Amazing Colossal

One of the key skills most good poker players have is the ability to read their opponents at the table. That is why you hear so much about “poker tells. A poker tell is any clue, habit, behavior or physical reaction, that gives other players more information about your hand. If you can accurately read your opponent’s tells, you’ll make the right decisions against them more often and win more money or even bluff them as well.

The following is a list of some of the most common poker tells.

Shaking Hands

During a hand, if you notice a player’s hands are shaking as she places her bet, she probably has gotten a really, really good hand. This is very common for newer poker players. It occurs when the player bets. There hand will shake when they put their chips out. This is not an intentional tell and it almost always means a huge hand. They have hit big and are excited.

Facial Expression

Again, many pros try to disguise their entire face by wearing a cap and looking downward. This is to avoid the classic stare-down that poker pros are famous for. They may try to study your face for nervousness (detecting a weak hand), or even look for repetitive characteristics like a body “tic”. You may have obvious unhappiness in your face when your hand is weak, and conversely, you may show a contrasting show of confidence when your hand is strong.

Checking Their Hole Cards

This occurs most often in Texas Holdem when a flop comes out the entire same suit. The player checks their hole cards. They are checking to see if one of their cards matches the suit on the board. It usually means that their cards aren’t suited, and that they do not have the flush… but they may well have a flush-draw. Typically, the player is looking to see if one of his cards is connecting, because he remembers only that the two cards are different suits.

Body Posture/Attitude

Some players show obvious changes in their posture based on their attitude/hand strength. For instance, you may notice their shoulders drop/slump when they are not confident (weak hand). Conversely, you may notice the player is very attentive and sitting in an erect position when he has strength. You may also notice that a player who bluffs a lot, leans forward in a confrontational way… remember Strong is Weak!

Checking Their Chips

This is another very common poker tell. Right after the flop, a player glances down at their chips. It’s very quick and subtle… to catch it, you have to be watching the players eyes right when the flop comes out. It means they connected. This may be a subconscious reaction, but the tell is the player is already planning his attack!

Asking for Clarification

Anytime you hear a poker player ask the dealer for clarification, it usually means they have a big hand. Questions like “My bet?”, “How much is it to me?”, or “What’s the bet?” usually indicate a strong hand.

Anxiety

Anxiety typically occurs in people when they are confronted, or anticipating confrontation. Psychologists call this the “Fight or Flight” stimulus response, which links back to the days when we were cavemen/cavewomen. In poker, when someone has a big hand they are typically ready for confrontation and can exhibit some physical changes like flexing of muscles, eye pupil dilation, palpitating heart rate, dry throat, chest expanding abnormally, or the player’s voice become slightly higher as he makes a comment. During a bluff, the player may demonstrate anxiety, but if he knows he will fold the hand if re-raised (non-confrontational end) may look quite comfortable.

Holding Breath

Often, inexperienced players will hold their breath if they are bluffing.

Taking a Long Time before Calling a Bet

If a player looks into the pot and seems to be doing some calculating in his head, he probably is. He’s most likely figuring out the pot odds to see if it’s worth it to try and catch the cards he needs to complete his drawing hand.

Watch the Eyes

This is why many pros wear sunglasses or visors/caps when playing; they know that the eyes rarely lie. For example, many players can’t help but stare at big hole cards, so their length of time peeking is longer. Conversely, if a player is looking to steal the pot, he may look to his left to see if the remaining players, who haven’t yet acted, have quickly glanced at their cards and are likely to fold. Another example, a player may try to ask you questions about your hand, knowing that people rarely can “look someone straight in the eyes” while being dishonest.

Remember, in poker there are many contradictions and exceptions to these rule. Also, experienced pros will give out false tells to fool players. Each player has a unique set of tells, and these will certainly not apply to everybody. As a general rule in online poker, remember that when a player acts strong, he’s probably weak, and when a player acts weak, he’s probably got a really strong hand.