+Mike Caro - Caros Book Of Poker Tells.pdf - Time Out Hut

TELL #25
TITLE: Maybe I should stand pat on this full house after all.
CATEGORY: Weak Means Strong.
DESCRIPTION: You'll often see inexperienced poker players pretend to draw just before
rapping pat. That's exactly what happens in these two photos.
MOTIVATION: An almost instinctive act to confuse the opener.
RELIABILITY:
• Weak players = 77%
• Average players = 59%
• Strong players = 54%
VALUE PER HOUR:
• $1 limit = $0.17
• $10 limit = $0.85
• $100 limit = $0.90
DISCUSSION: Some players are almost compulsive about disguising their hands. Even if there
is little logical benefit in fooling you at the moment, they may still give it a try. When a player
who normally doesn't indicate how many he'll draw until it's his turn suddenly decides to let you
"know" he needs cards, there's a good chance he'll end up rapping pat. The reason this tell has a
fairly low dollar value is because there's very little you can do to capitalize. If you're the opener
with a pair of queens, you're going to have to draw three anyway (unless you can split openers
and try for a straight or flush). You can gain some ground by knowing that your opponent will
probably never rap pat now unless he has a complete hand. He feels that he's made you
suspicious and more likely to call by requesting one card out of turn and then changing his
mind.
BEST STRATEGY:
You're playing draw poker with the joker and have asked for one card. You hold.
A♣ Joker 2♣ 2♦ 8♣
You should consider throwing away the deuce of diamonds and trying for the flush. Even this
has disadvantages, because your opponent may have a pat full house and you'll end up drawing
dead. If you've asked for three cards to a pair of kings, there's very little you can do at this point;
except that if you make three kings and your opponent raps pat, you should not call when he
subsequently bets.
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