|
by Al Sousa (site owner)
In this article I will outline a basic ideas for identifying behavior patterns on players. This is not a substitute for the excellent books that are out there on the subject. My recommendation is that after you read this article to buy copies of the following books. They are very detailed in tells, body language, behavior of poker players, and how your state of mind should be at a poker game.
Live poker is more about people than many give credit for. Some more mathematically oriented players would say that psychology is a small part of the game, others don't understand how to use it at all. If only a single psychological advantage vs one opponent is helpful in a critical situation during a tournament, it justifies learning them all.
90% rule: While most players will follow the most common behavior patterns this does not mean it will be true for all players. One player might perform one action meaning one thing while another does the same action meaning another thing. You should be perceptive to identify the small differences in each player.
Thinking Critically: When identifying behavior patterns in others think about why they would perform the behavior when in a certain situation or how all the factors interact to set a baseline for their behavior. Simply assigning X answer to Y behavior is not enough. There are always factors that adjust what you are noticing.
Who gives off tells and who doesn't? Everyone does but each person is different based on many factors. Amateurs will give off more tells than an professional player will, and professionals may also give off fake or reverse tells.
What to look for when arriving at your table: Here are are some simple things to look for at a table so you can get a baseline of behaviors on players.
Money: Players that are under bank rolled for their stakes give off more tells than those that are properly bank rolled due to stress of losing money. In some cases those with too much money, people that are rich, don't care if they lose or win. If you find them playing poorly their tells will be abundant because if they lack the discipline to learn how to play poker skillfully then they lack the discipline to manage their own emotions.
Appearance: How we dress ourselves usually reflects how who we are. Usually more vibrant colors, flashy apparel reveals a more gambling natured opponent. Those that neat and conservative are a more tighter in control opponent, but this is not a measure of their skill level.
Personality: Those that like to chat at the table, have an outgoing personality will generally be more emotional players and probably a looser type player. They will tend toward relying on intuition, reads, and thus will give off more tells. Players that are quiet tend to show their behavior patterns in more subtle ways will lean toward a more mathematically based decision process.
Emotional State: Players are more likely to give off accurate behavior when in an emotional state then when in a calm state. Being excited, upset, or sad amplifies their behavior.
Organization: Usually the more organized a player is the more conservative they are in life. Things like how they stack their chips or if its a long tournament how they have their bag packed with everything they need (also a sign of someone who plays long tournaments a lot).
Listen: Pay attention to their idle chit-chat. What are they talking about? Some might be sharing life experiences, others about distress, some even talking about previous hands. All this gives you information on their play and their motives.
How do the above fit together? This is where you take time and think critically about the players. Synthesis all the information to form a baseline for their behavior so you have something to start with. A lot of times you can easily determine if they have some type of competence at the game simply by watching and listening.
Example: You come to the table of a 1/2 ($200 buy in) no limit game and find all the players there to be tourists except two. Both of these players are young men in their 20's. One of them has nice clothing, wearing semi-dark sunglasses, a simple gold neck chain, and an open chest long sleeve shirt. He has a double full stack of chips in front of him organized in several wide short stacks that expand away from his edge of the table making it a little difficult to navigate his cards. He seems relaxed at the table leaning back in his chair chatting it up with his friend. They are talking about a hand that apparently just happened from the player you are now replacing. "On the flop I just knew he didn't have it, no one check raises that much and doesn't have a draw. That's why I called his huge all in check raise with my jacks." You sit down and notice its your big blind and you post.
Looking at this from my personal experience I can make some assumptions about our young friend here to form a baseline to his behaviors. He seems confident, feels comfortable at the table, is winning, and is not scared of gambling. He is dressed nicely with a little show revealing he is confident in the way he looks and feels. He is in a good mood and having a good night. His wide stacks on the table seem to be reflecting his ego. Its the largest sized in appearance. His conversation with his friend reveals some about his play. He doesn't like to be bluffed and might stack off with an overpair or top pair in many cases. His reads are based on his intuition not mathematical play it seems.
While this is perhaps a little of an extreme example it serves its purpose for understanding the processes you should be going through when arriving at a table. Inside the Poker Mind details this kind of information a lot better than I have here.
One of the best things I discovered to categorize behavior in others is to be introspective about my own behavior. All humans have the same emotions and we all react with the same feelings to different stimulus. If you can find the behavior patterns in yourself then you will be better able to identify them in others.
Next is impulsive tells
|
(Phil Hellmuth, Navarro)