May 2nd, 2009
There is a whole science in poker devoted to the art of reading "tells," the inadvertant giving away of one's hand to opponents. Almost every player has tells, some better hidden than others. It is your job not only to seek out the tells from your opponents, but to protect against their finding yours.
There is a psychological and emotional reaction to every stimulus and event that occurs at a poker table, and a resultant physical expression of that reaction. The reaction can be expressed in some form of body language—like a player shifting in his seat, leaning forward, or scratching his head, or in a small facial expression like a twitch or tightening of the eyes, or perhaps as a faint grimace. The body is all movement—unless you're playing a carcass.
Learning to read tells is a master science. If you pay careful attention to the goings on at a poker table, you may occassionally be able to pick up signs that will clue you in to a player's hand or possible reaction to a situation. For example, some players lose interest every time they're about to fold. Oth-ers feign a loss of interest and appear distracted when they hold monster hands.
A typical tell in beginning games is a player grabbing his chips when he's going to call a bet, even though the action is several players in front of him. Another is a player who watches the action more closely when he knows that he will be participating in the betting. There are literally thousands of tells available for you to take advantage of—and guard against. Players may hold their cards differently or wear a different expression when they're going to fold. Other players can scarcely contain their excitement when they're dealt a big hand, and they may express this in all sorts of obvious mannerisms— obvious, that is, if you're paying attention.
Look for vocal patterns and tones, the playing of chips, the holding of cards, facial expressions, or where an opponent's eyes go (to his chip stack or an opponent's, to the pot subconsciously counting the money they hope to win, to other players' eyes, or at least to those of the one they fear most). Notice the way a player sits, whether he speaks more or less than normal, or louder or softer, or bets with more aggression (bluffing?) or more meekly, or tosses chips so that they barely make it into the pot (disguising strength?)
Stay alert and watch what's going on. The patterns will emerge. Finding and using these tells is worth lots of money to the astute player. Having prior information on a player's intentions or an actual tipping off of an opponent's strength or weakness after he makes a bet is, needless to say, a huge advantage in poker.
At the same time as you search out tells in your opponents, you must protect against their finding yours. Learn to develop a "poker face," so that when you've got the groceries, you can fill the bag.
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