Do you ever get that itch? The itch to gamble, to head to the closest casino, to come across a high stakes casino game of Texas hold’em, to sit at a Pontoon table for hours on end. I like that itch. And I love to scratch it.
I also love to watch men and women bet. No 2 poker faces seem identical. When I wager I like to think I put on a poker face that is impassable. Except I know I have particular mannerisms. For one, the only time I smoke is when I bet on poker or Twenty-one. And then I chain smoke. But I chain smoke whether or not I am winning or losing, no matter if I have a beneficial hand or bad.
I once bet in the weekly poker game. The casino game was usually five card draw. There was a player who bet with us each and every week who always wore a hat. When he was given a very good hand, unconsciously, he would begin touching and playing with his hat. Pointless to say, he in no way won.
The greatest poker player I ever saw was a guy who manufactured a lot more movements and gestures at a poker table than anyone I had ever seen. He was flawless in the way he dressed. Always an high-priced suit and tie, boots shined and nails manicured. He was diligent in this manner. And he was constantly brushing his pant leg or holding his hands or stacking his chips in tidy little piles.
I use to analyze him for long periods of time. I’d tried to see if I could spot his tell. Selecting lint off his jacket- did this mean he was bluffing? Arranging his chips in a very short pile – did this imply he had a great hand?
Many years later I ran into him in the bar in Chicago and we had a beer. I asked him if he have been aware of all those actions he created or if they were subconscious. He informed me that every single thing he did at a poker table was deliberate. He said that everyone is constantly checking out everyone else’s poker face. They are attempting to notice the the tell.
So his system was to give them lots to assume about. His reasoning was if they had been pondering about him choosing a piece of lint off his jacket and what it meant they sure weren’t thinking about their cards.
His process was distraction. And it worked for him. In no way give up a system that functions for you.