It’s the most important part of winning poker, and yet reading players isn’t always that simple. All these aspects are needed, from body language to speech to eye movements.
Poker ranges and hand reading is an endless game that can bring a big boost to your profits in the game. You just need to put your opponent in their area to get there.
Look for body language tells
Look closely at your opponent’s body language to detect signs of strength or weakness, like calling or raising too soon or a waiting period between calls. Big breaths could be nerves, big swallows could be a bluff.
Watch out for fidgeting, especially in their hands. Hand shakes are typically the sign of cards with high cards – they are our way of telling ourselves that adrenaline is on the rise – but keep in mind that some players are very easily overexcited, or high-spirited.
You can also watch eye movements to gauge how confident and emotionally relaxed a player is, from quick look at chips that shows willingness to go in, to long stares that suggest a hand of weakness. Notice their eyes too – if they cross or blink frequently, it could signal a false tell, and should be regarded as being in line with your opponent’s movement baseline.
Listen for verbal cues
The more powerful the body language signs are, the more important the words. Voices, tone and pitches also hint at a hand’s power or fragility – the player who holds a good hand might be confident and the weaker hand defensive or anxious.
Verbal clues can also detect bluffing patterns. If your opponent’s game is normally silent but suddenly becomes agitated, they might be trying to disguise the fact that they have a weak hand and keep their cards from showing up.
Bet patterns can also be detected via nonverbal signalling. For example, if an opponent normally calls aggressively but sometimes only using poor hands, this may mean that they are a volatile player and it’s time to change that.
Pay attention to eye movements
Like in real life, body language tells can provide keen poker players with a lot of valuable information. There are subtle adjustments in posture or gesture that signal trust in a hand played; or microexpressions that move across a face for a split second.
Particularly watch the way a player holds their cards and gestures with his or her fingers, particularly any fidgeting or nerves that can be a sign of weakness and a confident, relaxed physique that suggests trust.
Always pay attention to how a player behaves in general over a series of hands to notice if it changes from its typical patterns or signals weakness. So if they fiddle with their chips when they call, it could signal slack – observing such cues can help you to make better decisions and have a edge on the table, but remember no tell is 100% guaranteed!
Watch the drinks.
The most important tell for poker is what they are drinking. If you notice someone already drinking whiskey or beer at the table, it could be an indication that they’re deliberately deceiving their opponents with a sleight of hand. Drinking water or soda, on the other hand, makes it more difficult to detect your opponent’s body language.
Monitor drinks of your opponents to evaluate their bets and preferences. For example, if they’re stacking big denomination chips on the backs of small denominations, this could be a sign that they’re bluffing, you also want to notice their chip speed as it can tell you a lot about their confidence and mood. Also, watch yourself: be calm at the table!