If you play poker, and don't have a method for memorizing your hole cards, you should start using one. No matter what limit you play at, peeking at your hole cards during the game can be a significant tell. The safest way to avoid giving anything away is to memorize your hole cards.

This skill fits in the category of "important skills you'll never pick up playing online poker". I also think it's a skill that you need to have a standardized process for to avoid giving away tells -- especially at mid-upper limits and in tournaments.

When I'm playing hold'em, I wait until it's my turn to act to look at my cards. Some people prefer looking right when they're dealt, but the problem with this is that you miss other people's peeks and reactions. It also maximizes the time between you seeing your cards and your action, which in turn maximizes the time you're exposed to making common tells such as anxiously looking at your chip stack, or readying your cards to muck.

Before I look at my cards, I also look at the people yet to act. Usually at least half of them have already looked at their cards, and this can give valuable information. Most notably, people usually don't care about giving away tells if they are intending to fold their hand. They'll have their cards pulled up from the felt ready to toss, or not have their regular $1 chip on their cards, or sometimes even be showing their cards much more than normal. This can be really useful info if you're attempting a steal. One tournament I played in I looked around in middle position and it appeared that everyone left to act was intending to fold. I raised with my absolute trash hand, and sure enough took the blinds.

When I do look at my cards, I peek at them for a fixed amount of time, every time, about 2 seconds. I also think it's important to keep this ritual fixed every hand. A hand like 2 black aces doesn't take as long to memorize as QhTc; keeping the amount of time you stare at your cards fixed will help to minimize any tells here too.

I remember my cards in fixed order: high card-low card-high card suit-low card suit. So if I'm dealt QhTc, I think "queen-ten-hearts-clubs". When I started doing this it only took me a few hours of live poker to get to the point where I never forgot my hand after that.

Some people use other systems. I saw a post a long time ago on rec.gambling.poker about someone who couldn't remember suits well, but developed mnemonics for the 12 ordered combinations of mixed suits - QhTd would be "queen-ten-hard drive" etc. I don't find this easier to remember but some people may.

I don't intend to write a lot of poker advice here, but this seemed like one important point that aspiring Chris Moneymakers should be aware of.

Good point for this beginner, well taken!!!

Posted by: Jim on August 17, 2003 11:26 AM

That's sage advice. I had this problem as well when I started. I noticed that everyone took notice everytime I glanced at my hole cards. This ended up costing me pots that I should've had.

Posted by: Fil on August 17, 2003 09:59 PM