Do you really catch tells?

I'm a winning recreational player (something like 3 4-5hr sessions/wk ) at 6-12 and 15-30, with infrequent 20-40 and 30-60 shots.


I'm curious as to how much the more serious players here really utilize tells in their play.


I often see players use predictable strategy (ie: a bet in this situation after a turn raise from this player always means a busted flush draw) that helps me decide the right move.


I also see some players use the same "Hollywood" every time (ie: flush card comes on the river and this guy bets and says "OK, let's see if you really have the flush" - he definitely has the flush) and take advantage of that.


However, I much more rarely take advantage of the more subtle tells I read about all the time. I don't catch a player shuffling his chips a certain way when the flop hits him hard. Or breathing faster when the turn makes their hand.


How many of you feel catching those types of subconscious tells (as opposed to the "pattern" tells I describe above) is an important part of your game? And are you consciously aware of catching them or does the catch manifest itself as more of a feeling?

I have read {studied} Caro's book of tells'and at times I have singled out a perticular player and realy tried to find a tell ,and I have to sayI realy havent had any luck finding tells.Oh I might find a player behind me reach for his chips which meen's he won't call my bet,but very seldom do I see any tells that I can put my finger on..After having said that: I DO focase in on the players intensly,and think my sub conscious Does pick up tells.Most of the time I do the right thing,Some call me lucky,and to tell you the truth I use to think that also, but I now believe my sub-con is working.Quite often I(you)can pick up betting patterns,but I don't think this is a tell.

tells are much easier to see in casual players than serious players. serious players tend to be hardened to the emotion of the game a little more.


there's an ebb and flow of the game. and when someone does something that seems out of sync, something may be going on. it's a feel thing to a degree. caro's books/videos does a gret job in giving ideas of what to look for. i tend to notice betting rythyms more.


when youve sat with the same players at a table for 2-3 hours, you know when they have a great hand at times by how they bet or act. same with whether theyre checking/calling with a draw or calling you down with a crap pair..


i also watch how they deal with things outside of the ring. this can tell you how they play a little more also.


just dont look so hard that you create tells for them. and if you spot one, before acting on it, make sure you confirm it by seeing if its repeated at a later time...unless your sure about it.


tell play is a fun part of the game that can make/save you chips that over time, can add up to alot.


b

I think as you move in the limits the tells get harder to catch. In a 20-40 game your not going to see many guys with shaking hands or heavy breathing. They may do these things on purpose to throw you off as they too most likely have studied poker and know about tells. Like you said Ulysses you'll pick up betting patterns and the player's styles as you sit with them for an extended period of time. If your focused, you will be able to see these patterns more which will gain or save you more money depending on the situation, rather than trying to catch someone who stacks their chips a certain way or rubs their hair when they've made a hand. I think learning what the players are (tight aggressive, loose,passive etc) is more important than any tells you can find.

Tells....they're fine, but the true art of reading a hand is INTUITION....


Intution-


a)The act or faculty of knowing or sensing without the use of rational processes; immediate cognition.


b)instinctive knowing (without the use of rational processes)


-This is the true art of reading hands.


-How come Stu Ungar made unbelievable calls, and was correct? The answer is Intuition.

I don't know if anyones ever noticed it before, but I caught a tell in myself last week. See, I wear glasses, and I noticed that when I don't have a made hand (ie, on the come or overcards) I tend to (75% of the time? It's hard to keep track of because it's unconscious) touch my glasses, or readjust them etc.


My theory is that I'm used to readjusting them from doing a lot of math at my uni. I never thought about it then, but now when I do math (ie, calculating a flush draw with an overcard) at the table, I fall back into it.


I guess this doesn't answer your question, except that people do have tells, so it's safe to say that people can profit from looking for them.


PS - I don't wear glasses at the table anymore. Things are a bit more fuzzy, but I could still read a book so it's not that bad.

I'm sure not Stuie[and glad of it]But this what I was trying to say..