Hiding Tells

Wednesday, 17. July 2013

Do you ever get that itch? The itch to bet, to head to the nearest casino, to uncover a superior stakes casino game of Hold’em, to sit at a Twenty-one table for hours on end. I love that itch. And I love to scratch it.

I also love to watch individuals gamble. No two poker faces seem identical. When I gamble I like to believe I put on a poker face which is impassable. But I know I have certain gestures. For 1, the only time I smoke is when I wager on poker or Twenty-one. And then I chain smoke. Except I smoke regardless of whether I am winning or losing, no matter whether I have a beneficial hand or bad.

I once bet within a weekly poker game. The game was often 5 card draw. There was a guy who played with us each week who often wore a hat. When he was dealt a beneficial hand, subconsciously, he would begin touching and playing with his hat. Needless to say, he by no means won.

The very best poker player I ever saw was a man who produced additional movements and gestures at a poker table than anyone I had ever met. He was impressive in the way he dressed. Often an high-priced suit and tie, shoes shined and nails manicured. He was meticulous in this manner. And he was generally brushing his pant leg or holding his hands or putting his chips in neat little piles.

I use to study him for long periods of time. I would attempt to see if I could notice his tell. Selecting fuzz off his jacket- did this mean he was bluffing? Arranging his chips in a short pile – did this mean he had a beneficial hand?

Many years later I bumped into him inside a bar in Vegas and we had a beverage. I asked him if he had been aware of all those motions he created or if they had been unconscious. He told me that each and every individual thing he did at a poker table was deliberate. He said that everybody is constantly checking out everybody else’s poker face. They are attempting to spot the the tell.

So his program was to give them lots to consider about. His thinking was if they had been pondering about him picking a piece of lint off his shirt and what it meant they certain weren’t thinking about their cards.

His system was distraction. And it worked for him. In no way give up a process that works for you.

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