One of the great advantages to playing at a table is being able to read the players’ body language. As an avid table player, I find that there are typically three types of players: The ones that are constantly buying a flop, the ones the only play good hands, and ones that are unpredictable in every way. This is by no means a comprehensive guide to everything you will need to know about a player. It is simply a way to categorize a typical type of player, similar to Behaviorism which was made famous by Ivan Pavlov. As a side note, taking a Psychology 101 course from your local community college will also help your table play.

The players that buy a flop want to see the flop to reinforce the idea that they have a good hand. Generally this is the most common type of player and easiest to win a hand from. This type of player is easy to push out of a hand unless they have a pocket pair or have flopped a high pair or greater. Generally, it is very easy to estimate what they have in their hand. These players can easily become fixated that their hand is the best and lose a large pot. Look for players like these at the table and when they get pocket Ace’s and you flop a straight, you’ll be confident what to do next.

The players that play good hands will rarely enter into a flop unless they feel they have a good chance of winning. These players rarely bluff but can easily win a hand by bluffing. More often then not these players will have a good hand. These are not players you want to go in a hand against unless you are certain your hand is better or are certain that they are bluffing. If you know you have a better hand, you can win a very large pot from these players. Often times it is difficult for these players to lay down a good hand.

The unpredictable players are typically the ones that pick up their chips when it is not their turn to act as if they are going to bet and just check when it is their turn, have their sunglasses on upside down or generally do silly things that they don’t need to do such as show a non-winning low hand to “throw you off.” If you play a tight game, only playing good cards and not becoming fixated, you will win more hands then you will lose against this type of player.

While at the table you should continue to watch the players, see what winning hands they play and see how they came to the conclusion that they felt they would win the hand. Determining their train of thought will give you a great edge over them. Once you are able to determine their train of thought, you will able to read them very well and subsequently be able to determine the strength of their hand. Good Luck!