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Reading Players

10 posts 10 Sep 2009 13:27

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Whats your opinion on reading players? Mainly the difference between the information you can gain in live play compared to Online play. Would you say your better at reading players online than you are in a live casino enviroment or home game? I have had this discussion a few times with some of the people I teach at my local casino and most are of the opinion that its difficult to get an accurate read on players on the internet because of the lack of physical information available.

Although it's true that you can see a nervous or inexperienced player in a live game, maybe they are uncomfortable in the surroundings, sometimes they fumble with thier chips, maybe they look at thier chips as soon as the flop comes out. But I have found in the time I've been playing live poker that most information comes by way of patterns, patterns of betting or folding, aggression or passive play, taking draws, calling with bad odds etc...

For this reason Maybe it's easier to read players online, I would say there is an argument in favour of this, theres plenty of patterns to be spotted online, the same patterns you see in live play occur online. The big difference is that online, everything happens at a much faster pace, software takes away all the waiting between shuffling and dealing, people generally act quicker, more oftewn than not your against the clock . So when your playing online you see more hands, and you see more play in a shorter space of time, therefore it must be said that you gain information more quickly, and if information is power in poker then the faster you can obtain it the faster you can gain power if you use the information your given to your advantage.

It's just my opinion but I believe that since everything in online play happens so much quicker giving our brains more chance of absorbing patterns of play then it is likely that reading players online is easier then it is in live play. So if you are and astute and attentive player you will be able to exploit peoples tendencies more readily by reading thier patterns at a more accelerated pace. You really don't need to see that the guy to your left gets a twitch in his neck every time he's got the nuts. Theres enough information out there just in the way people play thier hands to make all the difference in the world, when your at the table, look for the information, use it, and go forth and prosper. Good Luck at the tables. ST xx

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19 posts

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Posted: 10-Sep-2009 18:22 by SATANSSPAWN

Good post. I agree. Plus in person it's easy to dec out people.

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Posted: 11-Sep-2009 13:21 by Chivalrousgent

Good thread actually mate

Bit of a tough one to answer - you're right that betting pattern observation is a lot easier online due to volume, so it really comes down to player-specifics. How physically leaky are they and how astute are you, as an observer, to be able to detect them.

I think you could argue it either way depending on those factors, but your point is a good one regardless

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Posted: 12-Sep-2009 13:14 by Kurtcoban

I completely agree. It's much easier playing online for me than when I play with my friends.

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Posted: 12-Sep-2009 14:12 by Robbieweeza

What you're saying is not that reading online is easier, but quicker. There's a difference. The same betting patterns and strategies transfer to live play, only with the added physical tells. These are massively overrated though, so I think you can leave them out of the equation. When it comes to getting to know a player within a specific timespan, online beats live hands down.

I think there's one thing that could possibly make it easier to read people online than live, and that's multi-tabling. When you know someone's playing multiple tables, you know they're most likely playing an ABC game, and you can tap into that and exploit it. Once you got the general gist of someone's playing style they can turn into a real piggybank.

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Posted: 12-Sep-2009 22:58 by SharkTony

Thats right, speed is the main factor, we are all human and like it or not the human brain has its limits. My brain is particularly lazy when it comes to live play in that so much information gets diluted by time between hads/bets/folds etc; cards gotta be shuffled and dealt, theres no clock unless you call it so some people take longer than others. Concersations are going on at the table, theres noise around you, at other tables, people walking around. All these things do occur in a live enviroment and they all get mixed in with the stuff thats important to you, and then at the same time everything just takes generally longer in live play. online we have no such problem, aside from the chatbox and pop up messages the only distractions we have are one that we cause ourselves, ie telephone calls, TV, radio. And things move quicker, so more happens in a shorter space of time therefore patterns become clearer more quickly and we get to formulate at a faster rate which must surely be beneficial to players who are astute and aware.

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Posted: 15-Sep-2009 01:07 by smokingsy

i prefer to watch/remember how opponents played when they had a major winning hand, rather than a weak one that they bluffed & won on. It tends to giver a more overall picture of their playing style, i think.

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Posted: 21-Sep-2009 09:36 by callie9

I find it easier to pick up reads on opponents online, simply because there is less distractions when it comes to just me and my laptop, compared to live when there is the hustle and bustle, table banter etc. I think you're more relaxed sitting on the sofa than you are sitting in a casino, and because of this it is easier to pick up more things. Plus I agree, many many many more hands are played online so by virtue of averages it is much more likely to observe players in different situations in a shorter space of time compared to live. A good debate!

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Posted: 05-Oct-2009 13:02 by Kickmypuppy

I find it easier to pick up reads on people in a live game. I feel alot more focused playing live games then online.
Probably because when i go to a casino to play i have to make the effort to get ready and go to the casino. While this is happening i'm constantly thinking of the game and how i intend to play, so im preparing myself to play.
When i get there and i've sat down none of the distracting factors affect me, i find the sound of chips and people talking. waitresses asking if you need a drink, the dealer announcing the action all adds to the atmosphere of playing poker which i find personally helps.

Also i find people are less inclined to bluff in a live game because they are affraid of the embarissment of being caught out. Also they too have had to make the effort of going to the casino to play, so if they bust out they can't just click a button and find abother tourny that starts in 2 minutes.
As for the speed of things because live play is slower it gives you more time to obsorb the information you recieve and make a better decision. Online because its so fast you have less time to put the story together, also because players have less time to act your opponent may make a move he wouldn't have done if he had more time so you are recieving false information.

Thats just what i think anyway. feel free to berate me and say everything i just said is wrong if you wish haha.

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Posted: 12-Oct-2009 20:30 by SharkTony

I played this week at the Broadway in Birmingham and for the first time I wore headphones and listened to music on my ipod, I found it distracting because I'm not used to doing it in live play, I always have some classic rock or golden oldies playing when I'm online playing and have no problems at all but I found personally that in the casino enviroment my "reading ability" was not so hot while my music was playing. I took my tunes off after a couple of hours and definately noticed my level of play increased again once i did so. Is this coincidental or did my play improve because of subconcious reasons? Or did the fact that I couldnt hear everything that was going on around me affect my game? I notice players in live games where I play and on TV or Photos of tournaments wear earphones, seems to be very popular, I've never heard anybody say that its harder to read players because of music, but it certainly didnt help me. Online theres no external information away from the screen for me to need to take in so the music I have playing makes no difference. Could it be that noise and table antics are a good thing in live play or is it just something we get used to and therefore come to expect.