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(You
Don't) Gotta Wear Shades
By Aaron J. Moore
Posted: 8:30 am PDT 2006-08-07 |
Courtesy Of Internet Casino and Poker Room at WagerWeb.com |
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Recently walking around the
Borgata's fabulous new poker room, I saw the most bizarre view a human can stumble across.
No it wasn't a Yeti, the Loch Ness Monster or a half-naked mermaid playing the
banjo. Rather, the supernatural sight bestowed upon me was a man sitting at $2/4
limit table wearing sunglasses.
After watching televised poker where the big hitters and amateurs playing in high-profile
tournaments often wear sunglasses, too many viewers think they should do
likewise. Many novice players believe that if they wear sunglasses, they will look
and play like Scotty Nguyen, but truth is going with the shades in the wrong environment
makes someone look more like Scotty Nobody.
Before your next live game, limit, no limit or a tournament, make sure the situation is
right for sunglasses.
If you are online, anything goes. If wearing only a leopard-skin Speedo with a Superman
cape makes you feel and play better, go for it. But when playing in front of others
in a card room or home game, much of your table presence is pre-determined by appearance.
The person I saw at the Borgata looked foolish. I get the same queasy feelings from people
who wear sunglasses at low limit games as I do when I see a 45-year old man wearing a
glove at a baseball game while sitting in the upper deck.
At a $2-4 table anything goes. People will play all kind of cards to hit straights
and flushes because the price is always right. There is no bluffing in a low limit
game. Just about any hand is good enough to play, and it's close to impossible to bet
someone off a hand.
Bluffing in a limit game begins around $5-10, but even then sunglasses often look out of
place. The way to get someone off a hand in a higher limit game is to keep your foot
on the betting pedal. Keeping a covert eye on your opponents does not necessarily improve
your chances of winning. Betting patterns most represent a player's tendency at a
limit game.
Players at limit tables are focused on their cards and the board, so unless you are like
former Chicago Bears quarterback Jim McMahon, who had problems with bright lights, keep
the sunglasses at home and enjoy yourself.
The minimal bluffing that exists in a limit game is usually accomplished by check-raising
someone early and then either betting or re-raising after the turn. If your opponent stays
around for the river and you are on a bluff, you are probably beaten.
Sunglasses do play a role in no limit and tournament games, but not necessarily ones
played at a home.
There is really no reason to wear shades if you are playing with your friends. If you
play for the first time at someone's high-stake home game and you want to keep some
anonymity, the sunglasses can be helpful. However, if you are with your buddies, the
glasses are more likely to bring you more snickers from them than their chips.
At a card room or casino, there is a value in wearing sunglasses or going sans shades.
You can set a tone about your play if you sit down with sunglasses. Opponents at the table
are going to look at you and immediately think you are going to be a bluffer. You are
going to be seen as someone who is constantly looking for tells. Players wearing
sunglasses immediately draw attention. If you realize the others at the table are going to
think about you in this manner, play against the role sometimes. If you give off the
tone of being a bluffer but play generally tight, your opponents will have less of a
chance of gaining a read on you.
Going without sunglasses also says something about the kind of player you are or want
others to think you are. The likes of T.J. Cloutier, Phil Ivey and Howard Lederer
never go with sunglasses and people immediately see them as wise, strong players who win
by skill and instinct, not hidden chicanery. Now, going without sunglasses won't make
you play like these greats, but you will give off strength at the table because you are
telling opponents you don't need table props.
If you don't wear sunglasses and fear someone is going to watch your eyes for a tell, a
good rule of thumb is to stare straight down at the table. Avoid any talking or making
eyes at other players who will try to bait you into doing so.
Another tell to avoid when not wearing sunglasses is the immediate stare down at your chip
stack after cards hit the board. That is one of the most fundamental tells opponents are
looking for. Be cognizant for this and don't give the quick look down, rather be
deliberate and calculated with any move.
The final decision about what to do with sunglasses ultimately comes down to what you are
most comfortable with at the table. However, if you are going to play at a low limit game,
please leave them at home.
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