Whether you’re just learning how to play poker or you’ve been playing for decades, keeping your composure and maintaining a poker face is an essential part of being a successful live poker player.
Whether you are bluffing or you have the nuts, you should always remain calm and give nothing away with your facial expression, gestures, and behavior.
This is easier said than done, as most of us don’t have full control over our bodies at all times. This is why the best poker players practice these skills and focus on maintaining their poker face at all times.
If you play live poker often, knowing how to hide your tells and not give away the strength of your hand can be an essential skill.
We bring you our top tips on how to maintain a solid poker face in your games and not give anything away with your actions and movements at the table.
Tip #1. Identify Your Tendencies
The first step to fixing a problem is recognizing a problem exists in the first place. When it comes to poker, being aware of your tendencies at the table can go a long way.
If you want to maintain a stoic demeanor that reveals nothing at the table, you have to identify the ways in which you give things away in the first place.
This can include the way you breathe, the way you shuffle your chips, the slight twitches you make with your face, and any other movement you make at the table.
The next time you are value betting and your opponent is thinking, try identifying the things you naturally do with your body in such situations.
Where do you keep your hands? Do you look at your opponent or stare at the table? Do you talk to other players or remain completely silent?
Do the same thing the next time you are bluffing, and try to identify anything you do differently between those two scenarios at this time.
By becoming aware of all the little subtle tells you may be giving away in different scenarios, you will give yourself a chance to manipulate and hide them in the future, making yourself a lot harder to read.
Tip #2. Explore the Art of Dissociation
Poker is a very emotional game, and most of the tells we give away come from our body responding to the emotions we are experiencing.
For example, whenever you are bluffing, it is natural to experience fear and anxiety as you wait for your opponent to either fold his cards or put the chips into the pot.
If you allow your body to react to these emotions as it normally does, you will start giving away tells. Your heart will start pumping harder, making the veins in your neck move visible, and you may experience shaky hands, deeper breathing, and other related symptoms.
When playing against strong live poker players, they will recognize all of these little tells and may be able to determine if you are bluffing or not in such situations.
One technique many players use is mental dissociation. This technique leads to fewer physical manifestations of your emotions and can also help you manage tilt and perform better after winning or losing big hands.
For example, if you are able to dissociate from the results of a particular hand or a play you made, your body will not respond in the ways it usually does, and you will not exhibit tells that other players may recognize.
What’s even more, losing a big pot will not affect you as much and lead to tilt, which is one of the biggest problems most live poker players experience.
In order to dissociate from the results, you will need to start thinking about the game in a different way. The results of a particular hand or session don’t matter at all. You have the bankroll to keep playing and are playing a winning strategy in the long run. Everything is alright!
Whether you are winning or losing in a particular poker game, being able to dissociate from the money and the results will help you make better decisions and win more money in the long run while also being consistently happy with how things are going in your poker career.
Tip #3. Observe Other Players
A great way to learn about poker tells and tendencies are by observing other players and trying to spot their tells.
If you focus enough, there are many things you can pick up from the way players behave in different situations, whether you are in a pot or not.
Being observant at all times will allow you to identify live poker tells that you can use against players at a later point, but also gain knowledge that you can apply to your poker face and demeanor.
For example, the way players hold their hands and eyes, their body posture, and their facial expressions can all be a great gateway into the human psyche.
By understanding what others are doing wrong and how they give away tells, you can work on your own poker face and ensure you are not making those same mistakes.
On the other hand, if you keep playing without paying attention, these things will pass you by, and you may never fully master what it truly means to hold a poker face at a poker table.
Tip #4. Stay Consistent
Whether you prefer playing poker tournaments or old fashioned cash game poker, consistency is one of the key aspects in hiding the truth from your opponents and making sure you are not giving away any live tells.
When we say consistency, we mean consistency of motions, bet sizes, and timing, all of which are elements that can potentially give away valuable information to other players.
For instance, if you always bet very fast when you have the nuts but take your time to consider a bluff, savvy opponents might spot this tell and keep using it against you for months to come.
Similarly, if you always look your opponent dead in the eye when you have a good hand but look away when you are bluffing, this is a tell that can be easily used against you.
In order to avoid giving away any tells whether you have a strong hand or not, make sure to always remain consistent in your actions.
Always take a little bit of time before you act when the action is on you unless you have a hand that’s not worth considering and is an easy fold.
Make sure to size your bets similarly, whether you are bluffing or value betting, and keep a stoic demeanor that always looks the same.
If you want a real role model in consistency at the poker tables, consider watching some Patrik Antonius hands and try mimicking the way he acts at the tables on a consistent basis.
Tip #5. Consider Using Props
Keeping a strong poker face at all times can be hard, especially for inexperienced live poker players. For that reason, many players use props like hoodies, sunglasses, and turtlenecks to conceal some parts of their faces and bodies.
Sunglasses have always been a popular prop among poker players, as they allow you to hide your eyes, which can often give away the most information to your opponents.
While wearing sunglasses indoors may not be acceptable in other scenarios, no one will look twice if you wear them at a poker table, so find a pair that suits you well and wear it to your next live game if you want to give away less information.
Hoodies and turtlenecks can be equally as useful, as hiding your neck can ensure your opponents can’t recognize your breathing patterns or spot any big gulps you may take when bluffing. On top of that, they will also keep you cozy and warm throughout the game.
Baseball hats and other props can also help you hide your facial expressions and tells from other players, so take some time to work on your poker outfit before you step into a poker room the next time.
Tip #6. Use Your Clothes to Your Advantage
Deception is an important part of how to win in poker. Making sure your opponents never know what you are actually thinking or why you are doing the things you are doing will help you win more and remain a mystery to everyone.
The way you dress at a poker table can be a big part of this, and many professional poker players make this mistake all too often.
If you walk up to a live poker table in a Las Vegas casino, you will probably be able to spot the pros at the table within seconds simply by looking at their outfits.
They like to wear sporty outfits that provide comfort and take a stoic demeanor, which can help them in one way but work against them in another.
If you want to not only hide your poker face but also trick your opponents into doing what you want them to do, dressing differently than other pros is a great trick.
For example, wearing a very dressy outfit that you might wear for a night out with your friends can be a good way to trick other players into thinking you are a tourist just looking to have a good time.
Similarly, dressing down can sometimes make everyone think you are a degenerate gambler who is ready to spew his money away.
These tricks work exceptionally well when you play in live games that you are not a regular in, as the players you are playing against won’t know what to expect from you and may completely misjudge you and your playing style.
Tip #7. Be Careful What You Say
Facial expressions, gestures, and demeanor are all very important at the poker table, but so are the words that come out of your mouth.
Unless you are incredibly experienced and used to talking at the table while playing hands, you should keep quiet and keep information private from other players.
Everything you say at a poker table can be used against you, and the truth is “speech play” will more often get you in trouble than help you in any meaningful way.
The more you talk, the more you risk giving away information about your hand, while your opponent may choose not to talk back and not give anything away.
What’s even more, if you are the one doing the most talking at the table, it’s likely you are also the one telling everyone the most about the strength of your cards.
While watching the likes of Daniel Negreanu use speech play masterfully at the poker tables can be very fun, trying to mimic them will often lead to an absolute disaster.
Putting it Together – How to Keep a Steady Poker Face
What we like to call poker face has to do with a lot more than just your face and encompasses a wide spectrum of gestures, expressions, and movements.
The best poker players in the world have mastered a poker mindset to remain calm and composed in all situations and keep their actions consistent, whether they are pulling a huge bluff or betting for value with the nuts.
If you want to become an elite poker player someday, making sure your actions are consistent and your demeanor composed is a skill you will have to practice.
We highly recommend getting a lot of experience playing in lower-stakes poker games and paying particular attention to your own live tells and those expressed by other players, as well as all other actions that may help you keep a better poker face in the future.
