Showing hands?

Timmah120

Timmah120

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Hey all! How often do you show your winning hands/bluffs? Is there an advantage in doing so? I'm talking about tournament and cash game poker.

Interested in hearing your thoughts!
 
cranberry

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I do not show my hands. I think that it is possible to show hands if there is a purpose, for example, to mislead an opponent, to make the image of a tight or loose player.
 
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619Leafs

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I personally don't like to show hands because any information shown may decrease my chances of winning.
 
veritasi

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i always musk my hands, but sometimes i show my bluff or good cards to make a false impression about my play
 
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Pablo22

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I think the only time you should show cards is when you are trying to work off the image that the show will produse.
 
Iryna Stryzheuskaya

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Why give superfluous information to opponents?
 
lsbenn

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I do not like showing hands.
I will show though very rare if I think it will help my image.
 
Timmah120

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Thanks everyone! I think I show too much...the image thing, to me, is a good reason. Not to try and create an image for myself but to try and change the minds of people at the table.

Also, I'd consider showing the rare hands such as straight flushes/royal/maybe quads. Just to show. They don't happen often.
 
Destruct51

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I never show my hands and keep my bets and raises the same so no one can feel out my play. If its always the same, people cant get tells on you.
 
eberetta1

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I do not like to show my winning hands in online poker.

In real life , once I tossed my cards after a winning hand(because I do not show my cards), and I was told I threw my cards away, so I cannot win the hand. I make sure chips are pushed to me now before throwing away my winning cards when at a casino.
 
Martin Carreira

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I never show my cards. Whether I have lied or told the truth to win my hands. I think that the less information we are giving our rivals, the more difficult it is for them to understand our game and in that way we can get more out of the situation. Regards!
 
Martin Carreira

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It depends a lot on how we are playing at that moment. But in my case I do not do it or recommend it in most of the time. Regards!
 
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pecam

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Hey all! How often do you show your winning hands/bluffs? Is there an advantage in doing so? I'm talking about tournament and cash game poker.

Interested in hearing your thoughts!
You should never show your hands when you play with pro because after that they could more easily understand how you play and take your money
 
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pecam

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Hey all! How often do you show your winning hands/bluffs? Is there an advantage in doing so? I'm talking about tournament and cash game poker.

Interested in hearing your thoughts!
if you play with a fish you can show your bluff but after play a little bit stronger to induce him to pay you more easily
 
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TheCrownGuy

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You may mix showing and mucking to keep your opponents guessing.
 
pirateglenn

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Hi.

I like this thread - it raises that question of whether it is a leak to show cards - even sometimes, i am personally from the school of keeping them guessing by mixing it up, also if i have a maniac or LAG player at my table and i want to target their stack, i will show occasionally - ive been known to bluff and show to then crush further down the line on streets...building that image is key in poker - if you show regular, you have major leaks in your game - mixing it up however can work, if applied in specific spots

AR AR AR AR
 
BentleyBoy

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Thanks everyone! I think I show too much...the image thing, to me, is a good reason. Not to try and create an image for myself but to try and change the minds of people at the table.

Also, I'd consider showing the rare hands such as straight flushes/royal/maybe quads. Just to show. They don't happen often.



Timmah120.
Great thread. I hope you have got something out of these comments.

I would like you to consider the reasons why you show your cards and whether opponents show theirs.

Think about it. How many of your opponents show their cards? Do you think they want you to know what they have won with? if so, does that give you more information about them that you would otherwise have. I think you will find that most of your opponents don't show their cards and therefore you have reduced information about them.

The same applies to you. If you win with a nice hand, and show it, then you are giving away a whole load of information about you and how you played that hand. They will use this against you next time which makes poker less profitable for you.

Playing poker isn't about exhibiting your winning hands. Get a pony and go show that if you want! (LOL) You dont get a rosette for having a great poker hand; you get chips. The more chips you have means the more money you can win.

Keep your cards to yourself, unless there is a tactical reason for showing. People only want you to show cards for them to gain from you. Dont give information way, unless it is information that you have calculated is to provide YOU with an advantage by showing. The reasons above explain this in terms of presenting a certain image etc.

The bottom line is , always have an informed reason for showing your hand. Just to show a great hand, is not an informed reason. You may as well just pass your chips over instead!

I hope this helps.

BB
 
Last edited:
Stevan

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I do not rly do that, at least when we are talking about online poker. I did it couple of times live versus some angry guys, but i guess i was just using the fact that they rage all the time so it was just for pleasure :D
 
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pierreb292

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I never show my hand online i don't like that. except when i'm versus a angry guy.
 
bablo

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I never show my hands the more bluffing, I saw some show their bluff and make a note on them.
 
monstr999999

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basically do not show my cards...
show the cards only when I want to anger the opponent)))
:five:
 
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Showing a bluff can excite the right person, but if you want the table image of a trickster, are you willing to fold a decent hand against strong action? Pots can become inflated on every pair with one mistake having a sizable effect on your stack. I like to think I win by skill in the long-run with players feeling normal. It should mean something to the person your showing the bluff to. With a large chip stack, sometimes a bluff show will loosen up your competition; however these days it's often unnecessary. Many at the table will play hyper aggressive as they covet your chip stack.


I very rarely show my hands and think the best hand to show is a winning hand at showdown. It strikes fear in your opponents which you can exploit in position. A simple value bet can be intimidating.
 
Minus272c

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I never show my hands because of one simple reason, i use other
players interaction ingame to make notes of their playstyle.
Showing bluff hands when they fold
Showing value hands when they fold
Showing good hands in bb when all fold
Talking trash in chat
General talk in chat
All is a little part of a story bout their emotions and how they play, of course
combined with other things.

Thats why i never show my hands ;)
 
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I show my hand every time......
....that the opponent has paid to see it.
 
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CallmeFloppy

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I rarely show my hand but will on occasion. If I think that showing my hand will alter how my opponent plays against me in a way that is beneficial to me, I will show. Otherwise I will muck.
 
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