Keeping A Good Poker Face
Winning at poker can be a tricky achievement that requires a
combination of different skills: not only must you fully
understand the rules of the game, and have a little luck on your
side, but you must also develop a strong poker face to stop
other players taking advantage of you. A good poker face is
simply one that is devoid of emotion; by keeping your facial
features straight and settled, nobody else will be able to guess
what cards you're holding.
Here are a couple of examples that show why a good poker face is
so important when playing. Imagine you have just been dealt a
fantastic hand; you accidentally reveal this by smiling or
grinning to yourself. The other players will immediately guess
the kind of cards you've got, and will probably fold. On the
other hand, if you're dealt a hand and you look upset or angry,
others may guess that you've been dealt poor cards and start
raising the bets accordingly.
Keeping a neutral expression on your face throughout the game of
poker involves a long and hard internal struggle. If you let
your true feelings slip, even for a second, you can be sure that
others will notice. The key to success is to keep concentrating
on your expression while you play; in the end, it will become
second nature.
Once you've trained your face to conceal your true emotions, you
can start to have a little fun and mislead the other players
into parting with their cash. You can do this by making
expressions that are actually the opposite of how you are really
feeling. For instance, if you get dealt a spectacular hand, and
you want to convince the other players otherwise and so get them
to carry on playing, you can present an angry, frustrated or sad
expression to misinform them. They'll think you have a poor
hand, and will subsequently carry on betting.
The best type of practice for a good poker face is to try out
your expressions in front of a mirror. Getting to grips with
presenting a misleading face can be a little tricky at first; if
you're feeling really excited, keeping your face sad can be a
hard thing to do. If the other players do end up getting taken
in by your false expression, you will also have to resist the
urge to grin at your own cunning. Just remember that by
controlling your poker face, you have a greater chance of
influencing the outcome of the game - in your favor.