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View Full Version : Talking smack puts players on tilt?


jah0550
11-05-2004, 01:23 PM
Recently I have tried to start talking smack at the begining of games. I put things like "I win" in the chat box after I win a hand or "you lose" after beating someone. Last night, I had this guy on such tilt that he wasn't paying attention to his hands or other peoples'. He went from being a 3500+ chip leader early in the tourney to finishing 4th. My question is has anyone tried this strategy? I know that it is a d*ckhead move, but it has been working for me lately.
Just some thoughts
Jah

ilya
11-05-2004, 01:31 PM
The conventional wisdom seems to be that a nice-guy image is preferable in SnGs. This is because much of a winning player's ROI comes from blind stealing on the bubble, and opponents may be less likely to call a pleasant fellow than the table [censored]. This effect is minor, but in my opinion not negligible.

protoverus
11-05-2004, 01:32 PM
I've watched as a guy once put a whole table on tilt by saying over and over how 'he was so good and always played with actors and rock stars.' He ended up winning because everyone was trying to take him down and shut him up.

My ITM in SNG's went up over 6% since I've turned off my player chat options. I found the chat really distracted me, made me 'feel' certain ways about certain players, and generally introduced emotional elements into my game that were causing me to make bad decisions.

So yeah, I think that works (on people like me), but I NEVER see the chat anymore and I like it...

Proto

stupidsucker
11-05-2004, 07:52 PM
Ilya is right on the money. The image you want is a solid good player. People will risk their chips on you if they think you are an ass. People will steal your blinds more often, and people WILL soft play each other in order to make you suffer.

I know this because it is one of my biggest leaks. My mouth runs like a river sometimes, and once flowing its hard to put the dam up.

In a SnG you want people to like you and you want them to respect you. You would be betteroff trying to be funny about people that may already be knocked out, or that were being asses themselves. Getting the table on your good side with respect is far more valuable then having them on tilt with a vengence. Folding equity is KEY to winning SnGs.

Soleo
11-06-2004, 04:54 AM
I switch off chat display for certain player as soon as I feel that his sentences may affect me.

lorinda
11-06-2004, 07:41 AM
I don't think it makes a bit of difference.

What I usually do is just email support the second I see someone doing it as it upsets the fish who are paying for entertainment.

Edit: When I was playing HU sngs, I found that trash talkers tended to make me concentrate harder and I won all but one game against people who sat down and started talking gibberish.

One guy was in two games at once doing it to me and his other opponent so I went to the other table as an observer and we bashed him two on one. He lost both games and both arguments /images/graemlins/laugh.gif

Lori

tdp
11-06-2004, 07:59 AM
Most smack talkers that I've seen(not all but most) generally don't play that well and try to mask it through the chatbox.I see it as a huge tell most of the time.It does have an effect on some people though and those are the ones I'm looking to pick off.I don't worry about Mr.Trashmouth until the bubble.If they are putting folks on tilt,I get itm most of the time.

stripsqueez
11-06-2004, 08:06 AM
i think its bad - just cause its for money doesnt mean its not a game which everybody is there to enjoy

i dont often chat - if someone gives me a lot of grief i'm happy to play

stripsqueez - chickenhawk

Phill S
11-06-2004, 10:13 AM
i like a bit of verbal sparring as much as the next guy, but its all about limits.

one guy was annoying everyone saying 'stinger' after every pot he won, and to be fair he was playing well. but i challenged him with a stung after he lost a pot. after a little arguing we ended up talking about how online poker is fixed (surreal some of the theories, i didnt help by saying i worked for pokerroom and they tell me the river /images/graemlins/smile.gif ).

everyone seemed to like me, got talking, all good humoured joking, when i knocked him out on the bubble he was a nice guy about it, when i beat the rest of the table they seemed happy it was me /images/graemlins/cool.gif

however when your the guy saying stinger, or i win, after taking down a pot, then you start to single yourself out.

i believe that around half the table notice my tightness at the table. and the other half simply dont notice me. by isolating yourself, everyone notices you, how you play, and furthermore they will think about how they can beat you, to shut you up basicly.

in my opinion, be the nice guy up for a joke, or the guy who no-one sees until youve doubled up off them. dont be the jerk at the table, it has little benefit long term in my opinion.

Phill
ps, what i would like to add here to the people who turn off the chat, is that, certainly for me, some of the info that you can pick up on can be valuable. who plays what and how, who is multitabling (watching TV etc) and not concentrating and who is friends/enemies with whom.

but then i dont get put off by the chat as others seem to, if it improves your results, then thats great, but i dont think its the ultimate answer to how you should play a SnG. in a format where a game lasts <1Hr, you should try and collect all the info available. just my opinion.

DrPhysic
11-06-2004, 11:09 AM
I agree with ss and ilya, completely. However, this is not unheard of in poker. It appears from my reading and watching tv that MinTheMaster has used this tactic at live tables very effectively.

I still think being the nice guy, or turning chat off are better tactics.

Doc

SpeakEasy
11-06-2004, 09:53 PM
[ QUOTE ]
In a SnG you want people to like you and you want them to respect you. You would be betteroff trying to be funny about people that may already be knocked out, or that were being asses themselves. Getting the table on your good side with respect is far more valuable then having them on tilt with a vengence. Folding equity is KEY to winning SnGs.

[/ QUOTE ]

This is excellent advice. Be respectful, get respect back. Be the jerk and you become the target. Let others be the target.