In This Chapter

Understanding the psychology of poker
Reading an opponent
Spotting bluffs

Poker is a brilliant blend of strategy and psychology - there is really nothing else like it. When compared with strategy, however, how important is psychology in poker? Well, you can beat poker without understanding psychology, but you can't beat poker without understanding strategy.
Therefore, it's important to learn the fundamentals first. But wait! Now we're going to say something that - at first - seems to be contradictory:
Psychology can account for the majority of profit you will ever make in poker! That statement is true because affer you master the fundamentals of poker, you're most of the way to becoming a good player as far as strategy goes. Sure, you can improve, but the difference between excellent strategy and perfect strategy won't put that much extra cash in your wallet or purse - unless you happen to be playing against all worldclass opponents, which we don't recom- mend. What will put extra cash in your wallet or purse is getting inside your opponents' heads and making them call you when you have the best hand. In this chapter, you find out about one extremely powerful aspect of poker psychology called tells. What's that? Tells are telltale signs from which you can determine, for example, whether or not your opponent is bluffing - just by noting her mannerisms at the moment. Watch your opponent's body lan- guage and listen for verbal clues, and you'll often know with surprising accu- racy what cards your opponent is holding.
So, first, you need to decide if your opponent is acting. If so, determine what that opponent is trying to get you to do and then you (usually) do the opposite. Your opponents act because poker puts them in an unfamiliar arena. They know that they must act to conceal their hands, but they don't know how to go about it. Therefore, most weak and intermediate players just about give you their money by usually acting the opposite of the true strength of their hands. When they're strong, they pretend to be weak; when they're weak, they act as if they are strong.
No need for you to go to acting school to find out about revealing cues. Get into your opponent's head by taking a look at our list of the top ten tells. Hands that shake is not an act. There's a homespun theory that goes with this one. The theory says that if you see someone suddenly start trembling when making a wager, that's a signal that this bettor is nervous about the bet and is probably bluffing.
That theory is just plain backwards. If ever a tell were almost 100 percent reli- able, it's this one. Few players act in an effort to show nervousness, and gen- uine shaking is hard to fake. What most likely is happening is this: Your opponent has made a very strong hand. The hand is, in fact, unbeatable or almost unbeatable. What you're seeing is a release of tension following the suspense of waiting to see what will happen.
Some players are always nervous; they will shake whether or not they've made a big hand. The tell that I'm talking about is sudden shaking. I'm talking about a player who was previously steady but is just now starting to shake. This behavior is especially suspicious if the player seems to be trying to con- trol the shaking, but can't.
This sudden shaking isn't a bluff, because players who bluff tend to bolster themselves. They force themselves to be unnaturally steady, and they hardly move. They tend to realize instinctively that anything they do might look sus- picious to an opponent and trigger what we term the calling reflex.
The calling reflex is built into most players who have come to the poker table for the excitement of seeing a showdown and have a bias toward calling and against folding. They are looking for any excuses whatsoever to call a bet, and most bluffers instinctively realize this and do nothing to trigger that call- ing reflex. So, expect bluffers to be rock steady and seldom animated. Expect that sudden trembling is not an act, but an involuntary release of energy after a good hand is made. Unless you have an extremely strong hand, don't call.

Jittering

Jittering and fidgeting is usually not an act. Players can be impatient. Sometimes, you'll see a player drumming fingers rhythmically on the table. Now, he bets. The drumming of fingers continues. You reach toward your chips. The drumming stops!
What does this mean? It usually means the bettor is weak or bluffing and doesn't want the call. A player who really has a big hand will usually continue to be relaxed in the face of a pending call. When we have a close decision about calling or folding, we often use the technique of seeming to reach toward our chips to see what a jitterer's reaction will be. Whether it's drum-, ming of fingers or fidgeting beneath the table, if that action stops abruptly, we call, believing the likelihood of a bluff is high. If it doesn't stop, we fold.

Shrngs and Sad Voices I

Shrugs and sad voices are acts. Whenever a player shrugs, sighs, and says, "1 bet" in an exasperated tone of voice, you need a big hand to call. This player is going way out of his way to convey sadness. So, let us ask you a question: Why is he doing that? If he really had a weak hand or was bluffing, would he go out of his way to let you know it? Of course not! He's acting sad because he hopes that will make you think his hand is weak. But, remember, weak really means strong when they're acting. Shrugs and sad voices are key indications of strong hands.

Changes in Breathing

A change in breathing patterns is not an act. This unconscious tell is one of the strongest in poker. If you're seated near the opponent, you often will be able to hear this tell. But even if you're seated across the table, you some- times can see it by the movements of the person's diaphragm.
The key here is that players who make strong hands tend to become excited and need to breathe faster. Players who are bluffing, on the other hand, tend to disguise their breathing and sometimes stop entirely. They fear that any- thing they do might trigger their opponent's calling reflex, s o they become extremely unanimated and scarcely breathe.

Misdirected Bets

A misdirected bet is an act. If the action is three-way or more, expect your opponent to be most concerned about the player who appears to be the most threatening. If you seem to have the strongest hand, based on exposed cards and previous action, then you should be the main target.
What if an opponent, instead, stares down another player who doesn't seem to be the big threat? And what if the opponent then aims his bet toward that other player? What then? Then you have witnessed a misdirected bet and you have every right to think, "Hey, what about me?"
This misdirected bet usually means that the player is trying to convince you that he isn't really worried about your hand but about something he sees elsewhere that is even more powerful. But if you can't see that other threat, then you should usually conclude that the misdirected bet was all an act. You should not be intimidated into folding. In fact, if your decision would other- wise have been between calling and raising, you might lean toward raising.

Extra Emphasis

Extra emphasis on a betting motion is an act. This is one of the hardest of all tells to spot, and you need to train yourself to see it. We're not talking about conspicuously exaggerated bets. Those bets can be either a lure to entice your call, or a false warning not to call, depending on the opponent and the situation. What we're talking about is more subtle.
Watch the tail end of a bet. If the betting motion is smooth but is closed by a slight extra flare - perhaps a flick of the fingers releasing the chips -that's extra emphasis and it usually indicates weakness. The opponent is either bluffing or uncomfortable about the strength of his hand. The final flare h a p pened because the player thought at the last instant that he wasn't making the bet seem strong enough. Why would he worry about that? Only if the hand was not powerful enough to make the bet comfortable.
So, when you see extra emphasis on the tail end of a bet, tend to call more often than usual.
Conspicuously looking away from the action is usually an act. A player look- ing away from you tends to be more dangerous than a player looking at you. When you see a player gazing away from the action as if distracted, beware. There are only two possibilities here, folks. Either that player really isn't interested -so why risk a bet? -or the player is acting to deceive you. If the player is acting, then she's trying to make your bet comfortable. Don't be fooled. Unless you have a very strong hand, check and fold after the oppo- nent bets. If you bet a medium-strong or worse hand, expect to be raised. And almost never bluff into a player who is gazing away from you.

Staring at you

When it's your turn to act, an opponent conspicuously staring in your direc-' tion is likely acting. This usually is a dare, an attempt to prevent your bet through intimidation. The opponent may call but will almost never raise. This means that you can bet any mediumstrong hand with impunity, not fearing a raise.
So, instead of being intimidated by an opponent staring you down, simply consider that you can make more borderline bets for profit when you hold marginally strong hands.

Reactions after Looking at Their Cards

When opponents look at their cards, they are usually not acting at this point, because they don't think they're being scrutinized. Unless you'll slow up the game, it's silly to look at your cards while your opponents are looking at theirs. Your cards will still be there later, and if you look at them now, you'll miss out on some of the most valuable tells in poker.
See if your opponents quickly glance toward their chips after seeing their next cards. This tell usually means they liked what they saw and are planning to bet. This is especially true if they glance at their chips and then stare con- spicuously away as if uninterested. This last part - staring away - is what they do think you'll see after you get done looking at your cards. Remember, players staring away usually have strong hands.
On the other hand, your opponent may not bother to stare away. It's the quick glance at the chips here that you'll miss if you're not watching. This is an especially powerful tell in Hold'em on the flop. Watch your opponents watch the flop. You don't need to see it yourself just yet. It won't go away. Also, watch when your opponents first peek at their starting hands. The longer they look, the more likely it is that the hands are weak and they're pre- tending to show interest. Conversely, if the opponent looks and recognizes a big hand, he will usually cover it quickly and then pretend to show no inter- est in pursuing the pot.

Reaching fur Chips

Reaching for chips in anticipation of another person's bet is often an act. While weak players and beginners who hold strong hands may sometimes reach for their chips before it's their turn to act, more experienced players don't do this.
If you're thinking about betting a borderline hand, see if your opponent reaches for chips as you make a motion toward your stack. If so, there's a good chance that this was a deliberate act designed to prevent your bet. This means you can comfortably bet many borderline hands that would have been too risky had you not known that your opponent didn't want you to bet.

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