Live Action Tells Poker Tells

2) It’s hard to control facial expressions. Many people have more expressive faces than they give themselves credit for. It takes a lot of practice and self-control to master a true ‘poker face’. When the cards are first dealt out, people usually mirror their hands in their faces. A sour or angry expression will showcase a pretty poor hand and a smile usually means a monster starting hand.

3) Most players act strong when they’re weak and weak when they’re strong. They’re deliberately trying to throw you off. A show of weakness could be sitting forward in the chair or peeking at the hole cards often as if the player forgot what she had. Shows of strength include sitting back in the chair (the further back she sits, the bigger the hand) and pretending to look disinterested.

4) Watch what you – and your - opponents say. Chatty players are trying to extract information. Avoid eye contact when answering them too. A player who chats a lot is either a poor player or a very skillful one. Be on the alert and pay attention without saying too much.

5) Chip games. Watch how an opponent plays with her chips. People who check their chips are usually figuring out how much to bet and can be dangerous. When you first sit down, see how players stack their chips too. Many sources say that a player who is loose/weak will stack their chips in a disorganized manner while a player who strong/tight will be quite organized.

Of course, there are other tells than these and you will find so many more as you start to study players while you play. If you watch the eyes, face, actions and chips, well, you’ll be on your way to pro-type play and greater success in any live games you play.

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