Masking your tells and keeping your opponents guessing....
HIDE IN PLAIN SIGHT So why do most of the professional poker players wear sunglass, baseball caps and have ipods stuck in their ears? The concept is that the eyes “tell” the opposition too much. Sunglasses and a cap pulled well down cut off any visual “information flow” to the enemy. The most extreme case of this “I’m in hiding" syndrome is Phil “The Unabomber” Laak. His infamous hoody pulled up over his head all but turns his face into a shadowy blob. It’s spooky, intimidating and Phil will tell you, very effective. He does have a few million dollars in winnings to back up his argument that it works. The ipod thing is more about shutting out table banter and helping with total focus on the cards. A lot of players don’t want someone talking to them when they’re playing and tunes are an excellent way of blotting out unwanted and often deliberate verbal distractions. Some players actually play soothing, meditative music so that they don’t betray any anxiety at all when their cards are under pressure.
IS ALL THIS NECESSARY? In some cases it’s certainly defensible. In other cases it’s a trademark gimmick. The more important issue that needs to be addressed is developing the ability to “hide your mental state” rather than your physical appearance. It’s your play which really is on show to your opponents. Instead of getting too carried away about what vibes you are giving off, a lot more confusion can be sewn amongst the opposition by behaving in an unpredictable fashion. This has always been my favourite disguise for a good poker player. Obviously none of the physical stuff helps with your online game which depends totally on your skill at disguising your play. Online poker is a brilliant training ground for mixing up your strategies and hiding your intent in a less trivial manner. Save the sunglasses for the beach.
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BEST WAY TO DRAW If you find yourself drawing to a possible straight or a flush it’s advisable to stick to calling bets. Why? The fact that you are drawing with an as yet incomplete hand means you are a way off from holding winning cards. You should really only be raising when you have something more substantial to work with and want to attack. Raising in the hope of drawing to that flush or possible straight is not usually a rewarding strategy. Obviously it might be a different story if you are running a bluff at the same time as you’re drawing for that optimistic fifth card to complete your hand.
