table talk
 

Are there any rules prohibiting talking about the cards in your hand, either truthfully or falsely, during play, or is it simply a breech of etiquette, or neither?

Re: table talk
 

There's been some recent discussion of this in the Home Poker forum, take a look there.

IMO it is a breach of etiquette but it depends highly on the table atmosphere. For example, I play my roommate heads up a lot and we're constantly bullshitting back and forth about what we have. That's ok. In a more serious atmosphere it is less acceptable.

As for rules in most games it is fine but most tournaments prohibit this. If you watch last years WSOP main event there is a bit where TJ Cloutier is complaining to an unknown who has gone all-in and says "If I show you a King will that slow you down?" when he had two kings. He claims that the tournament will impose a time penalty for this type of behaviour and I believe that is correct. The difference in tournaments is that sometimes it is to your advantage for your opponents to know what you have.

Re: table talk
 

In tournaments, talking about your hole cards in strictly prohibited. Most places don't bar it in ring games though.

GoT

Re: table talk
 

In a heads up situation, why should talking about your hole cards ever be forbidden? I don't see any problem with it.

Re: table talk
 

[ QUOTE ]
In tournaments, talking about your hole cards in strictly prohibited. Most places don't bar it in ring games though.

GoT

[/ QUOTE ]

In tournies I think you can talk about your hole cards. I think you just cant reveal them in any way.

Like I can say, "I have a good hand."
That is most likely acceptable because it does not reveal the cards. People will wonder, "Well what is good?" You can reply, "God is good!" ...oh wait wrong thread sorry

I think tournaments started preventing players from revealing hole cards in a HU situation because they did not want players to analyze how their opponents reacted to seeing or knowing what cards they had.

Re: table talk
 

In tournies I think you can talk about your hole cards. I think you just cant reveal them in any way.

Like I can say, "I have a good hand."

You can make general statements like that, yes, but you cannot say something like, "I have pocket Kings," or "I have Ace-Jack," while there's still action, even headsup. Doing so is considered folding.

GoT

Re: table talk
 

What if the hand is over? I 'fib' [img]/images/graemlins/ooo.gif[/img] about my hand to throw people off sometimes. is that not good poker ettiquete?

Re: table talk
 

That is not only fine, but expected. I promise you they are are lying as well.

Re: table talk
 

Someone correct if I'm wrong please. I don't know about tournaments as I've only played small, local ones. I was under the impression that at the tables you were allowed to lie about your hand all day long, it was telling the truth about it that would get you in trouble. If someone is really considering a call and asks you what you have, you can tell em anything you like, but the literal truth.

Re: table talk
 

It's a rule violation.

[ QUOTE ]
Players, whether in the hand or not, may not discuss the hands until the action is complete. Players are obligated to protect the other players in the tournament at all times. Discussing cards discarded or hand possibilities is not allowed. A penalty may be given for discussion of hands during the play.

[/ QUOTE ]

See also:
http://www.pokertda.com/

Re: table talk
 

[ QUOTE ]
It's a rule violation.

[/ QUOTE ]

Yeah, I know it's a violation, but I personally love the HU talk. It brings more game to the game, and I think it makes for better TV.

Re: table talk
 

I play mostly 1 table $50 limit tournaments. I posted this question on the one table tournament forum recently and was accused by some for posting bad beat stories. This situation arises often in limit playing against an overly protective blind. I raise with big pocket pair like QQ and he calls raise and again calls the flop bet. I know he has an A high or a lower pair. Right now the pot is big enough that if I can avoid a showdown I will surely place. Considering bubble strategy inducing a fold without risking anything would be huge. I understand this may be against the rules but I’ve seen it happen periodically and have never heard anyone complain. Yep no complaints until it happened to me several days ago when I was in a similar situation. I was in fourth and was all in when the overly aggressive big stack bettor kept incorrectly betting into 3rd place stack conservative bettor. 3rd place says, "I got 99" big stack bets again and says "and I don't". 3rd folds and I showdown with big stack who caught his A on the river to beat my small pair. I told 3rd place to shut the **** up. Third place was only trying his best to eliminate me so I can’t really blame him since there is no tournament director to slap him on the wrist. Does anyone know if Party poker will do anything about this? If not then I am tempted to use this strategy.

Re: table talk
 

if you forward PP the hand histories with the talk in they will study it and tell you whether they have formally warned the player as it is, in effect, against the rules on their homepage.

If you don't send it, nothing will happen, if you do, somthing might.

Regards,
Peter "Patter" Harris

Re: table talk
 

Where I play, during live play, the rules are pretty lax.

Personally, if you're involved in a hand, I don't care what you say. Chances are I'm not listening to you anyway.

I do, however, consider it rude for people not involved in a hand to speculate aloud as to what the players might be holding. And that *will* get you an admonishment from the dealer/floorman.

Re: table talk
 

I was playing in AC one time, I think it was the Borgata. It was a ring game, not a tourney. The one guy in the hand (I had already folded), while trying to get the other guy to call flipped over one of his cards, revealing a jack. He also told him that he could call for only $30, instead of the full $60 bet. Nothing was actually said about these actions, and they played the hand out.