proximity itself has nothing whatsoever to do with it. Probabilities based on the setup will dictate what has a higher chance of occurring-- if an edge exists, over a statistically meaningful sample size the 2 point stop will get hit LESS frequently. Conversely however that stop loss will indeed hit more frequently if trading a low probability set up.
...so a 4 pt target with a 2 pt stop absolutely does not offer you a risk/reward of 2:1
Correct-- based on "risk/reward" it is 1:2.
Stops are grossly misunderstood...
Based on your understanding... I'd say that's quite true...