Why do the pros always peek at their cards?

[jeffconner]

It's done not for the purpose of checking the hand they just won, it's to set up a play for later. Checking prior to mucking gives the player who folded a slight amount of doubt that the winning player actually had a hand. Any time you can make your opposition question themselves and their actions you're one step closer to eliminating them. Doesn't actually work very often but if it works just 10% of the time then that's still better than nothing. Just a way to try to get into their heads. Hope this helps,
Jeff Conner

[Dynasty]

It's not a strategic choice. It's just human nature.

[Sponger15SB]

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It's not a strategic choice. It's just human nature.

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Exactly. This happens at every B&M table every day. TV Pro's are not immune.

[LBJ]

Just to clarify, this OP is talking when a player wins a hand without a showdown. The player takes a look at his hand before mucking his winning cards. Who knows why they do this? I believe it's just human nature, because I do this and so does almost everyone else I play with.

[GrannyMae]

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I think they do it before they fold, just to make sure they didn't mis-read their cards or if they had a good starting hand they tend to keep looking at them cause they can't believe they are going to fold it.

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i could be completely wrong, or be suffering from selective memory, but i swear that every time phil ivey and a couple of other pros gets someone to lay down when he is bluffing, he seems to peek, crack an oh-so tiny smile, then pitch his cards in the muck.

i have always imagined he is memorizing the hand so he can look for it on the tv airing. most of the times he is running such a big bluff that he probably has forgotten the holecards because as the hand progressed, he was playing the player. i see this when he is pitching his 4-5 suited (which missed completely) into the muck while the pot is being shoved to him. it is not really a tell because he does not peek until the action is over.

[RogerZBT]

I always assumed that when they peeked after showdown, they were showing their cards to the camera. I assumed a lot of people didn't totally trust the system and protected their hand from the camera until it was safe.

For example, I was watching the TOC last night and after taking down a hand, Annie Duke moved her cards directly in front of the camera and held them up for a sec. She seemed to be making sure the camera got it.

[MonkeeMan]

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it is not really a tell because he does not peek until the action is over.

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This is true if they peek every time they take a pot w/o a showdown. If they only peek on a bluff it is a tell that could be exploited on subsequent hands.

My guess (and it's a reach) is they do it so they don't give off a timing tell which may indicate whether they were bluffing or not.

[HouseBlouse]

I always like to look at my hole cards before I fold just to make sure I didn't miss anything. Almost folded my quads in the Main event [img]/images/graemlins/wink.gif[/img]

[otnemem]

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it is not really a tell because he does not peek until the action is over.

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This is true if they peek every time they take a pot w/o a showdown. If they only peek on a bluff it is a tell that could be exploited on subsequent hands.

My guess (and it's a reach) is they do it so they don't give off a timing tell which may indicate whether they were bluffing or not.

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I don't think you're understanding this. There is no tell. Any time they're peeking like this, the hand is already over. How could someone use this against you in subsequent hands if every time you're checking, the hand is already over?

[tpir90036]

They might be making sure the hole card camera got a look at them.