Play Better Poker

Telegraphs are slightly different (but perhaps even more common) than tells.  Whereas a tell give an opponent some idea as to what you are holding, a telegraph gives him some idea as to what your next action will be.  An example might be a player who grabs enough chips to bet before it is his turn to act.  Like tells, different telegraphs might mean different things when exhibited by different people, but there are a number of common ones which are pretty much universal.

                The frequency with which you find players who exhibit numerous telegraphs is alarming.  Even in a $30/$60 game in Las Vegas, which is a fairly high stakes game, you will often find that more than half of the table routinely telegraphs their next action.  The most common one you see is people who look at their hand preflop then get ready to throw it away.  They seem to be anxiously waiting their turn to pitch their junk hand, oblivious to the fact that their consistently doing so makes it very easy for you to tell when they do have a hand that they consider worth playing. 

                It is for this reason that I and many other poker authors advocate looking to your left.  You don’t want to be too blatant about it because you don’t want people realizing that you are on to them.  Just casually glance over at the next few players hands before making your move, especially preflop.

                At first take note of how their telegraph relates to their actions.  If a player always bets when he grabs a bunch of chips before it is his turn to act then you have a great telegraph.  If whether they grab chips has no relation to what they do then you have nothing.  Also look at how they hold their cards; that is another very common way in which a lot of people telegraph their next action.  There are certainly others as well, so be on the lookout for them but those two comprise the vast majority of telegraphs..

                Telegraphs are actually fairly useful when you spot them.  Preflop they can give you a good idea of what is going to happen.  If you are three or four spots from the button but everyone behind you telegraphs a fold you should treat your position as if it were the button.  If, on the flop, an opponent behind you grabs chips to bet with, you can consider check-raising a hand you might otherwise have bet with.

                Do be sure though to avoid falling for false telegraphs.  These are fairly common as well. Some are made intentionally, some unintentionally.  A lot of players who want an opponent to check might grab a lot of chips as if to say that they are going to raise if bet into.  If you are observant you will spot when players do such thing and know what it means in the future.

                Avoid telegraphing your own hand much the same way you avoid tell-by always doing the same thing.  When you get dealt your first two cards always hold them in the same manner.  Never touch your chips until it is your turn to act, or if you do then always hold the same amount and hold them in the same way. If you were shuffling chips before the round, keep shuffling them until it is your turn to act.