Chat Box Tells in Online Poker

As poker is a game of cards, it is also a game of human behavior and interaction. The psychological patterns that researchers say “tell” something about a player’s hand are easy to learn and pick up on when seated at a live poker table. However, online poker throws a whole new twist on the game of studying opponents’ tells. There are ways though, to discern some ideas about a player and his hand while seated at an online poker table. This article specifically focuses on the chat box.

The emotional tells, like those mentioned in the article, “Poker Bluffing Tells,” can be applied to the online poker casino as well. One way to analyze these behaviors is via the poker room’s chat box, which has become the cyber equivalent to table talk, though the conversation is taken to another level online since players only know each other virtually and are furthermore restricted to typing short expressions.

One thing that can be asserted though, about chatty players, is that they play more loosely than players who do not keep their eyes on the chat box, especially those “hunt and peck” typers, who constantly must look up and down from the screen to the keyboard. How can they truly focus on the game and the actions of the other players if they are constantly typing and reading? They may think their banter is somehow a distraction to the rest of the table, but if a fellow player has learned to quickly analyze their conversation, and stay out of it, it may be used to the chatty Kathy’s disadvantage.
First, watch out for the extreme, bizarre, or extra-offensive outbursts that seemingly come out of nowhere. These are usually meant to distract players. You can take advantage of the diversion however, while the rest of your opponents are contemplating the off-the-wall message. Glance at the box long enough to read the message, but don’t think about it too long. Swiftly categorize it as one of three things: “normal chitchat” (each player defines their own normality), a “distraction attempt,” or an “abnormal behavior” (one that is out-of-character for that particular player).
For instance, if a chatty player abruptly stops typing messages in the chat window, you should assume something is up with his hand and/or his bet. His sudden silence probably means that he is now actually paying attention, either because he has a good hand or because he is bluffing. In live poker, this sudden withdrawal would indicate a bluff, as bluffers become nervous and don’t want to draw attention to their bet or don’t wish to give off any clues about their hand at all.

It is usually safe to assume that the same boost in confidence and comfort at a live table by a player who genuinely has a good hand is going to mirror an increase in comfort level in the chat box, but take into consideration the fact that it is much easier to present a false impression via a keyboard than it is while sitting face to face.

Also, as in live poker, bluffers are not likely to act out at a time when they need all the friends they can get. An obnoxious player would most likely take a break from cut downs and boasts when bluffing, as not to insult an opponent into folding. He might still chat, as not to call attention to his silence, but he might tone it down, or actually compliment something, in an attempt to exude a positive presence, which should set off alarms in the heads of his opponents.

Don’t be a chatter. In fact, if you don’t use the chat box, you can’t “tell” anyone anything about you as a poker player. You can however, discern what is going on with other players who are table chatting.